disappointment media
  • Home
  • Reviews
  • Interviews
  • The Snake Hole
  • About

LONG DECEMBER -- Quaint Indie Musical Is Simple, but Potently Poignant

10/6/2023

0 Comments

 
Review by Sean Boelman
Picture
Indie musicals are a tricky prospect — they can either be incredibly charming, or massively above their means. Thomas Torrey’s Long December doesn’t have a lot of substance to it, and feels like a copy of other, more nuanced movies in many ways. Still, thanks to an excellent lead performance and an incredible amount of sincerity, the film manages to hammer home its emotional beats surprisingly well.

The movie follows a struggling musician who is desperately trying to keep the dream alive as another year comes to a close in the holiday season. Those looking for a cheery Christmas musical should look elsewhere, as Torrey’s film is quite melancholy, but it packs an unexpectedly potent sense of poignancy.

If one were looking to classify Long December, it’s probably easiest to compare it to the work of John Carney — especially Once, in terms of both plot and pacing. It’s essentially a hang-out movie set in the music world, where what happens is much less important than the music and the vibes it creates.

That’s not to say the movie is plotless — the core thread is about the protagonist’s journey as a struggling musician — but what story there is sticks extremely closely to the conventional beats of the genre. Still, the film is told with such an earnest heart that it’s hard not to be moved by it at least a bit.

And even if the character lacks substance, lead Stephen Williams brings a lot of personality and relatability to the role. Beyond being a solid actor, Stephen Williams is also a damn good singer. Given that so much of the movie is simply him singing, it’s heavily dependent on his stage presence to work, and he has more than enough of that to go around. 

The film features original songs by Williams and John Mark McMillan (who also has a supporting role in the movie), and while they are fine, they’re so similar stylistically that they often blend together. In fact, some of the astoundingly beautiful renditions of classic Christmas carols by Williams stand out more than the originals.

From a technical standpoint, it’s impressive what Torrey was able to do with obviously limited resources. Again, the music does much of the heavy lifting here, but the way in which these performances are shot is strong and often captivating. One scene early in the film has some particularly impressive use of lighting that will draw viewers into the story.

Long December is a deceptively simple movie. It’s really just a bunch of Americana music and covers of Christmas carols tied together with a loose, cliched narrative. And yet, against the odds, the film manages to be pretty stirring. As an indie musical, that’s all it could ask for.

Long December is screening at the 2023 Heartland International Film Festival.

Rating: 3.5/5
               
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Archives

    May 2025
    April 2025
    March 2025
    February 2025
    January 2025
    December 2024
    November 2024
    October 2024
    July 2024
    June 2024
    May 2024
    April 2024
    March 2024
    February 2024
    January 2024
    December 2023
    November 2023
    October 2023
    September 2023
    August 2023
    July 2023
    June 2023
    May 2023
    April 2023
    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019

    Authors

    All
    Adam Donato
    Alan French
    Allison Brown
    Borja Izuzquiz
    Camden Ferrell
    Cole Groth
    Daniel Lima
    Dan Skip Allen
    Erin M. Brady
    Jonathan Berk
    Joseph Fayed
    Josh Batchelder
    Paris Jade
    Rafael Motamayor
    Sarah Williams
    Sean Boelman
    Tatiana Miranda

disappointment media

Dedicated to unique and diverse perspectives on cinema!
  • Home
  • Reviews
  • Interviews
  • The Snake Hole
  • About