Almost Christmas (film)

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Almost Christmas
Almost Christmas (film).png
Theatrical release poster
Directed byDavid E. Talbert
Written byDavid E. Talbert
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyLarry Blanford
Edited byTroy Takaki
Music byJohn Paesano
Production
companies
Distributed byUniversal Pictures
Release dates
  • November 3, 2016 (2016-11-03) (Regency Village Theater)
  • November 11, 2016 (2016-11-11) (United States)
Running time
111 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$17 million[2]
Box office$42.6 million[3]

Almost Christmas is a 2016 American Christmas comedy-drama film written and directed by David E. Talbert and starring Kimberly Elise, Mo'Nique, Nicole Ari Parker, Gabrielle Union, Keri Hilson, Jessie Usher, Danny Glover, Omar Epps, John Michael Higgins, D. C. Young Fly, and Romany Malco. The film follows a dysfunctional family that comes together for the holidays for the first time since their mother's death.

Principal photography began in late 2015 and early 2016 in Covington, Georgia. The film premiered in Los Angeles on November 3, 2016 and was theatrically released in the United States on November 11, 2016 by Universal Pictures. It received mixed reviews and grossed $42 million.

Plot[]

Walter Meyers (Danny Glover) is a retired automotive engineer who lost his wife Grace (Rachel Kylian) 10 months earlier.

Now that the holiday season is here, he invites his four grown children and the rest of the family to his house for a traditional celebration.

Walter knows that if his daughters Cheryl (Kimberly Elise) and Rachel (Gabrielle Union) and sons Christian (Romany Malco) and Evan (Jessie Usher) can spend five days together under the same roof, it will truly be a Christmas miracle. As his children arrive, Walter realizes a perfect Christmas without his wife is easier said than done.

Cheryl, a dentist and the eldest child, arrives for the holidays with her goofy husband Lonnie (J. B. Smoove), a previously famous basketball player who develops a mutual interest in a young grocery store worker named Jasmine (Keri Hilson) shortly after arriving in town.

His eldest son and second born, Christian, struggles with balancing his campaign to become a congressman and his desire to spend time with his family. Christian invites his campaign manager along so they can get more work done.

Meanwhile, Rachel, his youngest daughter and third born, struggles to financially support herself and her daughter due to her recent divorce and studying to become a lawyer.

Lastly, Evan is a successful football player recovering from a shoulder injury, but when his coach tells him his arm is completely healed, Evan struggles to give up the pain medication.

Cast[]

Production[]

On April 27, 2015, it was announced that Universal Pictures had bought the comedy script A Meyers Thanksgiving from David E. Talbert, who directed the film, with Will Packer producing through Will Packer Productions.[14] The film was first retitled A Meyers Christmas, with its setting moved to the Christmas holidays.[15] In April 2016, Universal Pictures announced another title change for the film, now called Almost Christmas.[16]

Casting for the film was done in late 2015, in Atlanta, Georgia.[17][18]

Release[]

Universal scheduled the film for a November 11, 2016 release.[15] A trailer for the film was released April 14, 2016.[19]

Box office[]

Almost Christmas was released alongside Arrival and Shut In, and was expected to gross around $15 million from 2,376 theaters in its opening weekend.[20] The film made $507,000 from Thursday night previews at 1,885 theaters and $5.9 million on its first day. It went on to gross $15.6 million for the weekend, finishing fourth at the box office.[21]

Critical response[]

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 49% based on 69 reviews, with an average rating of 5.32/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "While far from the worst holiday dramedy audiences could hope for, Almost Christmas isn't distinctive enough to prompt a visit to the theater – or annual yuletide viewings."[22] On Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating, the film has a weighted average score of 55 out of 100, based on 27 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews."[23] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A–" on an A+ to F scale.[21]

Accolades[]

