Best movie of this year hands down!

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

The acting in this movie is really good.

Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

Danny Glover might be too old for this kind of sugar. A spiky feel good festive film but a little slow to get going and too many flat and clichéd characters.Walter (Glover) is the patriarch and recently widowed who has invited his family round for Christmas at his home, a house he plans to sell but as yet not told his kids.In attendance are his daughters Cheryl and Rachel who do not get along. His son Christian who plans to run for congress and his youngest son Evan who is hooked on painkillers after a sports injury.There are other family members and hanger on's such as Christian's campaign manager who wants to redevelop a centre for the destitute that upsets Walter.You have a family squabbling, an errant husband having a bit on the side with a store clerk but it is only sporadically amusing but is inoffensive and is amiable enough to watch at Christmas.

Lemme start by saying, I LOVED this movie. This movie is HELLA cute! I loved it. I love that it centered around a positive patriarch. I loved that all the actors/actresses seemed to be very comfortable in their roles. I'm not a fan of Gabrielle Union's acting nor Kimberly Elise's but both women did an amazing job in their roles. J.B. Smooth was funny and Monique was HILARIOUS. The guy from Wildin Out- Young Fly (I think that's his name), he did a really good job as well. Hopefully, he pursues more acting roles. There were a couple of scenes that were supposed to big arguments- those scenes, I can tell, were supposed to be better and bigger than it was. But that's my only complaint. Comparable to Soul Food- but much better in my opinion.

While this move may have its predictably but it comes off with a strong performances from its cast particularly Danny's Glover character Walter who is adjusting to life after his wife grace suddenly passes away and is uncertain of what his future holds. He decides that he wants his four children Cheryl the dentist, Christian the congressman, Evan, the football player and Rachel the struggling single mother who is trying to be a lawyer come together with the holidays. Despite Walter best efforts to have a smooth Christmas,so the siblings end up fighting but luckily Monique brings in the comedic relief as aunt may who is great in this film.

For the record, I love Thanksgiving and am not a fan of putting up Christmas trees this early, but I can appreciate a feel-good holiday film anytime of the year.Unfortunately for director David E. Talbert, this delivered few laughs and some grunts and sighs. It's to be expected, though, as these sorts of films make their rounds ad nauseam during the holidays.Almost Christmas brings together a recognizable cast, which includes Danny Glover, Mo'Nique and Gabrielle Union, that surely makes the characters more appealing to moviegoers. The premise for this film surrounds a family reunion during Christmas in Birmingham, Alabama, months after Walter's (Glover) wife, Grace, dies. The once- functional family struggles to get along due to implicit and explicit frustrations among one another.Ain't No Woman Like the One I Got by the Four Tops softly plays in the background as a very quick opening montage through the years shows how Walter, Grace and their family loved each other. What struck through the first half hour was a sense of composure, which some of these one-time holiday films usually fail to achieve.As the five-day countdown until Christmas began, the comedic writing by Talbert kicked into gear and shoved more of the serious tones out of the window. Aunt May (Mo'Nique) is very outspoken and makes her presence known from the minute she appears. Most of the personal insults come from her, but not all were cringe-worthy. I even found myself laughing in-between the more heavy-handed jokes, but it was almost too obvious in moments that the stage was her's.However, there were far too many cheesy moments and exactly that: heavy-handed jokes. Yeah, we get it, children love their iPhones and documenting everything for social media. But do we need to hear them shout, "Worldstar!"? Yeah, we also get that Uncle Lonnie (J.B. Smoove) is making Santa Claus butt jokes, but you don't need to linger on the fact that they're butt jokes. Make 'em and move forward, except for the Worldstar joke. Don't ever make that joke again.The movie also introduces Jessie T. Usher for the first time since Independence Day: Resurgence. Usher plays Evan, Walter's son and a star college football athlete who has everything, yet is addicted to painkillers he was prescribed for his once-injured shoulder. The film uses his drug use to teach a lesson later in the film that was oddly placed in-between another conflict.Rachel (Union) and her sister, Cheryl (Kimberly Elise), have a bad relationship to boot which ends up being the best relationship/conflict throughout the film. The other relationships were … eh, forgettable. There's a weaker subplot which involves Christian (Romany Malco), Walter's son-turned-politician, and it feels like it's no more than a stopgap for the "Christmas miracle" of the film. It was added to the list of generic moments triggered by the film's screenplay.Glover adds little to the film as it moves on other than stopping arguments and reminding his children and family that they need to love rather than shout. It's understandable why he's soft-spoken throughout the entire film after losing his wife, but this showcases that his best acting days may be behind him.I feel the movie will resonate well with audiences that can truly relate to the dysfunction of dinners during the holidays. There were many specific moments where the theater was in raucous laughter and others that struck heartstrings. There's fun found in a dancing scene, and Almost Christmas ends as it began: with the Four Tops. Seriously speaking, it ends on a feel-good note and is tolerable, but it just doesn't bring enough to the table to break out of its generic shell.