''Saving Christmas'' (also known as ''Kirk Cameron's Saving Christmas'') is a 2014 American faith-based

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a Religion, religious and Culture, cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by coun ...

comedy film The comedy film is a film genre that emphasizes humor. These films are designed to amuse audiences and make them laugh. Films in this genre typically have a happy ending, with dark comedy being an exception to this rule. Comedy is one of the o ...

. It was directed by Darren Doane and written by Doane and Cheston Hervey, based on an original story by

Kirk Cameron Kirk Thomas Cameron (born October 12, 1970) is an American actor, author, Evangelism, evangelist, television host, documentarian and producer. He first gained fame as a teen actor playing Mike Seaver on the American Broadcasting Company, ABC si ...

. It was theatrically released by

Samuel Goldwyn Films Samuel Goldwyn Films, LLC is an American film company that licenses, releases and distributes art-house, independent and foreign films. It was founded by Samuel Goldwyn Jr., the son of the Hollywood business magnate/mogul, Samuel Goldwyn. Th ...

on November 14, 2014. The movie stars Cameron as a fictionalized version of himself. In ''Saving Christmas'', Cameron, after explaining his views on

directly to the audience, tries to convince his fictional brother-in-law, played by the film's director, that Christmas is still a Christian holiday. The film received a 0% rating on

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...

. It was nominated in six categories for the 35th Golden Raspberry Awards and won four, including Worst Picture. It also became the lowest-rated film on the

IMDb IMDb, historically known as the Internet Movie Database, is an online database of information related to films, television series, podcasts, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and biograp ...

Bottom 100 List within one month of its theatrical release, and is now considered one of the worst films of all time. Despite being panned by professional critics, Cameron defended the film, alleging that the low reviews were part of an

atheist Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no ...

smear campaign that was allegedly hatched on

Reddit Reddit ( ) is an American Proprietary software, proprietary social news news aggregator, aggregation and Internet forum, forum Social media, social media platform. Registered users (commonly referred to as "redditors") submit content to the ...

Plot

In a framing sequence,

—as himself—addresses the audience from beside a fireplace, explaining his love of Christmas. Cameron goes on to express his views on the contemporary celebration of Christmas, which include his beliefs that atheists have tried to "take the holiday away" and that

Santa Claus Santa Claus (also known as Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Father Christmas, Kris Kringle or Santa) is a legendary figure originating in Western Christian culture who is said to bring gifts during the late evening and overnight hours on Chris ...

is a Christian. Cameron also criticizes

fundamentalist Christian Christian fundamentalism, also known as fundamental Christianity or fundamentalist Christianity, is a religious movement emphasizing biblical literalism. In its modern form, it began in the late 19th and early 20th centuries among British an ...

s who have politicized the holiday by tying the celebration to

Pagan Paganism (, later 'civilian') is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Christianity, Judaism, and Samaritanism. In the time of the ...

traditions and making accusations that the holiday has become too tied to

materialism Materialism is a form of monism, philosophical monism according to which matter is the fundamental Substance theory, substance in nature, and all things, including mind, mental states and consciousness, are results of material interactions. Acco ...

. The film switches to its main narrative, in which Cameron attends a Christmas party at his sister's house. There, he notices that his brother-in-law, Christian, is not celebrating like the other guests. When asked why, Christian tells Cameron that he feels the holiday has become too commercialized and

consumerist ''Consumerist'' (also known as ''The Consumerist'') was a non-profit consumer affairs website owned by Consumer Media LLC, a subsidiary of ''Consumer Reports'', with content created by a team of full-time reporters and editors. The site's focu ...

, and that he feels uncomfortable with what he believes are Pagan elements of contemporary Christmas celebration. Cameron tells Christian that he is wrong and recites the story of the Nativity, which is depicted in cartoon form. Meanwhile, two guests at the party discuss

conspiracy theories A conspiracy theory is an explanation for an event or situation that asserts the existence of a conspiracy (generally by powerful sinister groups, often political in motivation), when other explanations are more probable.Additional sources: * ...

. Christian complains that several elements of Christmas, most notably

Christmas tree A Christmas tree is a decorated tree, usually an evergreen pinophyta, conifer, such as a spruce, pine or fir, associated with the celebration of Christmas. It may also consist of an artificial tree of similar appearance. The custom was deve ...

s, are not biblical in origin. Cameron tells him that Christmas trees were God's idea since God created trees. He also says that each tree represents a

Christian cross The Christian cross, seen as representing the crucifixion of Jesus, is a religious symbol, symbol of Christianity. It is related to the crucifix, a cross that includes a ''corpus'' (a representation of Jesus' body, usually three-dimensional) a ...

