Natal Ás Escuras

I was surprised to read that critics initially panned this movie.

I saw it on cable and found it amusing, entertaining, touching, inspiring and intellectually stimulating. I was quickly involved in the plot and the off-beat characters and remained engrossed through the end.

Even after the movie was over, I continued to worry a about the fate of some of the characters: What happened to the woman with the fatal ailment? Did she end up telling her husband that she was going to die?

I suspect that one reason that critics underestimated this film is that it is different. For example, the humor is not slapstick or laugh-out-loud hysterical. Instead, it is quirky, droll and subtle.

Another reason that critics may have been put off is the fact that the story seems more appropriate for a stage play rather than for a movie.

The action is mostly confined to the interiors of a series of stuck elevators. Hence, there is not much physical activity. Because the setting is static, the movie, naturally, is talky---something that is not to everyone's taste.

This movie has been under-appreciated. As more people are exposed to it on cable, I suspect that it will grow into a cult classic.

Watch this movie before you read some of the moronic reviews below. They are filled with racists and people complaining about racism and those who clearly need the plot spelt out for them. People look for all the flaws instead of enjoying a movie and I feel sad for their lives

Over-all good but not great. it is deff, feel good but leaves questions at the end.

6.4

Of course I had not heard about the 2015 movie "Christmas Eve" prior to sitting down to watch it here in 2024. But then again, I am not usually overly keen on sappy Christmas movies. But every now and again I do go all in December up until Christmas Eve and watch an abundance of these movies. And thus, I had the opportunity to sit down and watch "Christmas Eve", and so I did.

Truthfully, I wasn't really harboring the biggest of expectations to the movie. But perhaps writers Mitch Davis and Tyler McKellar would surprise me with the script that they churned out for the movie.

I have to say that I feel that "Christmas Eve" utterly and totally fell short of being a proper Christmas movie. I found no entertainment, enjoyment or interest in the narrative. I mean, people stuck in elevators and talking hardly constituted as being what I am looking for in Christmas movies. So this movie was a swing and a miss in terms of entertaining me.

The movie has some familiar faces on the cast list, such as Patrick Stewart, Jon Heder, Cheryl Hines, Steve John Shepherd, Taylor James and Gary Cole. Despite the fact that the storyline and script was falling short of entertaining me, then I will say that the acting performances were good.

This movie is definitely not a movie that I will return to watch a second time. Nor is it a movie that I would recommend people looking for Christmas movies to sit down and watch.

My rating of Mitch Davis's 2015 "Christmas Eve" lands on a three out of ten stars.

"Deus ex machina" can be clearly read on the side of the copier repair van at the beginning of the movie(and the trailer), but as opposed to it being the divine intervention plot device to save the protagonist, in Christmas Eve it is the basis of a story where we see God manifested in multiple ways, all from the machine.

The story is slow at times, the dialogue is fair, but has its moments. This is a story designed to make you feel connected to the people around you and maybe even care about a stranger. It is not an action movie, it is not a romantic comedy, it is not 90 minutes of CGI. You have to engage in a little suspension of reality for the given situation and spend the night in an elevator with the characters that have normal lives and experience everyday outcomes.

Not the best Christmas movie I've seen. I would have liked more more time focused on Patrick Stewart's character, but in fairness I've never seen anything where I thought it had too much Patrick Stewart. In the end I took my children(10&4yo) and had less to worry about in the content than I do with prime time television. For that I am immensely thankful and will watch this with my family again next Christmas.

As the message boards and the limited reviews have been somewhat merciless on this good-but-not-great movie, I feel duty bound to write a few good words.

I decided to invest a small amount of money on the film, because I was curious how James Roday would do outside of 'Psych' (which I have generally liked). But I had a pretty good experience watching the movie. Critical and audience reaction doubtless has reflected the fact that it is not a comedy, nor is it particularly warm (!). The writer-director (I believe) wanted to discuss a number of large life issues. (The movie actually might have worked better on some ordinary day, as very few of the subplots actually resolve with reference to the holiday).

Some of these are successful, some not. I particularly enjoyed the musicians in the elevator, and also doctors and patient. The scene with the five millenials (flaky girls, know-it-all, docent, and body builder) worked. So did the duo of Jon Heder and Max Casella. The solo of Patrick Stewart and the James Roday (sigh) did not work so well.

All that said, however, the different reactions of the trapped groups was interesting and dramatic. The critics' views that they are all unlikable is Grinch stuff. The reveals of the interconnections among them (done with some subtlety) were the script at its best.

All in all, a sort of Ship of Fools movie that ultimately worked, maybe because the formula is so strong. The critics and some of our acerbic friends on this site are way too negative.