Christmas Eve in Miller's Point: reviews

What the critics say average 7.0 from 47 outlets

• 9.1 The Film StageRory O'Connor Taormina achieves a singular tone Read
• 9.1 The A.V. ClubNatalia Keogan Intimate, disparate moments of an annual holiday tradition are artfully portrayed in director Tyler Taormina’s latest, the Long Island-set Christmas Eve In Miller’s Point Read
• 9.0 The New YorkerRichard Brody It wasn’t on my list of likely occurrences that a nostalgic and sentimental holiday movie would provide some of the year’s sharpest characterizations on film and also boast a strikingly original narrative form Read
• 9.0 Caimán Cuadernos de CineCarlos Losilla Taormina's film, to my mind the most powerful he has made so far (...) sweeps its audience along on an emotional journey in which the unbridled humour matters as much as its vision of the United States, hallucinatory and venomous but equally rapturous, from start to finish Read
• 8.8 Slant MagazineChuck Bowen In Christmas Eve in Miller’s Point, holiday tropes born of life and movies alike are exaggerated, parodied, celebrated, and compressed to suggest how our idea of Christmas is a river of memories real and imagined Read
• 8.5 The Daily BeastNick Schager A snapshot of an annual family gathering that’s laced with an array of prickly emotions, it’s an evocatively ragamuffin and rowdy mood piece Read
• 8.0 The GuardianPeter Bradshaw It might resemble other family dramas, but there’s a hum of something strange underneath, a sense that life is about surrendering to the infinite flow of events Read
• 8.0 VarietyJessica Kiang Tyler Taormina’s delightful stocking-stuffer “Christmas Eve in Miller’s Point” is as alive to the domesticated magic of the season as a classic carol Read
• 8.0 New York TimesBen Kenigsberg “Miller’s Point” is a Christmas movie more invested in atmosphere, and the qualities of wintry light, than in holiday cheer — and that somehow makes it all the more warm Read
• 8.0 The WrapWilliam Bibbiani It’s a little happy, a little sad, a little off-putting, a lot like going home again. And it’s always interesting Read
• 8.0 EmpireLiz Moody More ‘Lost In Long Island’ than ‘Miracle On Main Street’, this offbeat indie ladles on the melancholy mood while skimping on the holiday highs, and seems destined to become a cult Christmas favourite Read
• 8.0 The Irish TimesTara Brady There are cruising parallels with American contemporaries the Ross Brothers and Halina Reijn, but this daisy chain has an earnest, festive charm unlike any other. It’s a vibe Read
• 8.0 Little White LiesHannah Strong It's a film with an affection for the past, but one that also acknowledges you can never go back to how things were when you were younger – and that while everything about the holidays seems perfectly exciting and straightforward as a kid, the older you get, the more the fault lines start to appear Read
• 8.0 Common Sense MediaJeffrey M. Anderson Both strange and beautiful, this holiday-themed drama is noisy and quirky, bent on capturing moods more than plots, but its human poetry is surprisingly immersive and deeply touching Read
• 8.0 Financial TimesJonathan Romney This could well prove a dependable alternative winter warmer for years to come Read
• 8.0 The TimesKevin Maher This is the most Scorsese-esque Italian-American family gathering since every gathering in Goodfellas Read
• 8.0 HeyUGuysLinda Marric For those willing to settle into its rhythm, the film offers a richly textured, authentic portrayal of a family holiday gathering by capturing the essence of Christmas, warts and all Read
• 8.0 El antepenúltimo mohicanoPaula Arantzazu Ruiz Taormina hands the camera to practically every single member of the family, which is without doubt the great achievement of the film's narrative structure Read
• 7.5 IndiewireDavid Ehrlich Like any Christmas film worth the time it took to wrap, Tyler Taormina’s wry but melancholy “Christmas Eve in Miller’s Point” has a bone-deep understanding of why all the best holidays are so painfully bittersweet Read
• 7.5 Roger EbertBrian Tallerico It’s a deceptively complex piece of filmmaking, something that feels artfully executed and organic at the same time. It has so many layers, all of them covered in the emotions that erupt when we reconnect with our families Read
• 7.5 Geek Vibes NationCameron Ritter There’s an intense relatability found in this film, and Tyler Taormina has tapped into the collective memory bank of generations of people who grew up in America in a way I’ve never seen before Read
• 7.5 Movie BriefMichael Nordine Christmas Eve in Miller’s Point is like every holiday party you’ve ever been to — but it’s also not like any of them Read
• 7.5 North Shore MoviesSean Burns Everything’s a bit larger-than-life, but also a little smaller. The morning after I watched the movie, it already felt like something I’d seen a few years ago Read
