Last Train to Christmas is a hybrid of A Christmas Carol and It's a Wonderful Life with a touch of Groundhog Day.
The train journey starts with Tony Towers (Michael Sheen) a Peter Stringfellow lite nightclub impresario in 1985 with his fiancé Sue (Nathalie Emmanuel.)
They are to meet his brother Roger (Cary Elwes) and his wife. Roger was in business with Tony but has since departed to work in the music electronics spinoff for Dixons.
Tony discovers that as he goes up and down the train carriage. He can move forwards and backwards in time and see how his life unfolds.
He sees a vision when his aggressive expansion of his nightclub empire collapses in ruins. When he makes Roger an equal partner, he later sees a future when he is betrayed by Roger.
The more Tony tries to manipulate his future the more problems he creates. Eventually Tony realises that he needs to resolve some deep rooted issues with his brother Roger.
The high concept film does not entirely succeed. It was billed as a comedy drama but it gets dark rather too quickly. The different timelines can gets confusing as it flips various decades.
Soon the nostalgia factor goes out of the window and you realise it needed more humour and frivolity.
At least the film looks at the fleeting nature of celebrity. Tony goes from nightclub owner to a rock singer, radio presenter to a television host. It always brings accompanying problems.
Both Sheen and Elwes enjoy themselves and for the first time, Elwes does a non posh English accent. He really does let his hair down.
The train journey starts with Tony Towers (Michael Sheen) a Peter Stringfellow lite nightclub impresario in 1985 with his fiancé Sue (Nathalie Emmanuel.)
They are to meet his brother Roger (Cary Elwes) and his wife. Roger was in business with Tony but has since departed to work in the music electronics spinoff for Dixons.
Tony discovers that as he goes up and down the train carriage. He can move forwards and backwards in time and see how his life unfolds.
He sees a vision when his aggressive expansion of his nightclub empire collapses in ruins. When he makes Roger an equal partner, he later sees a future when he is betrayed by Roger.
The more Tony tries to manipulate his future the more problems he creates. Eventually Tony realises that he needs to resolve some deep rooted issues with his brother Roger.
The high concept film does not entirely succeed. It was billed as a comedy drama but it gets dark rather too quickly. The different timelines can gets confusing as it flips various decades.
Soon the nostalgia factor goes out of the window and you realise it needed more humour and frivolity.
At least the film looks at the fleeting nature of celebrity. Tony goes from nightclub owner to a rock singer, radio presenter to a television host. It always brings accompanying problems.
Both Sheen and Elwes enjoy themselves and for the first time, Elwes does a non posh English accent. He really does let his hair down.