Just Another Christmas

Movie review by Barbara Shulgasser-Parker, Common Sense Media
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Common Sense says

age 13+

Dad learns lessons during the holidays; language.

NR 2020 100 minutes
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Kids say

age 13+

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  • Just Another Christmas Movie: Leandro Hussam
  • Just Another Christmas Movie: Scene 2
  • Just Another Christmas Movie: Scene 3

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A Lot or a Little?

The parents' guide to what's in this movie.

What Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that Just Another Christmas is a Brazilian fantasy comedy (in Portuguese with English subtitles) in which a man wakes up every morning to Christmas, his least favorite day of the year. He learns he has amnesia about the rest of the year between Christmases, weeks and months during which he's done lots of stupid things (including having an affair), leaving little time for him to appreciate his kids and wife. Language includes "s--t," "pr--k," "ass," "damn," "screw," and "hell." Adults smoke cigarettes and drink alcohol. A few quick sexual references are made. A man falls off a roof and suffers amnesia. A woman dies of a disease. A man sees his heart surgery scar and it surprises him. He learns he lost a testicle.

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What's the Story?

JUST ANOTHER CHRISTMAS is a cross between It's a Wonderful Life and Groundhog Day, in which Jorge (Leandro Hassum), a busy dad who hates Christmas and the holiday's predictable, trying, and repetitive family gatherings, slowly learns how much his life is passing him by. When he falls off the roof reluctantly playing Santa Claus for the family, he wakes up to find that while it feels as if only one day has passed, it's Christmas again, a full year later. He has no memory of the past year, and with seemingly no time to recover from the previous nightmarish Christmas, he's faced with it again. His wife Laura (Elisa Pinheiro) has to fill him in on the year's events and what the one-year-older kids have accomplished, but even on Christmas he's still too busy to spend time with them. The relatives all have the same quirks and issues. But most important, each passing year reveals how Jorge is wasting his time on unimportant things. Christmas after Christmas, he learns the frivolities he's wasted that precious time on -- an affair, a divorce. They've kept him from being with his kids and appreciating his wife. In this time loop, he only remembers Christmas, so it isn't long before he wakes one day to meet his grown daughter's baby and to learn of a tragic diagnosis. The next time he wakes up, it's to the grief left behind. Will Jorge finally learn what matters?

Is It Any Good?

Just Another Christmas has its heart in the right place, with its emphasis on enjoying the moments we have with loved ones, rather than on wasting time on unimportant distractions. But the script delays those wonderful sentiments far too long with silliness and clichés, and viewers who might enjoy the movie's most touching moments at the end may bail out long before those enjoyable moments arrive. Much of the first half is a series of repetitive jokes delivered badly as if by stand-up comedians mugging and over-reacting. The movie's time loop gimmick gets old fast and, with little originality to draw us in, it's a hard slog through to the film's sweet, worthwhile ending. Viewers who give it a chance may be pleasantly surprised.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about why someone might dislike holiday time. Do you think having a Christmas birthday would ruin the holiday for you? Why or why not?

  • Why do you think it takes so long for Jorge to learn the movie's lesson? What is the movie telling us about wasting time on silly things?

  • How does this compare to the similar comedy Groundhog Day? What are the similarities? Differences?

Movie Details

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