Christmas (2003)

Keri turns up unannounced at the family home four days before Christmas. His parents, Brian and Loma, have long given up on a dream retirement as their savings have been whittled away by financially supporting their family. Loma is close to a breakdown with the stress, and her relationship with Brian has been reduced to a series of well worn rituals. Their eldest daughter, Megan, is living in their basement with her two children, Faith and Moses, and her boyfriend Brett, the father of her daughter Faith. Moses is from an earlier failed relationship and is only tolerated by Brett. Megan is an obsessive character who believes that she is the only one who does anything about the house and is jealous of the attention that the others seem to get. As the film unfolds we see the depth of her struggle and disappointments in life. The other daughter, Donna, is an enigmatic character through the early parts of the film. She is isolated; silently smoking outside, or picking at her food in the kitchen as the rest of the family are chatting and eating in front of television. There is a space of pain and loss around her. She spends a lot of time alone in her room taking pills, drinking straight spirits and just staring passively within the space. Donna is pregnant. Keri crashes on a squab in the corner of his childhood room shared with his youngest brother, Richard who spends most of his time wasted. Richard is a likeable character who has both loving and exuberant qualities. He seems unaffected by everything and able to brush off the negativety and stress around him with ease. He is a 'bro'. He is also gay. The family never talks about it. As Keri navigates his way through the relationships his own pain and demons come closer to home. He has been through a lot while away, physically and mentally. He needs to find meaning in family relationships and moves in and out of belonging and separation. Finally Keri's dissatisfaction with the family situation surfaces and things start to unravel.