Before watching That Christmas, I rewatched Love Actually; both were written by Richard Curtis and focus on multiple narratives revolving around love at Christmas. This time working with fellow British writer, Peter Souter, and being his first time working in the world of animation, they've created a story portraying love during the modern festive that dodges many of the pitfalls of Curtis' 2003 rom-com.
Based on a trilogy of children's books written by Curtis and with Simon Otto's first go on the directorial sleigh, this animated fantasy-comedy explores the lives of a tightknit community in Wellington-on-Sea as they're faced with the worst snowstorm in history that throws everyone's plans into chaos with tales of love both romantic and platonic, loneliness and even Santa (Brian Cox) being in for more than he bargained for.
One of the biggest improvements of Curtis' latest festive offering, is the story does a much better job of blending and bringing the characters of the seaside town together focusing on a smaller scale setting. Even the Love Actually director said it was overwhelming focusing on a massive ensemble cast of stars over 20 years ago. Whilst the film feels like a jolly traditional family yuletide romp, it explores the darker aspects of the holidays often felt today such as broken families, bereavement and loneliness, all of which were topics skimmed over in Love Actually. Curtis and Souter have achieved a wonderful slow-burn which comes together within 91 minutes.
That Christmas, is a small but delightful gift and another Yuletide winner for Netflix, fitting perfectly with the likely of Klaus (2019). Curtis and Souter's screenplay manages to strike a balance between love and heartbreak which in my opinion, makes for a more satisfying film compared to former's last Chrimbo outing.
