The Noel Diary is Netflix's antidote to the super-saccharine rom-com Christmas movie. It is full of dulcet, mournful piano and longing, stolen glances; it is, in this way, a perfect Christmas film.
Like everything else around this 'most wonderful time of the year,' things are not wonderful for our protagonist Jacob Turner (This is Us' Justin Hartley), a famous heartthrob novelist whose only true love is his dog, Ava. He learns of his mother's death thanks to a lawyer's phone call, and we learn of their estrangement as he picks his way through the neatest hoarder's house we've ever seen.
Enter Rachel (Barrett Doss): beautiful, fluent in several languages, upfront and honest. She's hoping he can help her find her birth mother who used to nanny for Jacob and his brother, who died tragically at only 7 years old. They go on a journey of self-discovery, mending traumas and finally learning to embrace life.
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It speaks to the star power of the two leads that even against the clichéd backdrop, you become invested in their relationship and their journeys. Of course, there is an element of mystery to the film that helps propel the plot forward – there are literal questions that get literal answers – but despite the corny sex-pot author jokes, there's a sweetness to Jacob and an earnestness to Rachel that makes them instantly likeable.
The Noel Diary leans into all of the trappings of its genre – like the snowstorm that forces our couple into a B'n'B (in two rooms though, giving the film its best self-aware moment) – and your enjoyment of the film will certainly be dictated by your level of tolerance for this kind of framework, and the gilding that comes with it. (Most people who go in for this kind of film, though, will likely be aware of the strictures to which a schmaltzy Christmas film must adhere.)
Luckily, The Noel Diary isn't laden with side plots and sub-plots that detract and overstuff the narrative. We get a glimpse into the life of Jacob's neighbour Ellie (the always magnificent Bonnie Bedelia), but that's pretty much it. There's no best-friend/assistant, and even Rachel's peripheral people (we won't spoil it) feature so briefly that you aren't too bothered by their lack of well-roundedness.
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The film rests squarely on Hartley and Doss' shoulders and the pair to a valiant job keeping the schmaltz of it all from getting in the way of their jobs. Both have some Capital I Important 'trauma' to work through, but neither let the melodrama of it (nor the sometimes cheesy writing of it) weigh them down.
Somehow, both roles are buoyant — they bring to mind a chocolate souffle, delicate and airy but full of flavour and richness. Nor does the film take too-manipulative shortcuts, namely they don't kill the dog (thank god, because as soon as that dog showed up there was an innate fear that it would die to exact tears from viewers, but we feel safe in spoiling for you that Ava lives a long happy life!).
All in all, if you're looking for a well-acted, if slightly rote, Christmas film to get you in your feels, The Noel Diary is it.
The Noel Diary is now out on Netflix.
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