Last Christmas review – Holiday story that resonates well

The film manages to rise above your average romantic comedy, serving up a resounding story.

Emilia Clarke and Henry Golding in ‘Last Christmas’. Photo: Universal Pictures

With Christmas rapidly in our sights comes Paul Feig’s cheery, sweetly conceived Last Christmas, a production saturated in sentimentality.

Emilia Clarke, one of the shining lights in Game of Thrones, has put her dragons aside to embrace a holiday story that will resonate with many people looking for an uplifting slice of candyfloss cinema.

The narrative is set in London with the build-up to Christmas and focuses on a dysfunctional young woman Katerina (Clarke) trying desperately to find her place in the world.

Emilia Clarke in ‘Last Christmas’. Photo: Universal Pictures

She has recovered fully from a heart transplant, and is engaged as an “elf” who works in a shop selling year-round Christmas gimmicks.

She is a massive George Michael fan and the music of the late star dominates the film’s soundtrack. One of the songs provides the film’s title.

The numbers are a spot-on accompaniment for the turmoil in Katerina’s life.

She’s a 26-year-old aspiring singer who enjoys binge-drinking, one-night stands, self-pity and displays a boorish behaviour that has left her estranged from her sister.

Henry Golding and Emilia Clarke in ‘Last Christmas’. Photo: Universal Pictures

She is also in danger of losing her day job, and is a persona non grata with most of her friends.

She needs to become a better, more responsible person and her life changes when she encounters Henry Golding’s mysterious Tom Webster.

He’s a dashing and infectiously upbeat individual with a penchant for breaking into brief dances routines as if he’s hearing a Gene Kelly musical in his head.

Last Christmas manages to rise above your average romantic comedy, serving up a resounding story.