🔗 Share this article The Film Christmas, Again Film Review – A Relaxed Story of a Forlorn Christmas Tree Seller Has Genuine Charm The constitutes a New York drama with such a relaxed pace that it has taken a decade to arrive on the UK’s cinema screens. First released in the US in 2015, it’s a micro-budget first feature from first-time director Charles Poekel, set almost entirely on a 24-hour pop-up Christmas tree stall. Poekel’s style is far too genuinely independent and naturalistic to become slushy or sentimental about Christmas; in his view Christmas tree lights blink like police lights. But with its subtle approach, he positions the movie just right for a modest dose of festive warmth. The Jaded Seller in the Brooklyn Cold Kentucker Audley portrays Noel (someone had in the film to joke about his name before I twigged). Noel is back for his fifth year selling Christmas trees in Brooklyn, working outdoors in the freezing cold and sleeping in a not-much-warmer caravan parked next to the trees. A few customers ask about the girl working with him last year. But this year Noel works solo, heartbroken and working the night shift. There’s a documentary feel to many of the scenes, with customers posing idle and peculiar questions. A customer requests the same Christmas tree as the Obamas (this is 2014). Noel looks numb with cold physically and emotionally; he’s weary and disillusioned, though Audley’s understated acting clearly indicates that he hadn't always been like this. Quiet Encounters and Glimmers of Connection In truth, the plot is minimal. Noel comes to the aid of a woman, Lydia (Hannah Gross), who has collapsed drunk on a bench. She pops up again later in truly poignant scenes as Noel drives around New York, delivering trees – and these sequences could ignite a small glimmer of good cheer in the grinchiest of hearts. Poekel hasn’t made a feature since this, which is a shame – you can’t beat it for authenticity and fluidity, and it’s shot on gorgeously textured 16mm film. A film of understated appeal and authentic mood, portraying the loneliness and brief connection of the season. Christmas, Again opens in UK cinemas from 12 December.