User reviews

My daughter and I chose to hop into this one sporadically and it was so cute and warming. The variation of overlapping character experiences over the holidays and how they all work together to tell a larger tale of appreciation, gratitude and love during Christmas time is perfect for families and audiences of all ages. A truly heartfelt and palpable yet interestingly diverse assortment of characters across a wideset of ages makes it a movie anyone can relate to. I laughed and smiled!

It's a cute, magical and whimsical new Christmas story that is bound to be a favorite among many animated classics.

It's hard to call this a classic right away, but is it Good? Yes, it's very good.

The director has delivered other projects in live action. This film looks, feels and is written like a good holiday movie performed by capable actors.

The animation is excellent in its realistically rendered environments and caricatured personalities.

The story, or stories, also follow a more mature theme than typical cartoon fare. Parents trying too hard to manage every aspect of the children's lives, an aging single teacher allowing a little too much of her life's disappointments bleed into her teaching, a houseful of kids celebrating Christmas without parents who are unable to get home because of the weather, a shy, nervous twin trying to understand and love her disrespectful and naughty sister, and the main protagonist who ties all of this together: the new kid who's trying to fit in at school, understand his mom's challenges with being a new single parent, and get the nice girl at school to notice him.

It's all charming, funny, sad, redeeming and thoroughly enjoyable.

Highly recommend.

A charming, wholesome family movie that could easily become a yearly rewatch in many households. It finds the sweet spot where it is enjoyable for young children and adults. I would strongly recommend this movie to parents who are looking for something to watch with their kids who may still be a little too young for some of the other Christmas classics. The countless positive messages open a door for many important discussions with your kids, and even adults could benefit from some of the reminders this movie offers. It has a similar feel to Arthur Christmas, so if you enjoyed that movie you may like this one too.

Santa tells the story of "that Christmas", his most difficult Christmas ever. Set in Wellington-on-Sea, England, we follow a bunch of characters whose plans are altered by a fierce snowstorm.

Danny has a crush on Sam but doesn't have the courage to tell her. Danny's Dad was supposed to visit them for the holidays, but he can't make it because of the storm. With his mom having to work on Christmas Day, Danny faces being alone on Christmas.

A Group of parents become stuck in the blizzard, while their children also face spending Christmas without them, but - undaunted - the kids plan on making it their best Christmas ever. There's the twins Sam and Charlie, of which one is nice while the other one is naughty - or is she really?

Ah, and then there's MS Trapper, who might come across as a strict and somewhat unpleasant teacher, but there's far more to this character than meets the eye! And somewhere in there is Santa, who is trying his best to spread the Christmas spirit.

'About Christmas' is a feel-good movie for the whole family. The stunning animation will appeal to young and old. The film is funny overall, but the subtle humour was by far the funniest!

One reviewer said the content wasn't for children. That's the joke. Those jokes are meant to go over the head of children and they do, if they don't I suggest you look at how you aren't your children. What nonsense. Anyway, film is great. British humour and added modern twists like the way we communicate in our little communities. Very heart warming and very pretty scenery. People in Suffolk do not have the same accent as those in the west country though. This is always and issue with anytging set IN Norfolk or Suffolk and it is a shame. There's a lot of locals who would be great in roles. Enjoy.

Netflix offers us a very entertaining animated Christmas movie that brings all the British humor and sweetness to a family pastime with a nice message to enjoy.

Director Simon Otto brings Richard Curtis' script to life with a tenderness and lightness that allows us to enjoy a fun Christmas adventure that manages to bring out emotions and a few tears, too. It's an ensemble story that gives us fun characters with truly emotional stories that allow us to have a simple connection with several of them. Curtis' first foray into animation draws on the same authentic energies that made his previous works so beloved.

Its beautiful messages such as community, kindness, affection and pure love are reflected in a big heart and it is generous with its happy endings, which inevitably invites us to have a film full of positivity and generosity when it comes to making us feel delighted and comfortable with what we are watching.

It's a simple story. We won't find any major plot challenges within the story and you may never feel that evil is present, but even so the film manages to give us moments of tension and satisfaction in equal parts, making us experience a rather pleasant and delightful family pastime.

