New Showbiz

You are here:
This Christmas

This Christmas

2007

PG-13

Director

Preston A. Whitmore II

Runtime

117 minutes

Average Rating

No ratings yet

Synopsis

This year Christmas with the Whitfields promises to be one they will never forget. All the siblings have come home for the first time in years and they've brought plenty of baggage with them. As the Christmas tree is trimmed and the lights are hung, secrets are revealed and family bonds are tested. As their lives converge, they join together and help each other discover the true meaning of family.

Where to Watch

Diversity & Representation

Overall Score

5.8/10

Fair


Category Breakdown

LGBTQ+ Representation

Fair

The narrative focuses on interpersonal secrets and sibling baggage rather than explicit non-cisnormative identities. While personal complexities are present, they do not appear to drive the structural evolution of the story.

Gender Representation

Fair

The film uses a domestic setting to explore power dynamics and emotional landscapes. It suggests a movement beyond static gendered expectations, though it lacks specific evidence of subverting masculine leadership.

Racial & Ethnic Diversity

Excellent

By centering the Black Whitfield family, the film disrupts the historically white-centric tropes of the holiday genre. This provides a meaningful departure from the standard Western Christmas archetype.

Religious & Cultural Diversity

Good

The story prioritizes individual truth and relational healing over rigid institutional or patriarchal structures. It offers a humanistic view of the holiday season rather than a purely dogmatic one.

Disability Representation

Minimal

There is no discernible evidence regarding the inclusion or portrayal of characters with visible or invisible disabilities.

Strengths

  • Centering a Black family provides a meaningful departure from the historically homogeneous holiday genre.
  • The narrative explores complex emotional landscapes and the deconstruction of traditional domestic roles.

Areas for Improvement

  • The film lacks explicit representation or focus on LGBTQ+ identities and non-cisnormative experiences.
  • There is no evidence of characters with visible or invisible disabilities being included in the narrative.

AI Analysis

This Christmas serves as a significant cultural pivot by placing a Black family at the center of a genre typically dominated by Anglo-Saxon archetypes. The film's strength lies in its ability to disrupt holiday cinema norms through the Whitfield family's emotional convergence. However, the film remains somewhat conservative in its social engagement. It focuses on internal family dynamics and personal secrets rather than engaging in radical systemic deconstruction or overt critiques of heteronormativity. Ultimately, the film provides a necessary shift in the landscape of holiday narratives, prioritizing diverse familial experiences over monolithic, traditional tropes.

How are these scores produced? →

Featured in

  • Racial & Ethnic Representation in Drama
  • Racial & Ethnic Representation in Comedy

Similar Movies

Movie poster for Love Actually

Love Actually

2003

No user ratings available yet
Diversity score: 3.2 out of 10

Rate this Movie

No rating selected
Use arrow keys to select a rating from 1 to 5 stars
Optional text review, maximum 2000 characters
Tip: Wrap spoilers with ||double pipes|| to hide them
0/2000 characters
You must be signed in to submit a rating

Reviews

No reviews yet. Be the first to share your thoughts on this movie!

Use the rating form above to leave a star rating and optional review.