Representation matters. Seeing all sorts of different people, especially those excluded from centering movies (even the tradition of holiday movies) starting to be the centre of these films is important. What we're seeing in 2020 is a rush of holiday films telling holiday tales about those who have been sidelined from the staring roles in these sort of tales. Jingle Jangle is one of those, and like many of the others, such as Happiest Season, they are showing us that mediocre holiday films know no boundaries and can be inclusive of all.
Jingle Jangle is all pretty much all art direction and spectacle. Filled with a predictable and standard plot and forgettable music, Jingle Jangle looks really good but is rather forgettable. It's cute and cheery and its visual effects are quite magical, but the story lacks the sense of magic needed to sell such a holiday tale. It is unlikely audiences will be humming these run of the mill tunes long after the credit roll. Little about Jangle stuck with me after it was over.
But
Jingle Jangle does give audiences the chance to see their own faces reflected back at them over the holidays, not just in the supporting roles and sidelines that we are used to seeing ourselves. And despite Jangle's overly vanilla plot, it's not bad. It's enjoyable enough to pass an evening, even if you won't remember it next holiday season. But what it will do is remind us that there are many story tellers out there and they can all spin an average story. And there is something to that. So while it may not become an enduring classic it certainly shows us there should be more black lead holiday movies.. and maybe one of these days one will knock it out of the park.
Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey
Starring: Forest Whitaker, Keegan-Michael Key, Madalen Mills, Hugh Bonneville, Anika Noni Rose, Ricky Martin, Lisa Davina Phillip
Writer/Director: David E Talbert
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