The defence The Sentimental Softie
“Sincerity is not manipulation.”
The film risks embarrassment to make emotion communal, and that openness is harder than fashionable detachment.
Back to trending 
This Is Christmas
Comedy · Drama · Romance · 2022
Follow Adam and Emma on their daily commute from the village of Langton to London, where they meet the same passengers every day. One morning, Adam breaks the unspoken taboo of talking to strangers on a train and invites the entire carriage to hold their own Christmas party together.
Movie details
This Is Christmas
2022 Comedy · Drama · Romance 1h 46m
Critical arithmetic
One number, for now.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
TMDB
7.1 / 10
Community rating
Follow Adam and Emma on their daily commute from the village of Langton to London, where they meet the same passengers every day. One morning, Adam breaks the unspoken taboo of talking to strangers on a train and invites the entire carriage to hold their own Christmas party together.
CriticWise case file
What this film says about your taste.
Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.
The archetype split
Who fights over This Is Christmas?
For the defence
The Sentimental Softie
“You came to feel something, and you will.”
Read their case For the prosecution
The Cool Ironist
“Feeling things is a little embarrassing.”
Read their objectionThe split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.
Taste neighbourhood
Nearby on the taste map.
TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.
One Day
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Love, Rosie
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Since the moment they met at age 5, Rosie and Alex have been best friends, facing the highs and lows of growing up side by side. A fleeting shared moment, one missed opportunity, and the decisions that follow send their lives in completely different directions. As each navigates the complexities of life, love, and everything in between, they always find their way back to each other - but is it just friendship, or something more?
Ana
Drama · 2020
Ana meets Rafa in a chance encounter and they embark on a road trip to try and save him from bankruptcy, or worse.
The Spirit of Christmas
Romance · 2015
A woman falls in love with a man who is somewhat unavailable.
Jingle Bell Princess
TV Movie · 2021
An actual princess has some mechanical issues and is temporarily grounded. Does she have time for a lobster roll? It is Christmas time in Maine which means snow, quaint scenery, and lots of Christmas lights near the ocean. With the crew distracted attending to the repair, Princess Amelia deplanes to walk through a magical Christmas tree lot near the airport perimeter.
Love Actually
Comedy · 2003
Eight very different couples deal with their love lives in various loosely interrelated tales all set during a frantic month before Christmas in London.
Prom Pact
Comedy · 2023
It's prom season, and high school senior Mandy and her best friend and fellow outsider Ben are surrounded by over-the-top "promposals." Mandy is only focused on getting into her dream school Harvard, but as she starts tutoring basketball all-star Graham, she must re-evaluate whether her dream school is worth the cost of everything she believes in.
The Station Agent
Drama · 2003
When his only friend dies, a man born with dwarfism moves to rural New Jersey to live a life of solitude, only to meet a chatty hot dog vendor and a woman dealing with her own personal loss.
Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy
Romance · 2025
Bridget Jones navigates life as a widow and single mum with the help of her family, friends, and former lover, Daniel. Back to work and on the apps, she's pursued by a younger man and maybe – just maybe – her son's science teacher.
Father of the Bride
Romance · 2022
A father comes to grips with his daughter’s upcoming wedding through the prism of multiple relationships within a big, sprawling Cuban-American family.
Where it lives
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Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
Chris Foggin
Written by
Alastair Galbraith
Alfred Enoch
Adam
Kaya Scodelario
Emma
Timothy Spall
Ray
Jack Donoghue
Dean
Steve Oram
Conductor
Alexandra Roach
Amanda
Robert Emms
Paul
Court is in session
Put This Is Christmas on trial.
Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.
The prosecution The Cool Ironist
“The strings are showing.”
Every cue tells you exactly what to feel and when, leaving sentiment to do the work character should have done.