Nativity 3: Dude, Where's My Donkey?!

Where's My Donkey? Continues the festive fun with a delightful mix of humor and heart. This installment sees Mr. Maddens once again at the helm, as he prepares for the school's Christmas production. However, chaos ensues when his beloved donkey, who plays a crucial role in the nativity play, goes missing just days before the big performance.

As Mr. Maddens and his enthusiastic team of students embark on a frantic search for the missing donkey, the film unfolds into a charming adventure filled with quirky characters and comedic mishaps. The narrative cleverly intertwines the themes of friendship, community, and the importance of teamwork, all while maintaining the lighthearted spirit that fans of the series have come to love.

The vibrant cast adds depth to the story, with each character bringing their own unique flair to the challenges they face. The film is packed with catchy musical numbers and festive cheer, making it a perfect holiday viewing choice for families.

Nativity 3: Where's My Donkey? Is a delightful continuation of the Nativity franchise that captures the essence of the holiday season. With its engaging plot and heartwarming messages, it's sure to leave audiences smiling and filled with holiday spirit.

The first two Nativity films (especially the first one) have become family favourites, so it is no big surprise to see Debbie Issit trying to keep it going.

Unfortunately the franchise comes unstuck considerably with this third outing and really should have spelt the end of our trips to Saint Bernadettes.

From a very silly plot (even by 'Nativity' standards) to a miscast male/female lead (Martin Clunes and Catherine Tate), to some of the kids from the first film still making out they are in primary school when they are clearly of secondary age, this just doesn't work as well as the first two.

The problem with improvised films is that they are hit and miss, and this falls in the latter category more often that not. There are some very cringy moments here where clearly even the supporting actors (Ralf Little/Suzie Blake) are struggling to sell this.

Poor Marc Wooton has to carry this as Mr Poppy, as they rely even more so on him dressing up/doing silly voices etc to try to get this over the line. It's worth a watch just to see him, if nothing else.

The franchise took a break after this, before returning with an ill-advised soft reboot...that didn't work.

I had to sit through this dreck as I was staying at someone's house & they were sat in front of it like a potted plant. Not moving, not showing any visible signs of sentience but still watching it.

At one point she spoke up, "I think this is made for children."

At this point I lost my composure. "Made for children? It's made BY children and I hope they're ****ing orphans."

Lets get this straight - I went to see this film with 5 kids who are oddly-obsessed with Martin Clunes, and that's the only reason we went to see it. His name - and apparently overly-large ears - became a running joke amongst my 2 eldest boys (4 and 6 yr old boys) because my 14 yr old and 10 yr old nephews saw a sketch mocking his name once on Little Britain. That is the only reason we went to see the film. My boys didn't even know what he looked like.

So off we went, along with my 6yr old niece, and i expected nothing.

Given that i had a few good laughs myself, a short sleep about halfway through for 10 minutes, and got to hear all of the children laughing hard at various points in the movie, my expectation was exceeded - the ludicrous price of kids cinema tickets notwithstanding.

It was probably a little too long for the 4 yr old, but he stood in the aisle and danced for about the last 15 minutes, so i can't have been bad, and he is still laughing at some of the jokes today.

It isn't the greatest kids film but, imho, certainly isn't the worst - a few funny moments for parents (probably not quite enough, but then again, its a kids film) - and for once a British live action film...... so overall, i'm glad we went - and given that it was enjoyed by kids from 4-14, which i think has got to be a rarity - it was definitely a good way to spend 2.5 hours - perhaps a slight shame it wasn't half an hour shorter......

As predicted, ten minutes in and I could take it no longer. And then I read the synopsis and was so glad I didn't bother. I've never been a huge fan of Clunes and having somehow suffered through Nativity 1&2, I am definitely not a fan of the jack@ss known as Mr Poppy. Finding out that it is a film about Martin losing his memory only made it clearer in my mind that I must never, ever watch this film.

It's a shame to see the gorgeous Adam Garcia involved. Looks like he'll do anything for money.

I can't score it, because I will NEVER finish it.