I saw Last Christmas on Friday, November 8 and absolutely loved it! The movie is funny, emotional, beautifully filmed and features outstanding performances from Emilia Clarke, Henry Golding and Emma Thompson. This review is more of a recap and just includes a brief overview of the movie information about the cast and crew and some of my feelings about the film.

Before you see Last Christmas, do not google it, read spoilers or online comments. The best way to watch this film is like a piece of art, just sit back and enjoy it.

Movie Overview

Kate (Emilia Clarke) is an aspiring singer in London who works an an elf in a year-round Christmas shop owned by a woman she calls Santa. Kate seems to just go through the motions in life, hating her job, her boss and her family. One night at work she sees a young man outside the store looking up at the sky. When she talks to him, he says his name is Tom (Henry Golding) and he tells her to always look up to see the good things in life.

Although I’ve never traveled to Europe, this movie makes me want to visit London at Christmas! Everything looks bright and sparkly, especially the Christmas shop that Kate works in as an Elf, complete with an Elf costume and pointy green boots. Two full floors of Christmas decor – some of it tacky and some of it beautiful! The streets of London are also lined with twinkling lights and decorations.

Even when Kate stumbles over a bag of garbage near an alley and sees homeless people waiting outside a church to receive a free meal, Tom is there to pick her up and encourages her to volunteer at the church. Through their interactions, he opens her eyes to the beauty of life, including her own.

Cast

Actor Henry Golding stars in Last Christmas as Tom, a genuinely happy man who befriends the main character, Kate. Golding was born in Malaysia and raised in England. He is a very handsome man with a British accent. I have to admit that one of the main reasons I went to see Last Christmas is because Golding is one of the lead actors. I first saw him as the character Nick Young in the 2018 summer hit Crazy Rich Asians and then as Sean Townsend in A Simple Favor along with Blake Lively and Anna Kendrick that was also directed by Paul Feig. Before he became an actor, Golding worked as a model and host of the BBC’s The Travel Show. I recently saw Golding as a guest on The Tonight Show and Golding is very good-looking and charming. Henry Golding is hot!

Emilia Clarke as Katarina “Kate” in Last Christmas. Before this movie, I had not heard of her. I’ve never watched Game of Thrones, so I know nothing of flying dragons! But I liked her in this movie-she’s adorable in the finale of the film.

Dame Emma Thompson helped write the script for Last Christmas and plays Kate’s mother, Petra in the movie. She is a double Academy Award winner – Actress (Howard’s End) in 1993 and Screenplay (Sense and Sensibility) in 1996.

Leslie’s Notes

The title of the movie is based on the song “Last Christmas” by the English pop duo Wham! released in December 1984 and written and produced by George Michael. The entire soundtrack is comprised of George Michael and Wham! songs. The songs make a perfect backdrop to the film and it is good to hear this music again.
It is shown at the beginning of the movie that Kate and her family lived in Yugoslavia and later immigrated to London because of the war in the Balkans.
According to this movie, London is home to a very diverse population. Some of the supporting characters include an interracial couple and a same sex couple.
The topic of Brexit is also addressed as one of the issues Kate’s family is struggling with since their move to London.
When you see this movie, you need to stay for the credits. There are additional photos included along with a special thanks to Andrew Ridgeley, the surviving member of Wham!