David Farnor | On 27, Dec 2023

Director: Mary Lambert
Cast: Heather Graham, Jason Biggs, Brandy Norwood, Matt Cedeño
Certificate: PG

“Who sends Christmas letters anymore?” asks Charlotte (Heather Graham) at the start of Best. Christmas. Ever!, Netflix’s latest festive flick. She’s referring to the newsletter that gets every year from her old college friend, Jackie (Brandy Norwood), which reminds how successful Jackie’s life is compared to hers. The fact that she’s delivering the line straight to camera, only for nobody to break the fourth wall again during the film, gives you an idea of how consistent the script is.

The film sees Charlotte and her husband, Rob (Jason Biggs), accidentally end up on Jackie’s doorstep at Christmas, after their son, Grant (Wyatt Hunt), put Jackie’s address in the satnav – quite how they didn’t really they were driving many, many miles in the wrong direction is anybody’s guess. But, once them, and with the snow piling up, they’re there for the holidays, leaving Charlotte and Jackie ample time to catch up – acompanied by Jackie’s smouldering husband, Valentino (Matt Cedeño), and their precocious daughter, Beatrix (Madison Skye Validum).

With Rob and Jackie being in a band together back in their youth, there are ample opportunities for Charlotte to get jealous during their unexpected time in Jackie’s picture-perfec thome, and Heather Graham and Brandy Norwood are both very good at capturing the complexities of old friends who have drifted apart with unspoken tensions lingering beneath the surface. Graham and Jason Biggs are even better at portraying a couple who need to remind themselves why they love each other, rather than dwell on any perceived shortcomings or disappointments.

But that’s where the subtleties and strengths end for this bizarre seasonal comedy, which is notably lacking in laughs. Rather than lean into any rivalry or awkwardness, the script leans into mushy territory without being serious or substantial enough to warrant it – one final act reveal feels as manipulative as it as overly sentimental. At the same time, things are so incoherent they border on aburdist humour, with everything from a hot air balloon to a gigantic doll’s house being randomly thrown into the mix. A subplot involving Grant and Beatrix trying to prove scientifically the existence of Santa only adds to the muddled tone.

The result is an underwhelming waste of a good cast – you better watch out for Brandy and Jason Biggs doing a fun musical number – that leaves you wanting to put down the remote and start writing Christmas newsletters instead.

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