Netflix hits the mark again with its animated releases. Although the film may not be the most spectacular of the year in the genre, it has its British charm that makes it totally enjoyable and pleasant, allowing you to have a good time without having to try too hard, which helps to win over the little ones and the older ones in equal measure.

This will be available for all on Netflix from the 4th of December i believe.

I've just watched this at the premiere and its beautifully made and perfect for watching with the family to leave you all with that super feel good factor.

Lovely storytelling, quick, witty and heart warming.

The focus is on a small town in the UK by the sea side, which has a small community, all with their own sadness's and mini back stories. The lighthouse man played by Bill is also focused on and he comes across old and in his ways of tradition of the town on what is done annual building up to the end of the year and how this year it seems to all be going wrong for him too.

I wont get any further into it but the story quickly picks up place and explodes with life and most importantly warmth and love.

That Christmas is a heartwarming holiday film that beautifully captures the essence of the festive season. The movie revolves around the intertwined lives of several families, each dealing with their own unique challenges and joys during Christmas time. The storyline is both touching and humorous, offering a perfect blend of emotional moments and lighthearted scenes that are sure to resonate with audiences of all ages.

One of the standout aspects of "That Christmas" is its emphasis on the importance of family, love, and togetherness. The movie reminds us that, despite the hustle and bustle of the holiday season, the true spirit of Christmas lies in the connections we share with our loved ones.

Overall "That Christmas" is a delightful and uplifting film that will leave you with a warm, fuzzy feeling long after the credits roll. It's a must-watch for anyone looking to get into the holiday spirit and experience the magic of Christmas through the lens of a beautifully crafted story.

This movie is not written like every other movie. The characters are likeable and act like real people, the jokes are funny, the plot takes a course you didn't exactly expect from a Christmas movie, and it leaves you feeling so warm.

The voice acting is stellar and complimented by incredible performance choices from the animation team. Not to mention the beautiful rendering, lighting and effects. Well done DNEG!

The cast of characters is vast and somehow, in the span of an hour and a half, their storylines are fleshed out and tied together beautifully.

What a pleasant surprise!!! I cannot wait to rewatch this film already to enjoy the visuals, the dialogue, the memorable scenes, the unlikely friendship between a student and a teacher, and most of all to feel the amazing feelings this movie made me feel.

I must admit I found "Love Actually" to be far too saccharine-sweet for my taste and don't think of it at all when considering my favourite Christmas movies, but here Richard Curtis has a second crack at the season to be jolly with this movie, based on recent short stories he's written and published. The twist this time is that he's adapted them into an animated feature, directed by Simon Otto and featuring the voices of such prominent actors as Brian Cox, Bill Nighy and Jodie Whittaker, amongst many others.

It's pretty clear that we're back in Curtisland with the familiar use of multiple plot strands, gentle ribald humour, a touch of drama and a big heartwarming finale with a few Easter Eggs, just to mix up my festive seasons, thrown in too, with post-it messages replacing hand-held notice-boards, some more kooky dancing, a happy-ever-after (kiddie) love story and even a cheeky nod to "Love Actually" itself thrown in for good measure.

The plot or plots are simple enough to follow as a bunch of young kids are accidentally stranded at home while their parents are caught out in the wild on a road trip by a huge blizzard. While the mums and dads await rescue in their overturned Volkswagen camper van, the main focus is on the kids they left behind, who happily make hay while the snow falls, adapting Christmas to their own ends.

Bookended by a tribute to more obviously fantasy-filled Christmas fare by including the Christmas Eve mission of a hard-pressed Scots-accented Santa and reindeer, as ever Curtis seeks to cover a lot of bases with various messages of goodwill, family and love and while you can't quite escape the odd incursion of cloying sentimentality and despite the absence of a really memorable set-piece scene or even joke, I was happy to be transported to Wellington-on-Sea and safely returned to reality with a warm glow and smile on my face.

