Earlier this week, Catholic priest Father Edward Looney, a Marian theologian, podcaster and YouTuber in the Diocese of Green Bay, and I discovered that we saw the same thing in the hit film The Best Christmas Pageant Ever.
As I said in my own review of it, it’s a very Mary Christmas.
So, Father Looney and I connected over X, and arranged to have a chat for his YouTube channel.
We discuss the film, including a bit of a historical deep dive I did on Barbara Robinson, the author of the original book, and what we hope its success means for Christmas films in general, and faith-based films in particular.
So, What Is The Best Christmas Pageant Ever?
It’s based on a 1972 novel by Barbara Robinson, and is co-written and directed for the screen by Dallas Jenkins, creator of The Chosen. If you haven’t seen the film yet — which, according to Box Office Mojo, has so far earned $13,940,929 — here’s how I described it:
The story, set more or less in the ’70s-ish, centers on a Protestant church in the small town of Emmanuel (Hebrew for “God is with us”), which is about to celebrate the 75th anniversary of its annual Christmas pageant.
But when injury sidelines the woman who’s been running it like clockwork for many years, mom Grace (Judy Greer) volunteers to take over. This doesn’t set well with the congregation’s gaggle of snooty church ladies (including Elizabeth Tabish, who plays Mary Magdalene in The Chosen).
Things get worse when, through a series of circumstances, Grace allows the rowdy, raucous — but also neglected, hungry and shabby — Herdman siblings to take over most of the lead roles, including Mary, Joseph and the Angel of God.
The Herdmans are legendary in Emmanuel for their bad, sometimes criminal, behavior, and especially for bullying fellow students, such as Grace’s children, Beth (Molly Belle Wright) and Charlie (Sebastian Billingsley-Rodriguez).
But Grace’s husband, Bob (Pete Holmes), stands behind his wife, and, when things seem desperate, even offers a fresh perspective on the Herdmans.
A Couple of Helpful Links
My review also contains a link to a video interview I did with Kevin Downes, one of the film’s producers, which I reference in my chat with Father Looney.
And, I reference a stage adaptation of the story, which I found online here.
We did have a chat about the Green Bay Packers and other NFL-related subjects, but that’s not part of the actual video interview. Maybe another time.
And Here’s the Interview
Without further ado, here’s our conversation:
Image: Kynlee Heiman as Gladys Herdman, Matthew Lamb as Claude Herdman, Mason Nelligan as Ralph Herdman, Beatrice Schneider as Imogene Herdman, Ewan Wood as Leroy Herdman and Essek Moore as Ollie Herdman in Best Christmas Pageant Ever/Lionsgate
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