Lost at Christmas (12A) | Close-Up Film Review
Cast: Natalie Clark, Kenny Boyle, Sylvester McCoy, Frazer Hines
Review by Michelle Moore
Based on the acclaimed short film Perfect Strangers (2015), this Christmas interpretation is enough to melt even the coldest of icicles in one’s heart.
The Scottish highlands are very cold in the winter. Snow is falling and the weather is just getting worse as Christmas Day approaches. When Jen (Clark) and Rob (Boyle) both have their relationships end, in disastrous ways, just before Christmas, they meet by chance at a train station and due to heavy snowfall and train cancellations they team up to try and get home to Glasgow for Christmas…but things do not go as planned.
This movie certainly has that Christmas feel; cold weather, no transport and something always goes wrong. As the story unravels at the holiday inn where they end up stranded, we begin to hear more about how Jen and Rob ended up in the situations they are in. There are comical moments as well as a light-hearted feel as Jen tries to rally the residents of the inn to make good of a bad situation they are all in.
The cast have a very good on screen chemistry, particularly the central characters whom have their characters well written and perform them in ways we are given moments of passion, sadness and craziness.
These two are the complete opposite of each other but balance out nicely; Jen is chatty, tries to make the most of the Christmas season and perseveres to get where she wants to go and will make the most from what life throws in her direction. She has a passion for trying to salvage what she can of the festive season. Rob on the other hand is quiet, not as chatty, gets very frustrated with what is happening around him and lacks Christmas spirit. The hotel guests Sylvester McCoy and Frazer Hines are hilarious in their scenes, a great duo that will have you laughing out loud and at their antics.
Overall, Lost at Christmas is the perfect movie to watch under a blanket with a Christmas jumper and hot chocolate. It is entertaining, festive and a way to escape from the world around us, even if the ending was not as you may have hoped.
