First published as a short story in McCall’s magazine before being turned into a novel in 1972, the new feature film adaptation The Best Christmas Pageant Ever is the kind of feel-good, mildly Christian parable that typically gets released around the holidays.
The film—directed by Dallas Jenkins, who’s pretty much exclusively worked in Christian media to this point—stars Judy Greer and Pete Holmes alongside a cavalcade of talented kid actors. Set in an amorphous town in an amorphous time period, the movie tells the story of a much-lauded church holiday pageant that’s taken over by a rowdy group of kids with the last name Herdman. Hijinks ensue, but ultimately the whole thing comes together and everyone in town learns the true meaning of Christmas. It’s schlocky, and it’s been done about a million other times—but it’s not like you can’t say that about every Hallmark or Lifetime holiday movie, and people still love those.
The movie’s true standouts are its two young leads: Beatrice Schneider as Imogene Herdman and Molly Belle Wright as Beth Bradley. They both bring context and depth to roles that could have been played at a much more surface level, and you walk away from the movie wanting to see more from both of them.
Ultimately, The Best Christmas Pageant Ever is cute, somewhat funny, and if you don’t mind having concepts like “the real Jesus” pushed at you, mostly innocuous. Don’t run out to the theater, but if you’re looking for something to watch with the family on Thanksgiving while waiting for the turkey to cook, you could do worse. PG, 99 min.
Limited release in theaters
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