Brian Coxas SantaThe story
About That Christmas
In an English seaside town in the run-up to Christmas, the worst snowstorm anyone can remember cuts the place off and leaves a group of children stranded without their parents on Christmas Eve. Three interlinked stories follow the youngsters, their families and a strict teacher, while Father Christmas himself has to find a way through the blizzard to reach them.
The CineClaus verdict
Richard Curtis gives a snowed-in English seaside town the treatment he once gave London in December: a handful of small stories, stitched together and aimed at the same warm finish. It is broad and sometimes too tidy, and the gags lean on rude humour more than you might expect.
Brian Cox makes a gruff and rather lovely Father Christmas, though, and the kindness feels earned. Parents raised on Love Actually will spot his fingerprints everywhere. Save it for a wet Saturday in early December with primary-age children, who will get the most from it.
The family desk
Can the kids watch?
Our take: mild threat and rude humour earn the PG, and the tensest stretch is a search for a little girl lost in the blizzard, which resolves kindly, so most children from about five will cope.
Content advice & accessibility
- Our age guidance
- Editorial, separate from the official PG certificate, and never looser than it.
