Plot Summary
When a back road closes due to a snow storm, eight people find themselves trapped in an abandoned church. They include a priest who has left the ministry because he feels distant from God after his wife died, an EMT who wants to be a doctor, a wealthy married couple having relational and financial issues, a newlywed couple trying to start their new life together, and a couple on the brink of divorce. As the storm rages, they all find common ground with their issues and discover that there is hope for each one of them.
Production Quality (1.5 points)
While Christmas Miracle is a generally average production, it is not without its issues. Video quality is pretty clear and the camera work is fairly good. Sets and locations are okay, even though it mostly takes place in a dark church. Audio quality is fine, but the soundtrack is too bizarre. Otherwise, there are numerous editing problems. There is too much reused footage and too many flat and empty scenes. It seems like some scenes are designed to pad the runtime and drag out the movie. Essentially, while it’s not the worst production in the world, Christmas Miracle still needs a lot of help.
Plot and Storyline Quality (.5 point)
While the idea behind this plot is slightly interesting, there are just too many errors here that cover it up. The storyline brings up mostly realistic and pertinent issues that everyday people face, but they are all portrayed in simplistic and sometimes petty ways. The plot does not hold the attention very well as silly problems are rehashed and delayed to suit the runtime. Though we spend a lot of time hearing these characters talk, we don’t get to know them very well. They are extremely wooden and one-dimensional, sometimes repeating themselves throughout the film for emphasis. Though there is a lot of dialogue, it is empty and stock. Basically, Christmas Miracle is your average boring and slow plotline that has a small amount of potential that it does not cultivate.
Acting Quality (0 points)
To top things off, this is a very poor casting job. While they are not necessarily bad actors and actresses, they severely lack quality acting coaching. Their line delivery is possible the fastest we have ever witnessed in a film. Their lines are forced and overly practiced, as are their emotions. Since this film is entirely reliant on them, it really hurts its overall case.
Conclusion
It’s very hard to know what the Nasser Group is trying to do. It usually seems like they have potential as film makers, but they always have things in their movies that trip them up. While this is a very generic Christmas plot, it could have been better than this. It’s not disingenuous like some; it’s just a typical low quality film. I wonder if there will be a point in time when these types of films are no longer made like this. Maybe that’s a Christmas miracle to wait for (lol).
Final Rating: 2 out of 10 points
Box Office Revolution 