Last Christmas (2019)

In Paul Feig’s newest comedy, Last Christmas, Katarina (Emilia Clarke) didn’t give a heart, she got a heart, you see. The person who gave her the heart was in fact, George Michael, as this film attempts to explain what happened to said heart following his death in 2016. From there, Katarina feels a strange impulse to sing Wham! songs and suddenly grows a taste for leather jackets. I’m kidding. In reality, Last Christmas is actually about the life of Katarina following a (not George Michael) heart transplant and her struggles with existentialism following such a near death experience. She works in a Christmas shop run by “Santa” (Michelle Yeoh), and has essentially become passionless, lazy, and a complete mess. However, her outlook is challenged when a charming and quirky London bloke (Henry Golding) convinces Katarina to start having a positive outlook. From there, the two realize they have a certain pull to each other, and a relationship begins to cultivate. My friends, Last Christmas is pretty much exactly what you think it is: a cheesy good time. Is it bad? No. Is it good? Sure. Is it great? No. I have to say: Had it not been for this cast, especially thanks to Emilia Clarke, I think this movie would have been exceptionally more boring. Let me be frank: I worshiped A Game of Thrones (until those disastrous final seasons), but oddly, the two leads, Emilia Clarke and Kit Harrington, were the weakest actors despite being the most interesting and pivotal characters on the show. They were young and mostly inexperienced when they were cast, and it showed, especially when competing with an ensemble cast. That being said, I always found them to be the most charming talent whenever they appeared on interviews or for public appearances, and more importantly, I found both of them genuinely hilarious. So when I saw the trailer for Last Christmas and saw Emilia Clarke get to break out her full-blown charisma and that sense of humor, I knew I’d have to support her new work! And it paid off, because Emilia Clarke steals the show in this movie, far and away. Now, this is a Paul Feig movie, written by Emma Thompson and Bryony Kimmings (in her screenwriting debut). Let’s talk about Mr. Feig first, shall we? I want to clarify: I don’t think he is a bad director. But I can’t say he’s a great director, just like I can’t say Last Christmas is a great movie. I’m not sure why, but for some reason, every time I watch a Paul Feig movie, I walk away content, but not wowed, not impressed. I might get a few chuckles or giggles, but rarely do I get a hearty laugh. I might give a little “aw” or frown, but I never cry. What I’m saying is, his movies simply don’t have a great effect on me. And it’s very frustrating, because I want to like his movies, I find them to have great elements, but I can never get fully into them. For example, I wanted to like the 2016