;

breaking the fourth wall The fourth wall is a performance convention in which an invisible, imaginary wall separates actors from the audience. While the audience can see through this "wall", the convention assumes the actors act as if they cannot. From the 16th centu ...

, Cameron encourages the audience to visualize a cross every time they see a Christmas tree. Cameron further addresses several other concerns Christian has about the historicity of the holiday, including its date and the role of the

Three Wise Men 3 (three) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 2 and preceding 4, and is the smallest odd prime number and the only prime preceding a square number. It has religious and cultural significance in many societies ...

. Cameron ties the Nativity directly to the

crucifixion Crucifixion is a method of capital punishment in which the condemned is tied or nailed to a large wooden cross, beam or stake and left to hang until eventual death. It was used as a punishment by the Achaemenid Empire, Persians, Ancient Carthag ...

, saying that baby Jesus' swaddling cloth was a foreshadowing of his burial shroud, and claims that the gifts of

frankincense Frankincense, also known as olibanum (), is an Aroma compound, aromatic resin used in incense and perfumes, obtained from trees of the genus ''Boswellia'' in the family (biology), family Burseraceae. The word is from Old French ('high-quality in ...

and

myrrh Myrrh (; from an unidentified ancient Semitic language, see '' § Etymology'') is a gum-resin extracted from a few small, thorny tree species of the '' Commiphora'' genus, belonging to the Burseraceae family. Myrrh resin has been used ...

were used to treat dead bodies in a form of primitive

embalming Embalming is the art and science of preserving human remains by treating them with embalming chemicals in modern times to forestall decomposition. This is usually done to make the deceased suitable for viewing as part of the funeral ceremony or ...

. Cameron encourages Christian and the audience to place nutcracker dolls around Nativity sets to represent Herod's soldiers during the

Massacre of the Innocents The Massacre (or Slaughter) of the Innocents is a story recounted in the Nativity narrative of the Gospel of Matthew ( 2:16– 18) in which Herod the Great, king of Judea, orders the execution of all male children who are two years old and u ...

. Christian is convinced by the arguments, but then complains that Santa has replaced Jesus as the figurehead of the holiday; he further expresses discomfort over the fact that "Santa" is an

anagram An anagram is a word or phrase formed by rearranging the letters of a different word or phrase, typically using all the original letters exactly once. For example, the word ''anagram'' itself can be rearranged into the phrase "nag a ram"; which ...

of "

Satan Satan, also known as the Devil, is a devilish entity in Abrahamic religions who seduces humans into sin (or falsehood). In Judaism, Satan is seen as an agent subservient to God, typically regarded as a metaphor for the '' yetzer hara'', or ' ...

". Cameron tells Christian the story of

Saint Nicholas Saint Nicholas of Myra (traditionally 15 March 270 – 6 December 343), also known as Nicholas of Bari, was an early Christian bishop of Greeks, Greek descent from the maritime city of Patara (Lycia), Patara in Anatolia (in modern-day Antalya ...

, including a reenactment of the

First Council of Nicaea The First Council of Nicaea ( ; ) was a council of Christian bishops convened in the Bithynian city of Nicaea (now İznik, Turkey) by the Roman Emperor Constantine I. The Council of Nicaea met from May until the end of July 325. This ec ...

in which Nicholas had supposedly violently assaulted

Arius Arius (; ; 250 or 256 – 336) was a Cyrenaica, Cyrenaic presbyter and asceticism, ascetic. He has been regarded as the founder of Arianism, which holds that Jesus Christ was not Eternity, coeternal with God the Father, but was rather created b ...

for heresy. Cameron claims that, after the council, Nicholas went out and began beating other heretics for teaching false doctrine, and that "Nicholas was 'bad', in a good way". Cameron explains that St. Nicholas was the basis for Santa Claus, who was a byproduct of Nicholas' story being diluted by

secular Secularity, also the secular or secularness (from Latin , or or ), is the state of being unrelated or neutral in regards to religion. The origins of secularity can be traced to the Bible itself. The concept was fleshed out through Christian hi ...

culture. With this knowledge, Christian joyously declares that "Santa is the man". Reassured of Christmas' Christian roots, Cameron and Christian return to the party. Cameron criticizes people who feel that the holiday is too commercial, saying that because God took on material form, it is appropriate to celebrate using material things through the giving of expensive gifts. Cameron explains that presents represent

