Top positive review
5.0 out of 5 starsLove it!
Reviewed in Canada on January 20, 2019
I read other comments on different sites, and I disagree with most of them. One comment says the movies bad becaue the family is shallow and non-likable. My opinion is; that's the point! Most families are shallow on a day to day level, but this is a very loving, extremely close family who - once you get to know them - have been through a lot. Amy (the daughter) is absolutely not likeable, but when you imagine her being the youngest girl; still single, no kids, moving home for family reasons, definitely playing second fiddle to a deaf little brother who's got so much going for him, you discover she's got a lot to be miserable about. NEXT COMMENT SPOILER ALERT: Cybil (the mother) has been through hell with cancer and is not facing the fact that this will be her last Christmas and is terrified as much of dying as she is of the fact that she won't be there for her son (and other kids) when they fail in life. She's trying to hold herself together and be brave, but she's frustrated and in pain and sick. Anybody in that state would be unlikable, but she's still trying. In short, I really feel for the entire family. I admit that I cannot stand the young actress who plays the granddaughter. She's a poor actress (even for a child) and was poorly directed, and the poor editing around her scenes topped off with the overall unlikability of her character really puts me off. Otherwise, I love the movie. The characters being unlikable and "seemingly" shallow does not make the movie bad; it makes it realistic. It's Christmas, everyboody's home and exhausted from life, and they're sleeping late, eating poorly, and their mother is dying. Sounds like reality to me.
