Post by BIGFANBOY on Nov 21, 2007 7:43:21 GMT -5
THIS CHRISTMAS
Review by Gary Dean Murray
Tyler Perry and his films have brought a new understanding of what black cinema can be. In a film world where African-American actors are pimps and drug dealers, Mr. Perry has brought a sense of dignity to the community. In the process he has also made a ton of money. Since the only color Hollywood truly sees and understands in green, it would make sense that others would follow his lead and craft films along this genre line. So comes the feature by Preston A. Whitmore II, This Christmas.
This Christmas is the story is of family and the strains of being together during the holiday. Mom Whitfield (Loretta Devine) is having all her children home, a rarity with such a large brood. She secretly lives with Joe (Delroy Lindo). Some of the kids do not approve of this for any reason. But a part of her heart is with her wayward husband. The kids have a soft spot in their hearts for displaced dad, a musician who travels the world, playing gigs anywhere and everywhere. No one has seen him for years but some in the family still miss him more than they let on.
Since the relations are together, the kids decide that some decisions should be made. Some members think that Mom should sell her dry cleaning business and her house, downsizing her life and the kids splitting up her money. Lisa (Regina King) is leading this front, being pushed by her husband. Unknown to her, hubby has a real estate deal and needs the cash fast to make his dream work. Lisa also doesn’t know that her man is cheating on her with his real estate partner.
While the house has been anti-music for years (on Mom’s demand), it looks as if some members have been secretly working on the ‘little black dots’. Baby (Chris Brown), the youngest is itching to be a performer like his father an oldest brother. And he does have vocal skills. Also, just about every person in the household has a secret lurking in the background, from breaking laws to breaking hearts. Of course with grown-ups, there are sex problems both in the lack and overabundance categories. All of this builds toward Christmas Day and the explosion of tensions. Secrets will be revealed and people confronted.
It is very hard to write about the plot of This Christmas without giving away its secrets, even though some secrets can be seen coming from frame one. This is an ensemble drama, so individual cast members have to wait for their moment to shine. Delroy Lindo has a hard job in being the man out, not a member of the Whitfield brood but still tied with the group by being Mom’s boyfriend. He is just a great actor playing the Alpha Male in a group of Alpha Males. When he gets that moment to stand up, Delroy does so with solid grace. The wisdom he generates comes from the road traveled. Chris Brown is another actor who gets a great instant in the film. He sings at this club, showing off this unknown talent to his brothers and sisters. It is the show stopping moment in the play. Regina King does some wonderful work in This Christmas as Lisa; the sister left behind to care for Mom. She is put upon by everyone in the family and wears it as if she were Atlas holding up the world. During these few days together, our heroine finally finds her backbone with her family. Her empowerment becomes the strongest moments in the screenplay.
There are things I liked in the movie. Showing an upwardly mobile black family who loves and supports one another is still rare in the cinema. There wasn’t any bad language. The fact that everyone sits down to have dinner harks back to 1950’s sensibilities. But there were so many cliches in the screenplay, both in narrative and lines. At times the actors speak platitudes rather than actual dialogue. There were times when one can say the lines before the characters actually speak them. It is weak writing. The direction is lacking. With so many performers and so many styles of acting, someone needed to keep everyone working as a collective and Preston A. Whitmore II just lets them do their own thing. It is a scattershot approach that doesn’t work well.
In the final analysis, This Christmas is a mixed bag flick that has more going for it than most Christmas films. It is not a great film but a slight entertainment.
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