Yawn. Poorly Filmed Snooze Fest.

Tells a fascinating and unsettling true story, and does so well, without pretending to have all the answers.

The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

If you're interested in the topic at hand, you should just watch it and judge yourself because the reviews have gone very biased by people that didn't even watch it and just hate (or love) the creator. I liked it, it was well written, narrated, and directed and it was about a topic that interests me.

Very pleasant and Heart warming movie. As usual, excellent performance by Martin Freeman but Marc Wootton was so on to it. Kids played a major role which bring this movie to life.

I watched this before and I didn't really enjoy it but then I watched the second and loved it. So I went back to the first and was like I love Mr. Poppy character now but nope still hated it.The lead just seems very poor he just seems like he was there for the money I don't know if this was the case but for me if he was the connections didn't work. Comedy needs the leads to have chemisty this didn't feel like they had any unfortunately.

Paul (Martin Freeman) was once an aspiring actor, like his friends. One man, Gordon Shakespeare, became a topnotch drama teacher and puts on an annual Nativity Play (very big in Britain) that garners lots of attention. Another friend and love interest, Jennifer, is in Hollywood, now a bigwig producer. But, alas, poor Paul. He is now an upper elementary teacher in a private, Catholic school, where his salary is low and his dreams have been dashed. Enter Mr. Poppy (Marc Wootton)! He is an unconventional teacher's aide that has been deposited on Paul by the well-meaning principal, Mrs. Bevan (Pam Ferris). It seems Poppy is a relative of hers and she's trying to help. Also, Mrs. B announces that Paul will be the director of THEIR school's Nativity Play this time round. Paul is flummoxed and irritated, none of his students seem to be able to sing or act. Neverthess, they adore Mr. Poppy at first sight and, in truth, his odd ways excite them to do better work. One day, most unluckily, Paul runs into the snooty Mr. Shakespeare, who tells of his future, elaborate productions. Loosing control, Paul blurts out that, well, Hollywood in the form of Jennifer is coming to see HIS, Paul's, play. What a fib! Word gets around soon, thanks to Mr. Poppy, who overhears the conversation. Newsfolk descend on Paul's school to find out more. But, how long will it be before the truth comes out? Will it cost Paul is job? This is one funny British Christmas film. Unlike the States, where religious presentations are forbidden under the Bill of Rights, Brits put on pageants each year honoring the true meaning of Xmas, the birth of Christ. (See Love Actually). Only, there is always a fresh take, an added sparkle. Paul's play is no different, sporting new songs and new characters, complete with real barnyard animals. There are FOUR kings in Paul's show, for example, in order to give a shy boy his chance. Mr. Poppy's lyrics and brainstorms also make for a unique re-telling. As such, Freeman and Wootton are perfect foils for each other, the one a straight arrow, the other a different drummer, and both give hilarious performances. All other cast members, including Ms. Ferris, are wonderful, too, as are the darling kids. Then, too, production values, from sets to costumes to script/direction add to the overall merriment here. Therefore, as one might guess, this viewer recommends a showing of Nativity in the near future of most film fans.

Premiering on BBC2 over the Christmas period, I decided to catch-up with it even if I disliked the look of it from the trailer over two years ago. My first impressions were wrong.Freeman plays his hassled teacher role straight (and very believably) so it's up to Wooton to be the clownish man-child, providing most of the laughs although Freeman has hilariously great 'WTF?' expressions in reaction to his co-star's antics. Ferris is the head, who's like the typical didactic staff member, who just wants to keep everything under control. Carr plays an exaggerated version of himself as a critic, Jensen is sweet as Freeman's ex, Watkin's plays his role broadly, pretty much a panto villain and the kids are alright, with the smallest boy stealing the show at nearly every opportunity. Those who remember Britain's Got Talent from the first series will spot some familiar faces.The pacing is pretty good and it never felt plodding anywhere, so kudos for the editing - some shots could've been a bit longer, so I could've appreciated a scene more. It does have a very televisual look, as I said and the two primary schools must be the smallest I've ever seen as apart from the main two classes, the schools look pretty empty, so maybe they couldn't they afford extras? The plot is predictable, it had some some manipulatively mawkish scenes (although one main one actually did make me cry as the actor's voice faltered while he was talking) and it did go beyond 'suspension of disbelief' for the ending, but with that exclamation mark in the title, this was always going to be a festive farce, not to be taken too seriously.The songs remind me of the cheerful exuberance some of Brittania High's songs had, so the Christmas primary school version of that is what the original music reminded me of. I didn't dislike any and would consider buying the OST.Overall: When the laughs come, it delivers and it had a high laugh count, for me. The drama side isn't so great and feels contrived due to clunky writing. Some of the youngsters have good comic timing and are actually pretty natural when they aren't looking lost/gurning in a scene. But, like Teachers main focus, this about the adults and the kids are just ancillary members. In tone, it's sort of like a spin-off Waterloo Road - The Primary Nativity. It zips along nicely, has a joyful, likable soundtrack and although it had no real reason to be released in cinemas, it's better than I thought it would be and will become an annual watch in my home - 6/10.