David Farnor | On 10, Dec 2023

Director: Sam Boyd
Cast: Melissa McCarthy, Paapa Essiedu, Marc Maron, Denée Benton, Luis Guzman, Alan Cumming, Jordyn McIntosh
Certificate: PG

The words “Richard Curtis” and “Christmas comedy” are enough to pique anyone’s interest, so it’s no surprise that Peacock (and Sky Cinema in the UK) have ordered this remake of Curtis’ own 90s BBC TV movie Bernard and the Genie. Unfortunately, the film bottles it.

Melissa McCarthy stars as Flora, a genie who finds herself in modern-day Manhattan. Except the main character is technically, Bernard, an overworking father played by Paapa Essiedu. That the film repeatedly seems to forget that is its main problem.

When Bernard misses his daughter’s birthday celebrations because of his demanding boss (Alan Cumming, who played Bernard in the original), his wife, Julie (Denée Benton), goes to stay at her mum’s with 7-year-old Eve (Jordyn McIntosh). Cue a mysterious jewellery box, which Bernard rubs and ends up releasing Flora. She tells him he can have unlimited wishes, and he sets about trying to win back his family.

Except, well, things aren’t that straightforward – and not just because Flora’s genie powers don’t cover changing people’s feelings. It’s also because none of the characters behave in a way that makes any sense. When Bernard is magicked onto the doorstep of Julie’s mum, post-argument, nobody seems to bat an eye. When Flora transforms the interior of his home, Eve and Julie don’t even notice or comment. When Bernard, a history and antiques nerd, discovers that Flora is 2,000 years old, he doesn’t even ask her for more details.

The result is a story that falls frustratingly flat, wasting a charming cast – not least of them Paapa Essiedu, who has previously impressed in everything from Hamlet to I May Destroy You and The Lazarus Project. Here, he’s relegated to a poorly thought-through straight-faced foil for Melissa McCarthy’s outrageous wish-granter, with no opportunity to bring some substance or weight to the romance or comedy. The script’s attempt to comment on the consumerism on Christmas doesn’t land either, leaving even the festive angle feeling flimsy and superfluous.

McCarthy, at least, is clearly having a ball, and it’s no coincidence that the best moments are when she seems to be going off-script and improvising her way through semi-seasonal skits. But between being astonished by pizza yet apparently au fait with credit cards, even those Elf-like bits don’t make much sense. An unlikely spark between McCarthy’s outsider and Bernard’s put-upon doorman, Lenny, played by Marc Maron, is the icing on the cake. It’s just a shame that the cake itself is so disappointing.

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