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This Christmas (2007)
Director: Preston A. Whitmore II
Movie review
From Time Out New York
Like sock-it-to-me cake ruined by too much sugar, This Christmas is cloying empty calories. But then again, the film must follow a much larger recipe, one that keeps the wheels of holiday commerce greased. With all apologies to Tolstoy, happy families are all alike—and so are the plots of yuletide movies about big broods.
Several alums from Dreamgirls and Stomp the Yard make up the cast, including R&B star Chris Brown from the latter, here as the youngest member of the Whitfield clan—the one who sings two songs, which just may remind viewers that Brown’s second album came out two weeks ago. Presiding over the family is Loretta Devine as Ma Dear, ecstatic that her sax-playing eldest son (Elba) has returned to Los Angeles for the first time in four years, joining his five siblings. Two sisters wrestle in the rain; the matriarch is confronted; a secret marriage is revealed. But we all know how everything will end. What no one could have anticipated, however, is the interminable second of two Soul Train lines, in which the actors perform as “themselves”—as if writer-director Preston A. Whitmore II had to convince us that much harder how much fun movies like this are.
Author: Melissa Anderson
Time Out New York Issue 634: November 22-28, 2007
User reviews of this film
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- ashley said...
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Posted on Mar 17 2008 01:14
I saw half of the movie on the internet. xD
I still thought it was very well thought out and had a very interesting conflict, er.. conflict[s]. It was fantastic, I hope to see the rest ;D
P.S. Chris is adorable. - Report as inappropriate
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- MARIAM said...
- Posted on Nov 24 2007 19:34 DA MOVIE "THIS CHRISTMAS" WAZ DA BEST MOVIE EVER!!! PLUS MA BABii CHRIS BROWN a.k.a PRETTY BOY WAZ IN IT!!! aND DA COMEDY WAZ JUST OUT OF DA WORLD!! DERE WAZ DUBBIN AND EVERYTHING!!! AND IT WAZ ABOUT A HAPPY FAMILY!!! BUT TRUST ME DiiQZ MOVIE WAZ 2 DIE 4!!! N IT DONT GET BETTA DAN DiiQZ!!! 2 ALL MA PEEPZ WHO HAVEN'T WATCH DiiQZ MOVIE GET YA ASS OF DA COCH AND GO WATCH DiiQZ SHIT!!! AND SUPPORT MA BOO CHRIS BROWN IN DiiQZ SHIT!!!!!
- Report as inappropriate
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- BRITTANY said...
- Posted on Nov 24 2007 15:22 THIS MOVIE IS THE BEST MOVIE EVER. IM GOIN AGAIN TONITE TO SEE IT. CHRIS BROWN IS SOOO FREAKIN SEXXI AND HIS VOICE IS SOOO OMG LOL
- Report as inappropriate
Cast & crew
Director: Preston A. Whitmore II
Cast: Loretta Devine, Idris Elba, Regina King, Chris Brown, Delroy Lindo, Sharon Leal, Lauren London, Columbus Short, Laz Alonzo, Keith Robinson, Mekhi Phifer, David Banner full cast
Rated: PG-13
Duration: 120 mins
US Release: Nov 21 2007
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