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NUTCRACKERS

Starring: Ben Stiller, Homer Janson, Ulysses Janson, Arlo Janson, Atlas Janson, Linda Cardellini, and Toby Huss
Director: David Gordon Green

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NICK

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You've seen this story before: the reluctant father figure who comes into guardianship only to re-evaluate his life. In fact, story aside, Nutcrackers feels like a film from a bygone era, the mid ‘90s to early 2000s boom of family films. What gives it a slight edge are the child performers (all real-life siblings). They are quite good, bringing an authenticity that helps the film land emotionally. It's incredibly predictable and fairly unoriginal, but at the very least, it's a feel-good film that'll bring a smile to your face. You could do worse.

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KATIE

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Nutcrackers is disappointingly devoid of Christmas joy. The cliché and predictable plot follows character archetypes that everyone will recognise, but I actually didn’t have an issue with that. In fact, I love a reliably comforting family comedy. The problem is it's hollow, and although the child cast is quite endearing, they are all underwritten. Meanwhile, Ben Stiller’s character, Mike, doesn’t form enough of a bond with them for the emotional impact to hit. It looks nice, with pretty shots of the small town and nostalgia-tinged scenes of the brothers playing outside, but that's about it.

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PAIGE

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Nutcrackers may be one of the most cliché and run-of-the-mill Christmas dramedies I’ve seen in a while. Unfortunately for its director, David Gordon Green, he’s had more misses than hits lately, and this falls in the miss category. Instead of trying to get you emotionally attached to the characters, the film asks its audience to fill in the emotional beats, which doesn't help the already shoddy narrative. Despite there being some endearing moments in this family holiday film, it won't make you laugh or pull at your heartstrings. Nutcrackers is simply forgettable, and I don’t foresee it being on my holiday rewatch list.

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This film was reviewed by Nick as part of Bitesize Breakdown's coverage of the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival.

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