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

, and that Christmas is "doing what God does", as God has given humanity many gifts. Cameron then issues a plea to the audience to make Christmas an overtly religious holiday again, "for our children". Christian, as a gift to his wife, organizes a

hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...

dance to symbolize his love of Christmas, set to " Angels We Have Heard on High". Cameron, Christian, and all the party guests

breakdance Breakdancing or breaking, also called b-boying (when performed by men) or b-girling (women), is a style of street dance originated by African Americans and Puerto Ricans in The Bronx borough of New York City. Breakdancing consists mainly ...

in an extended musical sequence. Cameron then tells everyone to feast and suggests the audience organize the best dinner possible for Christmas, but not to forget it is a celebration of God.

Cast

as himself * Darren Doane as Christian White, Kirk's brother-in-law * Bridgette Ridenour as Kirk's sister * David Shannon as Diondre * Raphi Henly as conspiracy theorist * Ben Kientz as St. Nick

Production

Release

''Saving Christmas'' debuted on 410 screens on November 14, 2014.

Home media

''Saving Christmas'' was released on

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for digital video disc or digital versatile disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any ki ...

on November 3, 2015. The film was also made available on

Hulu Hulu (, ) is an American Subscription business model, subscription streaming media service owned by Disney Streaming, a subsidiary of the Disney Entertainment segment of the Walt Disney Company. It was launched on October 29, 2007, initially as ...

in March 2016, although it has since been removed from the site.

Soundtrack

A soundtrack album was released on October 27, 2014 by Reunion Records."''Kirk Cameron's Saving Christmas'' Soundtrack Details"
, ''Film Music Reporter''. Retrieved February 13, 2015. # "Joy" – 1 Girl Nation # "Christmas Time Again" –

Steven Curtis Chapman Steven Curtis Chapman (born November 21, 1962) is an American contemporary Christian music singer, songwriter, record producer, actor, author, and social activist. Chapman began his career in the late 1980s as a songwriter and performer of cont ...

# "Saving Christmas" –

Building 429 Building 429 is an American Christian rock band from Fayetteville, North Carolina. The band's name refers to Ephesians 4:29, a Biblical passage that (in the New International Version of the Bible) reads: "Do not let any unwholesome talk come ou ...

# "Let Us Adore" –

Jason Crabb Jason Crabb (born March 3, 1977) is a 2-time GRAMMY® Award-Winning Christian music singer and musician. He was previously the lead vocalist for the group The Crabb Family.

# "

O Holy Night "O Holy Night" (original title: ) is a sacred song about the night of the birth of Jesus Christ, described in the first verse as "the dear Saviour", and frequently performed as a Christmas carol. Based on the French-language poem ''Minuit, ch ...

" – Kerrie Roberts # " Away in a Manger" –

Casting Crowns Casting Crowns is a contemporary Christian and Christian rock band which began in Daytona Beach, Florida. The band was formed in 1999 by lead vocalist Mark Hall. They moved to Stockbridge, Georgia, and more members joined. Some members of the ...

# "

Deck the Halls "Deck the Halls" is a traditional Christmas carol. The melody is Welsh, dating back to the sixteenth century, and belongs to a winter carol, " Nos Galan", while the English lyrics, written by the Scottish musician Thomas Oliphant, date to 1862. ...

" –

Tenth Avenue North Tenth Avenue North is an American contemporary Christian music band from West Palm Beach, Florida. The band released a total of fifteen original music projects, including eight full-length studio albums (six of which reached the Billboard 200, i ...

# " O Little Town of Bethlehem" – Rebecca St. James # "

Hark! The Herald Angels Sing "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing" is an English Christmas carol that first appeared in 1739 in the collection ''Hymns and Sacred Poems''. The carol, based on , tells of an angelic chorus singing praises to God. As it is known in the modern era, it ...

" –

Matt Maher Matthew Guion Maher (born November 10, 1974) is a Canadian Catholic contemporary Christian music artist, songwriter, and worship leader based in the United States. Three of his nine albums have reached the Christian Albums, Top 25 Christian Albu ...

# "

O come, O come, Emmanuel "O come, O come, Emmanuel" (Latin: "''Veni, veni, Emmanuel''") is a Christianity, Christian hymn for Advent, which is also often published in books of Christmas carols.Henry Sloane Coffin and Ambrose White Vernon, eds., ''Hymns of the Kingdom of ...

