That Christmas is a new 2024 comedy movie made for the holiday season. It is one of the many holiday movies made for families to watch together, during the cold and cozy season. The film shows how the family and friends learn to persevere despite the blizzard in That Christmas. Netflix released news of the upcoming movie, revealing the voice actor for Santa Claus. The official Netflix trailer announced the film will be released on December 4th.
That Christmas
That Christmas is a holiday story of the people in Wellington-On-Sea. Everything starts fine until a snowstorm hits and ruins many plans. Some parents were on a short trip away, leaving the kids with other caretakers. One boy, Danny, was eagerly hoping for his dad to come home. The kids in the neighborhood are trying to make do with the blizzard alone or with friends. The parents on the trip are unsure whether they’ll be able to return.
Even Santa is diligently doing his job in the harshest blizzard he’s ever experienced, with one sassy reindeer. Netflix seemed excited about this Santa character, releasing a Tudum article on his voice actor, Brian Cox, along with a list of the voice actors for the other characters in That Christmas.
Furthermore, an original song by Ed Sheeran will be in That Christmas, with his first impression on the drafts. The official YouTube trailer was posted on October 28th, with some commenters expecting it to become an iconic British holiday movie. Finally, IMDB has already created a page for the That Christmas movie and is waiting for it to be released by December 4th, 2024. The page contains the same two-minute trailer and links to more information on each person working on the animation.
That Christmas Book Trilogy
This upcoming film is based on three picture books written by Richard Curtis. He is an award-winning film director and scriptwriter, responsible for many famous works including Mr. Bean. The illustrations on the other hand were drawn by Rebecca Cobb. She won the 2013 Waterstones Prize and collaborated with multiple writers.
That Christmas is based on the combination of three previous works created by Curtis in the past. The animation contains the plots of That Christmas, plus The Empty Stocking, and Snow Day, making for a trilogy of all his holiday works. These illustrated Children’s stories are available as a physical picture book or an eBook.
Three Stories, Three Goals
Some media and films have used this technique of depicting different characters or groups, each in their own situation but with the same goal. That Christmas instead uses the same issue and different goals between three groups. These three perspectives are the trouble-making children, the adults in their van accident, and Santa during his journey through the snow.
Most scenes of the children are based on the books Snow Day and The Empty Stocking. The same for Santa’s scenes of being implemented from The Empty Stocking. That Christmas book series will be where the rest and most of the movie scenes will be based on. This is how the writers decided on the writing technique of switching from one group and their issue. It all ends with a key solution bringing everyone and everything together.
The Children
Danny, one of the main characters, will act as the perspective with the kids. He’ll interact and observe them with the audience as they go through the first situation. Everything has been shut down due to snow with most of the adults gone, and it’s all fun and games. They come up with the usual shenanigans and trouble kids would realistically get into when left alone.
There’s the little addition of puppy love as one girl teases her friend for interacting with Danny. Then there soon comes the worry, a main issue during the blizzard since the roads are blocked as the snow worsens. The grownups who told the children they’d only be gone for a few days try not to worry them. The kids doubt whether they’ll make it on time for Christmas.
The Adults
The second issue will focus on the said parents. Their situation is dire, dangerous, realistic, and an important element to remember when a snowstorm happens. That Christmas makes sure not to romanticize snowstorms and shows the full effect of them. From the children’s perspective, it’s all fun and games until it gets too cold, meanwhile for the adults, it’s life or death. The parents seen leaving in the van during the trailer are shown trying their best to survive, cold and alone.
The snow trapped them in an isolated and dark area after slipping off the highway and nearly crashing. The turkey isn’t to blame for this, it’s the icy road. The van has been flipped upside down, which can be dangerous, but it is still intact, and they use it as their only source of warmth and shelter. There is a scene with some attempting to climb out of the ditch they’ve driven into, to get help for them and their car.
Santa’s Journey
The mischief and mayhem that Santa and his reindeer go through is the third situation, and quite frankly, the funniest. He will be the key point in helping everyone get through the snowstorm since he has magical powers and more advantages. More reasons for him being the most significant character for this heroic role is due to several factors.
Unlike normal humans, Santa and his reindeer can easily travel through snow. Flying blind is in some ways safer than a slippery road, especially since his sleigh is not as big as an airplane. While the sky has fewer traffic issues, it does not make his work anywhere easy. Along with delivering presents on time, it’s only him and his one reindeer this Christmas Eve. Not to mention that they both consider this blizzard to be the worst they’ve ever experienced.
Conclusion
Richard Curtis and Rebecca Cobb’s That Christmas trilogy has been woven into a 3D animated film. The simple summary of a multi-perspective story of characters dealing with the heavy snowstorm. Children releasing turkeys and causing trouble, the parents in danger, and Santa will be contributing the most to humor. There’s a definite chance that the film may tackle serious topics including puberty and family values.