The animation was suitably colourful and inventive, the piece is well-voiced as you'd expect from the cast and there's a good mix of modern and classic Yuletide tunes on the soundtrack too.

All in all, this one makes for a good addition to the canon of entertaining Christmas movies and certainly cheered my wife and I, this approaching Christmas.

This film had lots of potential with some great voice actors let down by a very poor script and every single kind of 'political correct' statement of inclusion, diversity, and equity rammed into every inch. I am all for adding in the right message but this was just trying too hard and made it feel like 'message' rather than a movie.

My kids enjoyed it well enough but I don't think this a going to be one that we watch every year on repeat like the usual favourites. Netflix and the other streaming channels need to just bring good honest fun like Klaus which is our firm favourite and their best new Christmas movie in recent years.

Before watching That Christmas, I rewatched Love Actually; both were written by Richard Curtis and focus on multiple narratives revolving around love at Christmas. This time working with fellow British writer, Peter Souter, and being his first time working in the world of animation, they've created a story portraying love during the modern festive that dodges many of the pitfalls of Curtis' 2003 rom-com.

Based on a trilogy of children's books written by Curtis and with Simon Otto's first go on the directorial sleigh, this animated fantasy-comedy explores the lives of a tightknit community in Wellington-on-Sea as they're faced with the worst snowstorm in history that throws everyone's plans into chaos with tales of love both romantic and platonic, loneliness and even Santa (Brian Cox) being in for more than he bargained for.

One of the biggest improvements of Curtis' latest festive offering, is the story does a much better job of blending and bringing the characters of the seaside town together focusing on a smaller scale setting. Even the Love Actually director said it was overwhelming focusing on a massive ensemble cast of stars over 20 years ago. Whilst the film feels like a jolly traditional family yuletide romp, it explores the darker aspects of the holidays often felt today such as broken families, bereavement and loneliness, all of which were topics skimmed over in Love Actually. Curtis and Souter have achieved a wonderful slow-burn which comes together within 91 minutes.

That Christmas, is a small but delightful gift and another Yuletide winner for Netflix, fitting perfectly with the likely of Klaus (2019). Curtis and Souter's screenplay manages to strike a balance between love and heartbreak which in my opinion, makes for a more satisfying film compared to former's last Chrimbo outing.

Set in the town of Wellington-On-Sea, Santa Claus narrates the 3 days events that takes place. Danny is a lonely kid to a divorced mom who works as a nurse and he has a crush on a girl whom he is scared to ask her out. Sam and Charlie are twin sisters, with one being very naughty and the other Santa approved. There is a group of kids led by Bernadette who doesn't want to follow the Christmas tradition her parents want her while the parents want a time out from the kids. Then there is Danny's teacher Mrs. Trapper who is also lonely. On the Christmas eve, the weather plays the spoilsport, testing the town's people as well as Santa himself. How does these bunch of people truly yearn for the Christmas gifts they deserve and keep the spirit of Christmas alive, forms rest of the story.

I wasn't expecting an animation film with multiple characters, each with their own subplot and them claiming to not like the goody Christmas film like Love Actually. This was a perfect Christmas film and the characters do stand out. The best ones obviously being the two twins and Danny - Mrs. Trapper. There is enough of emotional moments in each of these stories while keeping it on a lighter note. The humor tries to be loud consistently. The third act apart from predictability, turns out a bit weaker and that is solely because of the sub-plot Bernadette and her sister being not as strong as the other two stories. Yet, the film still turns out to be the one with it's heart in the right place. The multiple storyline does feel overwhelming but the likable characters carry it forward in an engaging way.

Loved it, like a warm hug, has a wonderful patter and easy to follow storyline. Visually it's very pleasing, a fab cast of well known voices and the storyline is great. Lots of little jokes and references throughout that maybe only grownups will get but this just adds to the enjoyment. This will be added to our Christmas watch list ever year, I'd say it's the same / similar vibe to Arthur Christmas. Also soundtrack is full of great Christmas tunes. Would definitely entertain children aged 5 ish and up, younger ones may not follow the plot - our 3 and 4 year old would not be interested.

Worth a watch over the Christmas season.

