Taglines: It’s a wonderful life.
Kate is a young woman who lives in London. The young woman, who made many wrong decisions in her life, works in a Christmas shop where she plays the role of elf. When a man named Tom gets involved in Kate’s life at an unexpected time, the world of the young woman becomes completely different. Tom tries to make a new beginning for her life in the best times of London, although she pushes Kate’s limits. Although nothing’s going well in Tom and Kate’s life, it won’t be hard for them to listen to their hearts.
Last Christmas is a 2019 romantic comedy film directed by Paul Feig and written by Bryony Kimmings and Emma Thompson, who co-wrote the story with her husband, Greg Wise. Based on the song of the same name, and inspired by the music of George Michael, the film stars Emilia Clarke as a disillusioned Christmas store worker who forms a relationship with a mysterious man (Henry Golding) and begins to fall for him; Thompson and Michelle Yeoh also star.
Last Christmas was theatrically released in the United States on 8 November 2019 and in the United Kingdom on 15 November 2019 by Universal Pictures. It received mixed reviews from critics, who praised the performances and chemistry of Clarke and Golding but criticised the screenplay and plot twist. The film was a box office success, grossing $121 million worldwide.
About the Story
Katarina “Kate” works a dead-end job as an elf at an all-year Christmas shop in Central London, whose owner calls herself “Santa.” She is homeless after being thrown out by her flatmate. While at work she notices a man outside staring upwards. She talks with him, learning that his name is Tom.
After an unsuccessful singing audition, Kate sees Tom again and they go for a walk, where he charms her with his unusual observations of London. Upon isolating herself from her oldest friend, Kate is forced to return to her parents’ home. Croatia immigrants, her mother, Petra, suffers from depression and her father, a former lawyer, works as a minicab driver as he can not afford to retrain to practise law in the United Kingdom. Kate feels suffocated by her mother, who dotes on her while ignoring Kate’s sister, Marta, a successful lawyer.
Kate begins spending more time with Tom, who rides a bike and volunteers at a homeless shelter, which she initially mocks. Looking for Tom, who says he keeps his phone in a cupboard and often disappears for days at a time, she begins helping at the shelter in the hope of running into him but finds that the staff have never met him.
While celebrating Marta’s promotion, Kate spitefully outs Marta, a lesbian. She then runs into Tom, who takes her back to his apartment. Kate reveals that a year earlier she was seriously ill and had to have a heart transplant. Kate says she feels half dead and questions whether she has the talent to make it as a performer. After opening up to Tom, Kate tries to initiate sex but he declines.
After spending the night with Tom, Kate begins taking small steps to improve her life; taking care of her body, setting up Santa with a Danish man who loves Christmas as much as she does, apologising to Marta and her girlfriend, and singing Christmas songs to busk for money for the shelter. After a few days she runs into Tom again, who says he has something important to tell her, but she preemptively asserts he is fearful of commitment, and walks away.
Kate continues to try to do good in her daily life. Finally, wanting to make amends with Tom, she returns to his apartment only to meet an estate agent who is holding viewings. After some initial confusion about who owns the flat, he reveals that the previous owner was killed in a bicycle accident last Christmas and the place has been vacant during the probate process.
Finding his phone in the cupboard, Kate realises that Tom was the organ donor whose heart she received, and that all their interactions were hallucinations. Going to a small garden, which was Tom’s favourite place, Kate encounters him again where he says his heart will always belong to her. The bench on which they sat during their first trip to the garden is revealed to be a memorial bench for Tom.
Last Christmas (2019)
Directed by: Paul Feig
Starring: Emilia Clarke, Henry Golding, Michelle Yeoh, Emma Thompson, Sue Perkins, Peter Serafinowicz, Patti LuPone, Ingrid Oliver, Margaret Clunie, Lydia Leonard, Rebecca Root
Screenplay by: Bryony Kimmings, Emma Thompson
Production Design by: Gary Freeman
Cinematography by: John Schwartzman
Film Editing by: Brent White
Costume Design by: Renee Ehrlich Kalfus
Set Decoration by: Raffaella Giovannetti
Art Direction by: Richard Hardy, Isona Rigau, Tom Still
Music by: Theodore Shapiro
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for language and sexual content.
Distributed by: Universal Pictures
Release Date: November 8, 2019 (United States), November 15, 2019 (United Kingdom)
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