• 7.0 The Hollywood ReporterSheri Linden Christmas Eve in Miller’s Point can feel like a party that refuses to end, one that could have used some judicious streamlining. But it’s a memorably adventurous party, fueled by intense hopefulness, and Taormina’s fondness for the characters is the movie’s beating heart Read
• 7.0 Screen DailyTim Grierson Generously mixing comedy, nostalgia, pathos and misanthropy, Christmas Eve In Miller’s Point embraces its brood’s rambunctious spirit, resisting the temptation to let any character become the central protagonist Read
• 7.0 ColliderRoss Bonaime Christmas Eve in Miller’s Point manages to bring to life a realistic portrayal of the holidays, in both its ups and downs, that few holiday films ever even try to accomplish Read
• 7.0 Sight and SoundRyan Gilbey Tyler Taormina’s sprawling portrait of an Italian-American family’s festive gathering in Long Island makes for an enjoyably hazy Christmas movie Read
• 7.0 KMUWFletcher Powell It’s curious, unusual, and a little bit mesmerizing Read
• 7.0 DeciderJohn Serba Christmas Eve in Miller’s Point isn’t always easy to like, but it’s always easy to admire Read
• 7.0 The AgeJake Wilson This is a film about the idea of tradition that sticks to a set of recognisable conventions (...) Yet, it’s also much odder and more original than this synopsis indicates Read
• 7.0 Los Angeles Times en EspañolSergio Burstein It's these very imperfections that make the family feel deeply real and the film itself feel completely original
• 7.0 MicropsiaDiego Lerer It's hard to find anything like a plot: it's all small moments and impressions, the closest thing to having sneaked into that party, overhearing conversations, catching a few exchanges and coming away with an idea of what is happening and what has happened in that family. Above all, what flows is affection and good humour Read
• 7.0 Caimán Cuadernos de CineJara Yáñez One of the film's most personal touches is its ability to play with tone and combine humour, happiness and sadness (...) Taormina's film stages a confrontation with time that goes beyond age and touches every generation, from the ailing grandmother to the children at play Read
• 6.7 FilmSpeakMaxance Vincent Tyler Thomas Taormina depicts the euphoric chaos of Christmastime unlike any filmmaker has ever showcased Read
• 6.0 Screen RantAlexander Harrison Still, when I look back on it, what I connected to wins out over what I didn't – I have enjoyed sitting with its ideas, and there are a couple flourishes that will stick with me Read
• 6.0 Sarah G Vincent ViewsSarah Vincent It will only be a Christmas classic for some and a chance to catch up on sleep for many Read
• 6.0 FilmHoundsWilliam Stottor Whilst flawed, Christmas Eve in Miller’s Point feels admirably detailed in its depiction of a suburban family Christmas Read
• 6.0 Chicago ReaderMarah Eakin Overall, though, Christmas Eve in Miller’s Point is an interesting and well-made watch, albeit one that may cause anyone with an aversion to nit-picking family drama a little more agita than it might ultimately be worth Read
• 6.0 Otros CinesDiego Batlle In that sense, it ends up as a film with well-achieved moods, several mysteries left unsolved and some decidedly unusual performances Read
• 6.0 CinemagaviaPablo Veiga Carpintero Its view of family, the passing of time and generational clashes is sincere and close, but also uneven in its ability to hold your interest for the whole running time Read
• 6.0 Cinéfilo SerialSamantha Schuster It's a film for those who enjoy seeing life itself captured on screen, where every viewer will be able to relate, and not so much for those who expect to see a particular conflict play out Read
• 5.8 One Guy's OpinionFrank Swietek Alternately affecting and affected, this is a Christmas movie that has a lovely glow but in the end is a hit-and-miss proposition, sometimes insightful but sometimes just awkward Read
• 5.0 Caimán Cuadernos de CineÀngel Quintana A likeable film that doesn't offer much out of the ordinary, except the chance to see Martin Scorsese's daughter, Francesca Scorsese, act alongside Steven Spielberg's son, Sawyer Spielberg Read
• 4.0 The TelegraphRobbie Collin But beneath the charming sparkly wrap, there’s just more of the same underneath: an endless round of pass-the-parcel that never actually coughs up a gift Read
• 4.0 The ObserverWendy Ide It’s almost radical in its banality, capturing rather effectively the overstuffed inertia of a family Christmas and the simmering generational tensions. But Taormina’s all vibes, no story approach tests the patience Read
• 3.8 Movie NationRoger Moore Unexplained, disorganized and cluttered with characters we strain to identify in banal situations that go nowhere Read
• 2.0 Culture MixCarla Hay It’s nothing but a dull compilation of mindless drama and unfunny comedy scenes with forgettable characters during a Christmas Eve night on New York’s Long Island Read