The Best Christmas Pageant Ever movie review: Spreads the message of hope and kindness

A still from The Best Christmas Pageant Ever

Film: The Best Christmas Pageant Ever

Cast: Judy Greer, Pete Holmes, Molly Belle Wright, Lauren Graham, Sebastian Billingsley-Rodriguez, Kynlee Heiman, Matthew Lamb, Beatrice Schneider

Director: Dallas Jenkins

Rating: 3 stars

Runtime: 99 mins

Director Dallas Jenkins' adaptation of Barbara Robinson's 1972 book about the "worst children in the world" taking all the lead roles in a church Christmas pageant, conveys the message of Christmas with a warm-hearted depiction of kindness and hope.

Narrated by an adult Beth (Lauren Graham) who gets right to the point, "The Herdmans were absolutely the worst kids in the history of the world. They lied, they stole, they smoked cigars. They hit little kids, took the Lord's name in vain. dissed teachers, even set fire to the tool shed." Ralph (Mason D. Nelligan), Leroy (Ewan Wood), Claude (Matthew Lamb), Ollie (Essek Moore), Gladys (Kynlee Heiman), and Imogen (Beatrice Schneider) are hellions whose shenanigans range from offensive to downright harmful. The picture is clear. They are ruffians with no chance of redemption. Then we see a young Beth (Molly Belle Wright) being bullied by Imogen Herdman (Beatrice Schneider), into giving up her favorite necklace. Beth's brother Charlie (Sebastian Billingsley-Rodriguez), who has had to give up his dessert to the Herdmans, is angry and tells them an exaggerated story about all sorts of treats being distributed at church. And so, the Herdmans, ever on the lookout for goodies, show up just as Grace(Judy Greer) is casting the pageant.

Beth's mother, Grace has taken charge of the pageant, the biggest event of the year for the church and the small community. But the community would rather have the Herdmans out of it and Grace has her job cut out to keep them all happy.

Grace tries to educate the clueless Herdmans about the Nativity, and they seem captivated. Being bullies, they want to take over all the main roles and keep the others out. Grace Has no option but to let them hog the show. Imogene is cast as Mary, one brother as Joseph, her younger three brothers as the wise men, and their youngest sister, Gladys (Kynlee Heiman) as the angel who calls to the shepherds. So the stage is set for the pageant and everyone expects the entire event to end up in a fiasco. But to their surprise, they learn something new from the entire experience. The community learns from the Herdmans just as the Herdmans learn from the community.

Robinson's book, an enduring classic, shared by families over generations, has stereotypical characters like naughty kids, a loving family, and tender moments portrayed with the aim of bringing out the benefits of kindness and inclusion. The message of Jesus to welcome those who are not welcome anywhere else comes through quite succinctly. The Ecclesiastical Spin was expected.

The story is set in a sort of ideal sitcom-like setting designed by Jean-Andre Carriere. This is a film conveying a strong message and it's done lightly, highlighting humor, warmth, generosity.

The movie ends with the success of the pageant but for a true Christian, the worry is whether the Herdmans got the support they needed for a successful and productive life. The end credit update does inform us about their successes but it does not seem enough. After all, we are talking about kids who have had to live by their wits and find succour for themselves. A little bit more about how they achieved that with help from the community might have made the filmed experience more powerful. Nevertheless, this is an uplifting tale soaked in sentiment and tinged with nostalgia.