Saving Christmas by Darren Doane

Posted on 2016-12-09 by thelittleman
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While film reviews aren’t my usual, it’s the holiday season, and I feel that a low-budget film like Saving Christmas deserves all the publicity it can get. Despite its amateur acting and occasional blunders in pacing, the message of this film is strikingly fresh, highly educational, and inspiring for those of us who’ve rubbed elbows with the outskirts of Christianity that still to this day consider Christmas nothing more than a pagan celebration. Finally a satisfactory “Bah, humbug!” to their endless “myths and speculations.”

Kirk Cameron has been, for a number of years now, a strong champion for Christian truth against the grain of modern popular thinking. His films have challenged the status quo in many areas, forcing a reconsideration in how one approaches things such as relationships (Fireproof), American history (Monumental), and now Christmas.

Playing a down-to-earth character attending his sister’s Christmas party, Cameron educates his embittered brother-in-law on some of the truly biblical meanings behind a few of the most popular—and misunderstood—images of Christmas, including the nativity scene, the Christmas tree, Santa Claus, and even the nutcracker. I won’t spoil the movie by describing the lessons taught, but I think it’s fair to say that there’s a least one tiny nugget here for everyone—skeptic and believer alike— to learn about our Christmas traditions.

As noted above, the film isn’t perfect in every area, but I found the camera-work high-quality (minus a few focus or editing slips) and the soundtrack enjoyable. The Nicholas scenes were a great departure from the norm, and the dance scene—while a bit long—had its moments. Finally, two lines I really enjoyed were these:

1) When Cameron introduces the film and excoriates the fringe who refuse to celebrate Christmas due to its pagan roots, he adds: “What are they going to tell us next, that hot chocolate’s bad for us? That the druids invented it?”

2) When a guest mentions that he speaks in tongues, the brother-in-law notes: “You really need to work on your exegesis,” to which the guest responds, “Extra Jesus? Man, I’ve had my extra Jesus ever since I was baptized for the second time.”

Saving Christmas was a fun and enlightening little film, and I plan to recommend it to some family this season. I do the same to you now.

©2016 E.T.

Read More from Ray Comfort and Kirk Cameron:

Read More Christmas-related Books:

Fiction

Nonfiction

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