Independent Film Review – Holiday Twist

Ah, Christmas films! I have a definite soft spot for them. As we’re just seeing off Halloween there’s nothing much to get excited about before the season of greetings, giddy glee, and gemütlichkeit gets under way. As a result it’ll do no harm to start getting in the festive spirit.  Maybe I don’t need to break out the tree, decorations, and advocaat just yet, but watching a film shouldn’t be too arduous. I mean, it’s not like I haven’t had any practice. Actually, maybe a splash or two of something warming wouldn’t go amiss… 

Another thing that is a big part of tradition. Around here, it’s become something of a tradition to watch certain films. Particular favourites include It’s A Wonderful Life, Miracle On 34^th Street (1947 version), and Scrooge, the 1951 Alastair Sim version of Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. All of those get an airing every year in my house along with a few others. Something else that they all have in common is the story tells of a character hitting the bottom, getting saved, and becoming a new, better person. George Bailey, Doris Walker, and Ebenezer Scrooge all have supernatural interventions which turn their lives around. 

Oh My Connie, Are You OK?

George has Clarence, Doris has Kris Kringle, while Scrooge has the attention of four ghosts all to himself. Following their respective interventions, they all go on to turn themselves and their lives around and, presumably, live happily ever after.  It’s a fairly common theme for holiday films, the whole descent, despair, and deliverance thing is easily found during the holiday season. More often than not though, you usually come across it as more of a feeling. A hint, if you will, of an atmosphere. Occasionally though, you will see something and think that you’ve seen that scene before. 

For instance, early on in Holiday Twist there is a scene where the daughter  Stella (Tess Murphy) asks her mum, Connie (Kelly Stables) “Can we hang up Christmas lights in my room this year?” Connie barely looks up from her phone and answers “We’d just have to take them down three weeks from now so why bother. Christmas…so overrated.” Which reminded me of Miracle On 34^th Street. Connie hits rock bottom on live TV when she reads from a faked annual report given to her immediately before stepping in front of the camera; similar to George Bailey in It’s A Wonderful Life. Fortunately, there are angels, Christina Christmas (Caylee Cowan) and Santa Rex (Blake Leeper), overseeing things rather like Clarence did for George.

Am I OK? Do I Look OK?

And, just like the Cratchits in A Christmas Carol, Connie has Anna (Haley Reinhart) and her children to take care of. So there are definite echoes but, let’s face it, there are loads of stories that rely on a rollercoaster of emotions and a wee bit of supernatural intervention especially around the festive season. One difference is the two bad guys who are just dropped in and could easily be edited out again. They are two of the best known faces in the whole film, apart from Sean Astin who plays Connie’s boss, Mr Whitmer. They are Skip (Neil McDonough – Dum-Dum Dugan in the MCU) and Boogie (Brian Thomas Smith – Zach Johnson in The Big Bang Theory). 

They are, it seems, stealing presents to save a ranch but nothing much is said about that. Also the presents are wrapped so they have no clue as to what they’ve stolen. Anyway, Holiday Twist is obviously a Christmas film of the old school and none the worse for that. It was written and directed by Stephanie Garvin who also appears as Melanie Watkins who is interviewing Connie when she has her on screen meltdown.  All in all Holiday Twist is a nicely atmospheric addition to the Christmas canon. Holiday Twist gets a digital release on 11^th November from Miracle Media.

Independent Film Grade: B