Christmas films seem to have become an excuse for the family to get together, experience some wonderful memories and perhaps escape from the mundane reality of overspending, overeating and overindulging entitled children. It would seem thus, apt for parents (and excited students) to see The Nutcracker and the Four Realms in order to experience all that cinema had to offer. Unfortunately for expectant audiences everywhere, this film offers as much magic and mystery of the Christmas period as an undercooked Christmas Turkey (looks nice but probably will leave you sick, disorientated and incredibly full of regret).

Co-directed by Lasse Hallstrom and Joe Johnston, they had the difficult task of seemingly combining Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker and E.T.A. Hoffmann’s The Nutcracker and the Mouse King. Granted,  they seem to succeed to some extent, creating what could be phrased as the ‘festive family film.’ However this is dubiously hampered by what seems to be underdevelopment throughout this movie – as a result, it never really seems to get onto to its feet.

Opening with some beautiful shots of a Dickensian London at Christmas – they immediately seem to glorify the wonder that Christmas has to offer. Evidently this is to be expected of a Christmas film released in early November; that is, before the stress and anxiety of gifts, awkward family interactions and dreary sludgy evenings present themselves.

We follow a young doe-eyed Clara (Mackenzie Foy) messing around with some interesting inventions that she materializes in her attic, catching mice with her two siblings Fritz (Tom Sweet) and Louise (Ellie Bamber). Their chemistry is rather drab, with predictable and unwavering dialogue throughout the film that inevitably taints the Christmas glow that it has to offer. We learn that their mother Maria, who is a central character to Hoffman’s The Nutcracker, has passed away leaving an anxious father (Matthew Macfadyen) to look after the young ones. The most  poignant scenes to be had within the movie seem to focus around Clara’s relationship with her parents; giving Disney a chance to pull at your heartstrings in the only way Disney knows how. On Christmas Eve, Clara receives a faberge egg from her deceased mother. Wanting to know what is inside, she somehow travels into the domain of The Four Realms whilst exploring inside her eccentric godfather’s house (Morgan Freeman) that evening. Long (and longwinded) story short, she needs to find a key that unlocks the secrets of her Faberge egg and save the Four Realms from the evil clutches of Mother Ginger (Helen Mirren), with the help of The Nutcracker himself (Jayden Fowora-Knight) and the annoyingly frilly Sugar Plum (Kiera Knightley), she sets upon her quest of mediocrity.

Naturally, this film has all the ingredients necessary to produce a fun, festive family flick. Unfortunately, as is the case with most home-made Christmas lunches, this film simply seems to go to pot. There is no originality in the first place (Narnia, Alice in Wonderland and the Wizard of Oz clearly spring to mind here). Whilst the scenery may remain as beautiful and as Disneyfied as ever, its integral characters simply fall short. It is easy to get lost amongst the picturesque cinematography of snow-capped mountains, rivers and Muscovite castles and yet, they are simply nullified by the bland nature of the film itself. Plot is, at times, highly convoluted and confusing; resulting in a lack of interest for any of the characters and indeed, the overarching message (which by the way, hasn’t been found). Knightley’s prissy voice becomes tediously aggravating throughout the film whilst Mirren’s usual charismatic energy is seemingly wasted behind the veil of a confusing and over-heinous character. Her army of rats and mice provide little more than to remind audiences to invest in some more pesticide over this festive period. That said, Foy puts in a good shift as the innocent protagonist, leading us to believe that she perhaps displays a better performance than veterans Freeman and Mirren within the movie. The stand-out performances however actually came from guards Harlequin, (Jack Whitehall) and Cavalier, (Omid Djalili) who, despite their brief appearances, offered more fun and humour than the rest of the film combined.

As Clara so eloquently puts it, ‘I don’t care what’s expected’ and this seems to deliver nothing more. Despite a staggering budget of over $130 million, this film seems to fall short of its expectations as a fun and dynamic Christmas film. Simply put: it is nothing that you haven’t seen before, if not a little less. With tedious characters, a convoluted plot and some serious overspending on CGI Christmas forests, this supposedly festive family feature creates an atmosphere of boredom and disappointment. Whilst some standout performances lighten the overall tone of the film, they are few and far between, leaving other characters to struggle in the fading limelight of darkened evenings and discouraging weather. It seems, that with all its glitz and glamour, Christmas hasn’t come early this year.

Verdict:

A hashed rendition of this fairytale classic has been botched this festive season as a result of poor character development, banal script and misleading plot devices. In future, if you want your money’s worth, just buy a ticket to see the real deal on stage.

Rating: 2/10