Merry Christmas Aubrey Flint

John Bradley stars as Aubrey in Jack Spring’s festive crowd-pleaser Merry Christmas Aubrey Flint. After losing his mother on Christmas Day as a boy, Aubrey has developed a hatred of the holiday, preferring to spend his time in the company of his model soldiers. He loathes Christmas so much that he’s willing to commit battery over a snow globe. The incident sees him sentenced to community service at a retirement home, where he’s roped into helping the residents put on a production of A Christmas Carol. With the building on the verge of being sold to a property developer, owner Ellen (Sophia Di Martino) believes that getting the home recognised as a community theatre could be its last chance for survival. It’s a familiar premise that audiences have encountered many times before, but the ensemble cast bring enough charm to get viewers into the festive spirit.

Although Aubrey isn’t visited by any ghosts, his parallels to Ebenezer Scrooge are difficult to miss. Alongside the characters’ passionate dislike for all things jolly, both stories are ultimately about how they learn to embrace the communities around them. Despite his coldness to the world outside, Aubrey is witty, endearingly awkward and genuinely cares about those close to him, primarily Mr Hopkins (Richard E Grant), the elderly proprietor of the model shop. Each cast member is extremely likeable throughout, with the comedy talents of Kiell Smith-Bynoe and Karl Pilkington being noteworthy highlights.

The script sticks closely to genre conventions, playing things safe to deliver largely predictable and inoffensive outcomes. The bigger issue is that the narrative attempts to juggle too many plotlines at once. In addition to saving the home, Aubrey struggles with reconnecting with his father (Adrian Rawlins), a romance blossoms between Smith-Bynoe and Di Martino’s characters and resident Sadie (Ann Mitchell) needs assistance building her self-esteem. It’s a case of too much plot and not enough development, a problem that’s further compounded by emotional beats that come out of nowhere. It all culminates in a rushed finale that’s topped off with a cheesy fourth-wall break from Bradley.

Although Merry Christmas Aubrey Flint isn’t the most original holiday film, it is the kind of feel-good comedy that the whole family can enjoy while wearing their most ridiculous Christmas jumper.

Andrew Murray

Merry Christmas Aubrey Flint is released in select cinemas on 6^th November 2026.

Watch the trailer for Merry Christmas Aubrey Flint here: