Noelle (2019)

"Noelle" arrives from Disney with a sleigh full of goodwill and a thesis statement taped to the runners. The premise is that Santa's daughter, played by Anna Kendrick, cannot inherit the workshop because twenty-three generations of Kringles have all been men. The film spends its third act dismantling this arrangement, convening the elf elders to formally establish that no written rule bars a female Santa. It is a procedural victory, achieved through parliamentary review and a unanimous vote. The competence of the heroine is never in doubt, which spares us the training montage and leaves only the paperwork.

The casting is more diverse than the genre typically bothers with. Kingsley Ben-Adir carries the romantic lead as a Phoenix private investigator, Diana Maria Riva manages the mall, Maceo Smedley plays the investigator's son, and Shaylee Mansfield appears with on-screen American Sign Language. The film treats none of this as a subject for discussion. Race goes unmentioned, which keeps the viewing experience unburdened and the ledger quiet.

There is a mild economic complaint lodged against a cousin named Gabriel, who runs the family tech support and proposes an algorithm to sort the naughty from the nice. His efficiency is the villainy. The film prefers togetherness to merchandise, though it stops well short of indicting the toy economy that funds it. The messaging on gender is delivered with tinsel and a shrug, more greeting card than sermon. The result is agreeable, seasonal, and careful. It wants credit for progress without the inconvenience of an argument.