It's from the writer of Love Actually, which is a cloying slog that husbands must endure each December in order to foist a retaliatory viewing of Die Hard or Lethal Weapon upon their wives. This movie is nowhere near as smarmy or idiotic as Love Actually; but it has a similar ensemble structure insofar as there are three separate stories that tangentially intersect instead of one primary narrative. The animation is well-done, the adult voice actors are mostly good and some of the visual gags are funny. The movie's heart is clearly in the right place: it wants to be a feel-good family Christmas movie rather than some subversion or bitter denunciation. Unfortunately it only partially succeeds. The first two acts are probably too slow and unfocused to hold young kids' attention; but the script isn't quite sharp or novel enough to appeal to older kids or adults.

Overall it's a fine but forgettable diversion, a nice but not particularly imaginative variation on a familiar theme.

Set in the Suffolk coast town of Wellington-on-Sea in the days leading up to Christmas, a series of interconnected events occur such as new kid Danny Williams (Jack Wisniewski) dealing with being unable to approach his crush, Sam Beccles (Zazie Hayhurst) , and his divorced dad failing to come to visit while his mom (Jodie Whitaker) is forced to work during the holiday. Uptight and neurotic Sam ) is worried her rambunctious mischievous twin Charlie (Sienna Sayer) will end up on Santa's (Brian Cox) naughty list, and a group of parents stranded during a blizzard result in their children Bernie (India Brown), Eve (Bronte Smith), Nisha (Kuhu Agarwal), Teddy (Freddie Spry), and Scarlett (Ava Talbot) by themselves on Christmas Eve. With all these issues befalling the town, Santa prepares some special gifts to save their Christmas.

That Christmas is the sophomore effort of British-American animation studio Locksmith Animation who had previously made their mark with Ron's Gone Wrong (albeit more critically than commercially as it was a Disney-Fox acquisition released during Covid). Much like Ron's Gone Wrong, That Christmas had been intended for theatrical release through 20th Century Fox prior to the acquisition with Locksmith then considering partnering with Warner Bros. Prior to Netflix acquiring worldwide distribution. The film is written by noted British screenwriter Richard Curtis in conjunction with Peter Stouter and is based on select stories from Curtis' own collection That Christmas and Other Stories. If you're familiar with Curtis' style and method, that's fully on display here in service of some solid animation from Locksmith.

Much like Curtis' prior works like Love Actually (which is comedicly name dropped in the film), That Christmas is an ensemble film with a quasi-anthology aspect wherein all the stories tie together through some narrative device. The film is primarily focused on its young cast with the adult performers primarily being in the background for support and I felt it did a nice job of using familiar elements to create something very warm and seasonal. Being both a British (in part) production and a Curtis penned effort, it should surprise no one there's a bevy of British talent making up the cast such as Jodie Whitaker as Mrs. Williams, Alex Macqueen as Mr. Forrest, and many others who provide strong background support in service of the talented younger cast of unknowns more at the forefront. Fiona Shaw is probably my personal favorite as schoolteacher Miss Trapper who at first seems like a standard stern disciplinarian but develops a rapport with her student Danny with the two gaining some insight into the holiday season and Trapper revealing some inner vulnerability she's carried with her. The animation from Locksmith looks quite good and while there are good details put to work in depicting Wellington-on-Sea's warm winter lights, powdery snow, and coastal waters, the character models are deliberately kept much simpler and allow for some good comic reactions as well as expressive character moments that work both comedicly and dramatically. I will admit the film isn't perfect as it did take some time for it to find its footing, particularly in the opening where it is pretty obvious this is a collection of independent short stories that have been tied together for a full movie and were it not for Curtis as writer it would risk feeling like a Direct-to-video Disney sequel made of TV episodes or Secret Life of Pets 2. I also felt sometimes the jokes could flirt with being a bit much such as the opening school play that features a "reworking" of The Nativity that seems to be Curtis making a commentary on performative "reboots" that feature things like gender swapping or being as the play puts it "more culturally aware". There are some funny reactions to that sequence, but it did kind of feel like maybe it was a bit ham fisted and overly cynical in what's effectively the stage setter for the rest of the film even if Curtis manages to just pull it off.

