By Ashleigh Clark
I rarely enjoy modern Christmas movies. They usually have too much to say or are far too similar to the ones before them.
“An Almost Christmas Story” almost felt the same way.
Co-produced by Alfonso Cuaron, the short film tells the tale of a lost baby owl (Moon) and a little girl (Luna) trying to find their way home in unforgiving New York City.
Moon’s journey begins when he hides from a hawk in a giant pine tree. Unfortunately, this tree gets cut down and transported to the Rockefeller Center, miles away from his nest. Luna, who is also lost in the city, finds the little bird and tries to help him find his home. They walk the snowy streets of New York City together, sharing several tender moments. Luna teaches Moon that Christmas is about reuniting with loved ones.
The short film’s draw is its unique animation style. Characters and backgrounds are crafted from beautifully animated paper, cardboard and fabric. The animal models are each distinctive in their own way. With complex layers of wood-like feathers and reflective marble eyes, Moon’s design deserves an award. Pigeons look like they are made from trash, and a dog looks like a stuffed decoration my grandma would have on a shelf.
The film’s design is, unfortunately, tainted by a vignette blur that is too strong. Other than that, I adored the artwork.
The style of the characters and the story draws on old animated Christmas specials. The narrator, called “Folk Singer,” reminds me of Sam the Snowman from the 1964 “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” film.
Voiced by John C. Reilly, the Folk Singer leads the viewer through the story. His songs are the highlight of the short film. The folky, sonorous tunes mixed with a hint of Christmas flare make their original songs, “It’s Christmas Today” and “That’s the Spirit of Christmas,” new additions to my holiday playlist. Reilly’s cover of additional Christmas songs, which sadly have not been released to Spotify (yet), are refreshingly peaceful in the existing corpus of annoying Christmas music.
Like many other Christmas movies, the film attempts to identify what the “holiday spirit” is. They do this by posing the question: “What makes a Christmas story?”
According to the film’s song “The Spirit of Christmas,” the Christmas spirit is about “goodwill towards all, peace on Earth…making space in a manger, making time [and] taking part.”
The film’s message and art style are near-perfect. However, as a whole, the film feels disjointed. Despite being one of the main characters, Luna doesn’t get enough substantial screen time to make me invested in her. I felt more drawn to side characters like the Folk Singer or Moon’s family. Additionally, the art style was distracting. At times, I’d get lost in admiring tiny details and miss large pieces of dialogue. Since the film is only 21 minutes long, every word meant something, so it was a shame the background drew away from that.
Overall, the film relies heavily on its art and music to carry the story, which leaves the main plot uncompelling. I give ‘An Almost Christmas Story’ a 4/5.
“An Almost Christmas Story” is streaming on Disney+
Ashleigh Clark is a senior Political Science major. She loves hiking and playing video games with her fiancé.
Images courtesy of Disney Television Animation
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