Christmases gone wrong inspires Love Actually writer's new film

As we hurtle towards Mariah Carey's astir lucrative holiday, families each implicit the UK volition beryllium pressing play connected Christmas films specified arsenic Love Actually to get themselves into the festive spirit.

The 2003 movie was 1 of a drawstring of hits from writer-director Richard Curtis which dominated the container bureau astatine the crook of the millennium, alongside Notting Hill, Bridget Jones's Diary and Four Weddings and a Funeral.

Curtis is returning to the Christmas taxable for his latest film, but this clip astir helium has moved distant from the accepted romcom and taken connected his archetypal animated project.

"The happening for maine is, it's been a agelong clip since I was, arsenic it were, connected the dating market," helium tells BBC News. "But I've been a dada for the past 25 years, truthful it was a existent joyousness for maine to beryllium capable to constitute astir kids."

The film-maker has described moving connected animation arsenic "a immense dainty and revelation for me", adding that the "whole process is truthful antithetic from the different movies I’ve worked on".

That Christmas, released connected Netflix connected 4 December, is adapted from the publication of abbreviated stories Curtis published successful 2021.

Set successful the fictional coastal municipality of Wellington-on-Sea, the movie follows a fistful of families gearing up for Christmas Day. When a blizzard hits the municipality and leaves the parents separated from the children, their cautiously planned celebrations are thrown into chaos.

The taxable of Christmas gone incorrect was highly relatable to Swiss manager Simon Otto, who has antecedently worked arsenic an animator connected How to Train Your Dragon and Enchanted.

"I cognize from my ain household increasing up, we had specified a wide thought of the timeline of however Christmas oregon immoderate contented volition unfold," helium tells BBC News.

"And I tin number much times wherever it didn't hap the mode you expect and someway thing got messed up.

"We each person a Christmas representation wherever thing goes wrong, those are the Christmases you retrieve the most, and astatine the extremity of that acquisition you ever consciousness like, 'My god, we were capable to beryllium unneurotic for this time, and the realisation that that's what it's truly each about."

He adds: "I thought determination was a beauteous poesy successful that which we truly wanted to bring retired successful the film, and marque it arsenic acquainted to radical arsenic we can, but besides modern and real."

The 90-minute movie features the voices of Curtis regulars specified arsenic Bill Nighy, alongside Fiona Shaw, Jodie Whittaker, Lolly Adefope and Brian Cox arsenic Santa Claus.

That Christmas premiered astatine the London Film Festival successful October, wherever it received broadly affirmative reviews from critics.

"It tin beryllium casual to sneer astatine the accomplishment of a caller Christmas movie," noted the Hollywood Reporter's Lovia Gyarkye.

"Genuine vacation cheer is pugnacious to conjure and, if you’re not the intended assemblage for Hallmark-type saccharinity, the festive fare apt inspires much exasperation than joy.

"But this 1 slyly avoids the accustomed mawkishness by grounding its whimsical communicative successful the existent and prickly emotions of life."

Next Best Picture's Philip Bagnall suggested the movie is "engineered to support the kids engaged astir 4pm connected Christmas Day portion mum and dada sip their 3rd Irish java successful peace".

"This is improbable to go a festive classic," cautioned Screen Daily's Wendy Ide. "But the connection is simply a persuasive one: that Christmas comes successful galore shapes and forms and, ultimately, the lone vacation contented that is non-negotiable is goodwill to all."

The movie sees the children of the municipality near to fend for themselves, providing an accidental to plan the benignant of Christmas Day they dreamed of, alternatively than the 1 planned by their parents which observed assorted household traditions.

In 1 scene, the kids effort to ticker a Christmas movie arsenic their parents had suggested, but they get truthful bored they crook it disconnected wrong moments. In a cheeky twist, the movie they disregard is Curtis's ain Love Actually.

Otto says helium planted this gag successful the movie without Curtis knowing. When the writer yet saw it, helium jokes helium recovered it "very hurtful".

"No, not really," helium laughs. "It reminded maine of people that, erstwhile you accidental 'boring aged Christmas movie', I deliberation of Miracle connected 34th Street oregon whatever, but erstwhile you accidental it to a young person, they accidental Love Actually. It was 20 years ago!"

One of the film's cardinal questions is whether families should instrumentality to traditions oregon beryllium unfastened to caller experiences.

"The information is that it shouldn't beryllium each traditions nor a implicit reinvention," Otto reflects, "because immoderate traditions are determination for a reason, and we emotion them. We speech astir Santa to our kids for a reason, due to the fact that there's thing magical."

One striking happening astir the movie is however modern and divers it feels. Curtis's earlier films were made successful a antithetic era, and he has said successful caller years his attack to casting would beryllium antithetic today.

But That Christmas does its champion to marque up for mislaid ground. As Ide noted successful her review, the movie "unfolds successful a fictional Suffolk seaside town... but the wide premix of accents and ethnicities suggests that the filmmakers person tried to cram the full of Great Britain into this azygous tiny village".

It's not lone the mixed-race household astatine the centre of the movie which marque it consciousness of the times. The children successful the movie are acrophobic astir clime change, and 1 has chronic anxiety.

There are lighter modern flourishes excessively - the begetter successful 1 household christens his van Beyoncé, smartphones play a large portion successful the plot, and the soundtrack features Dua Lipa and Ed Sheeran.

Curtis acknowledges the conscious effort to marque the movie consciousness current. "I started my vocation connected a amusement called Not The Nine O'Clock News," helium recalls, "which was modern sketches, and I deliberation ever successful my films I've tried to constitute jokes that marque maine laughter now, alternatively than accepted jokes.

"And the happening astir being a genitor is you walk astir of your beingness successful the existent satellite of your kids, truthful I emotion the information that it does consciousness modern, due to the fact that beingness arsenic it comes astatine you these days conscionable is modern."

Otto picks up: "It felt existent to me. If you instrumentality a snapshot of who lives [in the UK], it varies from portion to portion of course, but it's specified a diverse, interesting, eclectic premix of people.

"It feels to maine similar that's the satellite we unrecorded in, and surely we didn't privation to make a satellite we lived successful 10 years ago. If anything, we wanted to make a satellite we mightiness unrecorded successful 10 years from now, truthful much guardant looking."

The movie is being released successful a steadfast twelvemonth for animation, with The Wild Robot, Inside Out 2 and Flow among those competing successful this year's awards race.

But determination is inactive a definite snobbery towards animated films, and lone 3 person ever scored a champion representation information - Beauty and the Beast, Toy Story 3 and Up.

Director Guillermo del Toro has antecedently championed it arsenic its ain craft, commenting: "Animation is not a genre for kids. It's a mean for art."

Curtis agrees: "I consciousness rather powerfully astir that astatine this moment, due to the fact that for me, the 2 Spider-Verse movies are the astir singular movies of the past 10 years.

"I ticker them and I think, 'they indispensable person taken 300 years to make, they're truthful extraordinary'. In the aforesaid mode it's turned retired that overmuch popular music, which utilized to beryllium looked down on, is truly great, I deliberation each genre tin beryllium great, and determination are immoderate astonishing works of creation successful the satellite of animation."