" – Rhett Walker Band

Reception

Box office

On its first weekend, the film came in fifteenth place with ticket sales of $992,087, with a per-screen average of $2,420. In its six-week run, the film grossed $2.7 million at the box office against a $500,000 budget.

Critical response

''Saving Christmas'' was universally panned by critics, and is often considered to be one of the worst films ever made. On

, the film received a rating of 0% - meaning no favorable reviews whatsoever, based on 19 reviews with an average rating of 2.4/10. On

Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...

, the film received a rating of 18 out of 100, based on 9 critics, indicating "overwhelming dislike". ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' film critic Ben Kenigsberg said that Cameron's acting "sounds so forced you half-expect the camera to pull back to reveal hostage takers".Kenigsberg, Ben (November 13, 2014)
"To Save Us All From Satan's Power"
, ''The New York Times''. Retrieved December 28, 2014. In 2016 the ''

Billings Gazette The ''Billings Gazette'' is a daily newspaper based in Billings, Montana, that primarily covers issues in southeast Montana and parts of northern Wyoming. Historically it has been known as the largest newspaper in Montana Montana ( ) is a ...

'' named it the worst Christmas movie of all time, and Will Nicol of ''

Digital Trends Digital Trends is a Portland, Oregon-based tech news, lifestyle, and information website that publishes news, reviews, guides, how-to articles, descriptive videos and podcasts about technology and consumer electronics products. With offices in P ...

'' included it on his list of the ten worst movies ever made.

Christy Lemire Christy A. Lemire (née Nemetz; born August 30, 1972) is an American film critic and host of the movie review podcast ''Breakfast All Day''. She previously wrote for the Associated Press from 1999 to 2013, was a co-host of '' Ebert Presents at ...

picked ''Saving Christmas'' as the worst film she has ever reviewed. In ''

The Christian Post ''The Christian Post'' is an American non-denominational, conservative, evangelical Christian online newspaper. Based in Washington, D.C., it was founded in March 2004. News topics include the Church, ministries, missions, education, Christi ...

'', an

evangelical Christian Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide, interdenominational movement within Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that emphasizes evangelism, or the preaching and spreading of th ...

newspaper, Emma Koonse wrote, " irk Camerondismisses theories that Christmas is derived in 'sic''">sic.html" ;"title="'sic">'sic''the pagan celebration of Winter Solstice">sic">'sic<_a>''.html" ;"title="sic.html" ;"title="'sic">'sic''">sic.html" ;"title="'sic">'sic''the pagan celebration of Winter Solstice in ''Saving Christmas'', offering viewers a Biblical reference to items such as the Christmas tree instead. Furthermore, the film reveals Cameron's take on Santa Claus, the three wise men, and why Christmas is celebrated on Dec. 25 each year... Although Cameron attempts to defend Christmas traditions in ''Saving Christmas'', many Christians remain divided over what the Bible says about celebrating Christ's birth as well as where the varied Christmas traditions originated and what the customs mean in reference to Jesus."Koonse, Emma (November 12, 2014)
"Kirk Cameron Hopes Audiences 'Throw Both Arms Around Their Christmas Tree' After Watching ''Saving Christmas''; Challenges Pagan Ownership of Holiday"
, ''The Christian Post''. Retrieved November 12, 2014.

Cameron's response

On November 20, 2014, Cameron responded to the negative reviews by posting on his Facebook page. He wrote, "Help me storm the gates of Rotten Tomatoes. All of you who love ''Saving Christmas'' – go rate it at Rotten Tomatoes right now and send the message to all the critics that WE decide what movies we want our families to see." The attempt backfired, causing Internet users to visit the Rotten Tomatoes website and further condemn the film. Three weeks after the film's release, the film gained additional notoriety when it became the lowest-rated film on

's bottom 100 list. Cameron later responded to the low rating, saying that it was due to a campaign on

by "haters and atheists" to purposely lower the film's ratings.

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Saving Christmas 2010s Christmas comedy films 2014 comedy films 2014 films 2014 independent films American Christmas comedy films American independent films Cultural depictions of actors Films about Christianity Films shot in Los Angeles Golden Raspberry Award–winning films Liberty University Samuel Goldwyn Productions films 2010s English-language films 2010s American films English-language Christmas comedy films Films about the Nativity of Jesus Film portrayals of Jesus' death and resurrection Cultural depictions of religious leaders Films about consumerism English-language independent films