"Entangled Drama"
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What You Need To Know:
This movie is very long at 152 minutes, though it doesn’t seem to drag because of the many different emotionally charged stories. While the characters are well rounded, they are not likeable. They have many problems and their motivations are not always clear. The movie suffers from a worldview without God. The family tries to understand the odds of whether the transplant would be worth the risk. Without God, their lives have no meaning. Though well made, A CHRISTMAS TALE warrants extreme caution.
Content:
(HH, ABAB, C, LL, V, SS, N, AA, DD, MM) Strong humanist worldview mixed with a few strong anti-Christian statements but one instance of prayer at a Christmas Eve mass; 25 obscenities, zero profanities, two vulgar instances of name calling; man slaps another man, man hits another man; depicted sex between husband and wife; upper male nudity, woman appears in skimpy underwear, classic paintings of nude women; drinking of alcohol and drunkenness; smoking and abusing prescription drugs; and, bad parental role models, dysfunctional family, adultery.
More Detail:
A CHRISTMAS TALE is the story of an extended French family that meets at Christmas to reconcile and determine if any of them could be a bone marrow donor for their mother, who’s afflicted with leukemia.
There are multiple stories as the family meets.
Elizabeth and Henri are estranged since Elizabeth “banished” him from the family by paying off his debts. The cause of their separation is never fully explained. Elizabeth’s son Paul struggles with mental illness, something with which his uncle Ivan struggled as well. Ivan’s wife Sylvia discovers her pent-up romantic feelings for Ivan’s cousin Simon.
All of these stories are against the backdrop of Junon’s impending illness. She must determine if the risk of the bone marrow transplant is less than the risk of the progressing disease. This leads to much discussion of statistics and the odds of living.
The movie is very long at 152 minutes, though it doesn’t seem to drag because of the many different emotionally charged stories. The director has the characters often look at the camera and reveal their inner thoughts. Another unique twist is the use of a circle/iris covering over some of the scenes, highlighting certain aspects of the frame.
While the characters are well rounded, they are not likeable. They have so many problems, and we often don’t fully understand their motivations.
The movie suffers from a worldview without God. The family tries to understand the odds of whether the transplant would be worth the risk. Without God, their lives have no real meaning.
Ivan’s young boys stay up on Christmas Eve to see when “Jesus is going to come,” confusing the Savior with Santa Claus. Ivan replies that Jesus never existed. There is much sarcasm as some of the family members go to Christmas Eve mass with joking statements about “drinking blood.” Even with this during Mass, the troubled teenager Paul goes forward to pray.
Finally, Sylvia and Simon have an affair, which Sylvia’s husband Ivan seems to know about and condone.
Though well produced, A CHRISTMAS TALE warrants extreme caution because of its strong humanist worldview, foul language and sexual content.
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Now more than ever we’re bombarded by darkness in media, movies, and TV. Movieguide® has fought back for almost 40 years, working within Hollywood to propel uplifting and positive content. We’re proud to say we’ve collaborated with some of the top industry players to influence and redeem entertainment for Jesus. Still, the most influential person in Hollywood is you. The viewer.
What you listen to, watch, and read has power. Movieguide® wants to give you the resources to empower the good and the beautiful. But we can’t do it alone. We need your support.
You can make a difference with as little as $7. It takes only a moment. If you can, consider supporting our ministry with a monthly gift. Thank you.
Movieguide® is a 501c3 and all donations are tax deductible.
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