For her performance, Mo' Nique was nominated for the Image Award for Best Supporting Actress at the 2017 Image Awards.[24]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ "Almost Christmas (12A)". British Board of Film Classification. November 21, 2016. Retrieved November 21, 2016.
  2. ^ McNary, Dave. "Box Office: 'Doctor Strange' to Ward Off Newcomers 'Arrival' and 'Almost Christmas'". Variety. Retrieved November 9, 2016.
  3. ^ "Almost Christmas (2016)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved January 3, 2017.
  4. ^ Ford, Rebecca; Kit, Borys (October 9, 2015). "Danny Glover to Star in 'A Meyers Christmas' (Exclusive)". hollywoodreporter.com. Retrieved November 8, 2015.
  5. ^ Pedersen, Erik (October 26, 2015). "Kimberly Elise Is Wished 'A Meyers Christmas'". deadline.com. Retrieved November 8, 2015.
  6. ^ Ford, Rebecca (November 17, 2015). "Romany Malco Joins 'A Meyers Christmas' (Exclusive)". hollywoodreporter.com. Retrieved November 18, 2015.
  7. ^ Ford, Rebecca; Galuppo, Mia (October 5, 2015). "Gabrielle Union to Star in 'A Meyers Christmas' (Exclusive)". hollywoodreporter.com. Retrieved November 8, 2015.
  8. ^ Ford, Rebecca (October 22, 2015). "'Survivor's Remorse' Star Jessie Usher Joins 'A Meyers Christmas' (Exclusive)". hollywoodreporter.com. Retrieved November 8, 2015.
  9. ^ Ford, Rebecca (October 27, 2015). "Chandra Currelley Joins 'A Meyers Christmas' (Exclusive)". hollywoodreporter.com. Retrieved November 8, 2015.
  10. ^ "First Look Of J.B. Smoove, DC Young Fly, and Chandra Currelley in 'Almost Christmas'". April 14, 2016. Retrieved June 22, 2016.[permanent dead link]
  11. ^ Pedersen, Erik (November 6, 2015). "Nicole Ari Parker Joins The Family For 'A Meyers Christmas'". deadline.com. Retrieved November 8, 2015.
  12. ^ Busch, Anita (November 9, 2015). "Omar Epps Joins Universal Pictures' Comedy 'A Meyers Christmas'". deadline.com. Retrieved November 17, 2015.
  13. ^ Fennel, Brittany (June 17, 2016). "Trailer For Star Studded Holiday Movie 'Almost Christmas'". jawbreaker.nyc. Retrieved September 14, 2016.
  14. ^ Fleming, Mike Jr. (April 27, 2015). "Universal & Will Packer Land David E. Talbert Spec 'A Meyers Thanksgiving'; Eye Holiday 2016". deadline.com. Retrieved November 8, 2015.
  15. ^ a b A. Lincoln, Ross (May 14, 2015). "Universal Sets Release Dates For 'Legend', 'A Meyers Christmas'". deadline.com. Retrieved November 8, 2015.
  16. ^ Lincoln, Ross A. (April 13, 2016). "Universal Retitles Family Comedy 'A Meyers Christmas'". Deadline. Retrieved April 17, 2016.
  17. ^ "'A Meyers Christmas' Starring Gabrielle Union Open Casting Call in Atlanta". projectcasting.com. October 27, 2015. Retrieved November 8, 2015.
  18. ^ "On the Set for 11/6/15: Emily Blunt and Luke Evans Start 'Girl on the Train', Brad Pitt Wraps 'Lost City of Z'". ssninsider.com. November 6, 2015. Archived from the original on June 10, 2017. Retrieved November 8, 2015.
  19. ^ "Almost Christmas - Teaser (HD)". YouTube. Retrieved April 17, 2016.
  20. ^ "'Doctor Strange' to hold off 'Arrival' and 'Almost Christmas' at the box office". Los Angeles Times.
  21. ^ a b "'Doctor Strange' to Repeat at #1 as 'Arrival', 'Almost Christmas' & 'Shut In' Hit Theaters". Box Office Mojo.
  22. ^ "Almost Christmas (2016)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Retrieved November 9, 2020.
  23. ^ "Almost Christmas Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved November 27, 2019.
  24. ^ Lewis, Hilary; Washington, Arlene (February 10, 2017). "Mo' Nique nominated for Best Supporting Actress at Image Awards". Retrieved July 17, 2017.

External links[]

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