Film Snail

6.3

Nativity!

NR·2009·105m

Comedy

Family

Comedy

Family

Summary

Paul, charged with directing his school's Nativity play, falsely boasts that his ex-girlfriend plans to turn the production into a film.

Cast

Martin Freeman

Paul Maddens

Ashley Jensen

Jennifer Lore

Marc Wootton

Mr. Poppy

Pam Ferris

Mrs. Bevan

Jason Watkins

Gordon Shakespeare

Ricky Tomlinson

Mayor

Alan Carr

The Critic

John Sessions

Mr. Lore

Phyllis Logan

Mrs. Lore

Geoffrey Hutchings

Father Tom

Clarke Peters

Studio Boss

Rosie Cavaliero

Miss Rye

Ben Crompton

Parent

Llewella Gideon

Parent

Selina Cadell

Oakmoor Headmistress

Martha Howe-Douglas

Oakmoor Parent

Matt Rippy

Harrison

Rhydian Jones

Studio Receptionist

Neil Fitzmaurice

Oakmoor Parent

Karl Theobald

Parent

Jake Pratt

Alfie

Oscar Steer

Auditionee

Bessie Cursons

Christy

Ben Wilby

Bob

Katie Maguire

Megan

Alexandra Allen

Cleo

Bernard Mensah

Brandon McDonald

Oli

Cadi Mullane

Crystal

Ellie Coldicutt

Beth

Dominic McKernan

Dan

Faye Dolan

Jade

James Warner

Buddy

Ashley Blake

BBC Midlands Reporter

Jesus de Miguel

Parent

Paul Moorhead

Security Guard

Darren Parkin

Coventry Press

Matt Barron

Coventry Press

Caitlin Cronin

Lucy

Joe Lane

Edward

Joshan Patel

Bill

Krista Hyatt

Becky

Maeve Dolan

Sam

Michael McAuley

William

Milly Webb

Neve

Morgan Brennan

Charlotte

Rebecca Maguire

Saffron

Reece Stowe

Fraser

Rhyannon Jones

Alice

Sam Tott

Matt

Sydney Isitt-Ager

Sadie

Thomas McGaritty

Zack

Harvey Flannigan

Auditionee

Aiodfe Mcleod

Grace

Anna Price

Ellen

Arun Nahar

Jake

Bethany Carter

Daisy

Charlie Dixon

Thomas

Cherie Ng

Nicola

Eleanor Bonas

Rachel

Francesca York

Caroline

Freddie Watkins

Sebastian

Georgina Owen

Emily

Hannah Ciotkowski

Elizabeth

Harriet Kilner

Charlotte

Hayley Downing

Victoria

Imogen Stern

Phoebe

Katie Stafford

Molly

Lauren Downing

Joanne

Lily-Rose Sharry

Lynette

Michael Brown

Charles

Safiyah Asharia

Sophie

Molly Burton

Catherine

Mi Tuulikki Kelly

Lorna

Salim Zayyan

Percival

Drew Taylor

Harry

Ben Hodge-Mckenna

St Bernadette's Choir

Charlotte Dewis

St Bernadette's Choir

Grace Paremain

St Bernadette's Choir

Harriet Sutton-Green

St Bernadette's Choir

James Osborne

St Bernadette's Choir

Lilly Kennedy

St Bernadette's Choir

Lucy Tomkins

St Bernadette's Choir

Maisie Kelly

St Bernadette's Choir

Olivia Lambie

St Bernadette's Choir

Paige Rice

St Bernadette's Choir

Shona Eaton

St Bernadette's Choir

Sophia Ford

St Bernadette's Choir

Tia Thompson

St Bernadette's Choir

Karen Mckernan

St Bernadette Parent

Angie Thiari

St Bernadette Parent

Tina Kelly

St Bernadette Parent

Rachel Convey

St Bernadette Parent

Phil Mcauley

St Bernadette Parent

Mary Hart

St Bernadette Parent

Peter Isitt

St Bernadette Parent

Estelle Brennan

St Bernadette Parent

Barbara Isitt

St Bernadette Parent

Lucy Mcgaritty

St Bernadette Parent

Sally Isitt

St Bernadette Parent

Joanne Hart

St Bernadette Parent

Tracy Jane Jones

St Bernadette Parent

John Purdue

St Bernadette Parent

Barbara Pattison

St Bernadette Parent

Jay Patel

St Bernadette Parent

Jennifer Lane

St Bernadette Parent

Christopher Hyatt

St Bernadette Parent

Sam Keeble

St Bernadette Parent

Kevin Dolan

St Bernadette Parent

C. Dunn

St Bernadette Parent

Gerald Mckernan

St Bernadette Parent

Elizabeth Cronin

St Bernadette Parent

Emily Rose Brennan

St Bernadette Parent

Anita Campbell

Mada Dancer

Jennifer Berzins

Mada Dancer

Zoe Sherwin

Mada Dancer

Andy Cowley

Mada Dancer

Caroline May Darling

Mada Dancer

Adam Grey

Mada Dancer

Jake Fryer

Jazz Quartet

Tony Heiberg

Jazz Quartet

Kieron Garrett

Jazz Quartet

Vilem Hais

Jazz Quartet

Steve Gilbertson

Jazz Quartet

Crew

Director, Writer

Debbie Isitt

Reviews

John Chard

December 27, 2015

As warm and as enchanting as a Whisky Mac.

He's a failed actor, his girlfriend has left him and gone to make it big in America, and now, school teacher Paul Maddens has to direct the Nativity play. Worse still, after a little white bragging lie to an old rival, Maddens finds things escalating out of his control.

Ah, the Christmas movie, a piece of work aimed at a certain market at a certain time of year. Many movies of Christmas past have been excruciatingly bad, either by losing sight of the holiday heart, or by going for a different angle at a season which is meant to be jolly. In the main then, the Crimble picture has been blighted by a train of thinking akin to damned if you do, damned if you don't. Debbie Isitt's Nativity! will not achieve any reviews proclaiming it to be refreshingly new, rightly so since it's a standard seasonal fare based story. What hopefully will be said is how utterly beguiling and warming the film is, so yeah! Basically a Christmas picture doing its job.

Chiefly in its favour is that it has a naturalness to it that keeps its charm grounded. There's no miracle in the offering here, no boink over the head with a sledgehammer to enforce its message. Isitt is happy letting the film and its delightful characters go with the flow, the result ending up as being a fully involving experience. It helps too that the army of children (plucked from local auditions by Issitt) are adorable and funny in equal measure. Not that the adults come up short either. Martin Freeman (Maddens) gives a wonderfully controlled performance as the central character, while Marc Wooton as Mr. Poppy, a character showing the child in all us adults, almost steals the movie from the delightful moppet squad. It has its faults, such as a trip to America that quickly loses momentum, and if we are honest then surely the actual Nativity finale goes on a touch too long. But such missteps are easily forgiven given the impact as a whole.

My cinema visiting group at Xmas 2009 consisted of 4 adults and 4 teenagers. As we filed out, there was a mixture of wet eyes and beaming smiles. So yeah! Job done for sure. 8/10

Footnotes: Xmas 2013. With a sequel hitting the theatres this Christmas I thought it time to revisit this film. Delighted to report that it still manages to warm the old cockles of my Xmas heart and remains a seasonal picture that I urge more folk to seek out.

Xmas 2015. Rewatched, still lovely.