I enjoyed That Christmas and felt it utilized a talented younger cast of unknowns to create a warm holiday diversion that fell appropriately into the Holiday/Christmas season. I'm not sure it'll make its way into my annual rotation viewing, but like The Christmas Chronicles it's warm and familiar like visiting a good friend's home for the holidays.

When giving a review of a Christmas movie there is always the fear of being called out as a Scrooge but this was such a shame. Great cast, lovely animation but dull, messy story - lacking any real points of interest especially for children.

The whole thing is so on the nose, virtuous and preaching that nothing really has meaning. At least you used to have to wait till the end of He-Man before you received lectures on morality and humanity. This just never lets up on being righteous....

The kids lost interest and I couldn't find the enthusiasm to fain interest either...

Sadly a very forgettable movie which if it didn't have Richard Curtis and a Christmas setting would never have seen the light of day.

I'm not gonna lie, I really wanted this to be something truly special as a Christmas movie. The kind that could've been something a real special tradition on Netflix since Klaus. And I was let down by this one. That Christmas had so much potential to be a great movie for the holidays, but it just ended up as completely mid. It had the right tools with great animation and I honestly think that Daniel's side plot should've been the only plot worth focusing because I see the heart coming from it does come to the right place. But it overall had way too many plot holes that they barely had any connection to one another. Like how the kids plan to celebrate Christmas their way, parents getting lost and unable to be home for Christmas, and a naughty twin sister seeking redemption. All that is hard to know what the movie wants to mainly be about. Plus, the comedy is stale and relies on having the tone modernized. If you're planning on watching this for Christmas, then I simply recommend that it's a one-time watch. There are better Christmas movies such as Klaus and Christmas Chronicles. I'm not gonna lie, 2024 has not been a good year for Netflix when it comes to animated films. Sure, we've gotten some good ones such as Ultraman Rising and Orion and the Dark. But for the most part, Netflix has released movies that are either average or just straight up bad. So the best I'll say to Netflix is, well, better luck next year.

It has been ages since I last watched an animated movie, and when I found one connected to the Christmas theme, I couldn't resist.

A snowstorm hits a small township right before Christmas, casting a shadow of doubt over the celebrations. The story revolves around themes of friendship, love, family, loneliness, and finding joy in the little things.

Told in a simple yet charming manner, the movie leaves you smiling throughout. It subtly touches on various subjects, such as the real intentions of a mischievous child, the reasons behind the school headmistress's strict and lonely demeanor, how an elder sibling takes care of her siblings, and more.

The animation is well-done, helping you connect with the story. While the movie is primarily intended for kids, and therefore lacks depth, it still carries its charm. The song in the end-credit montage is catchy and makes you want to sing along.

This movie truly captures the Christmas spirit and is a light watch at just 90 minutes. If you're in the mood for something breezy and simple, this could be a good pick-just don't expect anything extraordinary.

#PranuReviews #ThatChristmas #ThatChristmasReview.

Not horrible but no urge to watch again. There are also some very old and false bias throughout the movie, that I find very problematic... you always know that a movie is written by men, when a woman who lives alone with no children is portrayed as lonely and miserable. Can we please stop this ignorant and false narrative? Especially when every study in this area shows that single and childfree women are not only happier, but also live longer than married women with children.

But of course men can't imagine women can possibly be happy with no man in their lives. And without filling out their 'duty' as a mom.

I quite liked this. Very heartwarming. Great animation, great direction and a lovely story. My only minor complaints are around the inclusion of those typical additions that are included to supposedly please modern audiences. Honestly these kinds of things will only prove to make the film feel dated later on. Let's not forget it was the Telegraph that declared the end of snow only a decade ago and now so much snow is written to indicate that it's a climate catastrophe as mentioned more than once. They could've left all that out, and it wouldn't have made a lick of difference to the story. Otherwise I loved it. I loved the over arching theme story, and characters. I believe you will too. Great job netflix.