The red carpet premiere of “A Christmas Party” at the Avalon Theatre on Connecticut Avenue was very Hollywood. The director wore sunglasses (of course.) There was splashy red decor, glittering gowns featuring low decolleté, and well-heeled Washingtonians stepping onto the red carpet for photos with beautiful people. Jaxon Keller, the lead actor, worked the room sporting a blue/black velvet dinner jacket, the young star acting the part, happy the hard work of the past year was going to be on the big screen at last. The enthusiasm was bright and the crowd was pumped. It was almost like being in L.A.

But the movie, true to its Indie roots, is not Hollywood. It's niche and it’s young. There were movie buffs

 

who drove nine hours from South Carolina or flew a few hours from Canada to check out the first feature film from young filmmaker Alex Helmer, who hails from Washington,D.C. The anticipation on Instagram over the past year promised fun. The message seemed clear even before the lights dimmed: this was an amazing group of young creators and actors who were really close, creative, dynamic and anxious to push some boundaries. 

“A Christmas Party” takes place in Arlington, Virginia (although you would be forgiven if you thought it was Glover Park or Chevy Chase D.C.) Helmer, fresh from time in L.A. learning the business and making connections, recently turned 23 and the fact that he pulled off his first feature film on a $50,000 budget is impressive in and of itself. Everything worked. The movie takes place in a large house in Arlington (and backyard) with only one scene elsewhere (a stroll in Georgetown). The camera work is noteworthy, with a focus on faces, not scenery. Close ups of Adam’s face and others as they negotiate moments of confusion or conflict serve to introduce each character and put viewers right in the moment. The captions which provide dinner ETA times and other bulletins from the front are hilarious and convey the creativity and fun Helmer and his co-writer Guy David Knoll bring as collaborators — they’ve worked together since high school at Woodrow Wilson High. It’s a little chaotic, which most Christmas parties are, and some of the subplots (there were more than five?) were hard to pin down. Whether it is our ever-shortening attention spans or some other force driving theatre to trend in the direction of short-form content, this is not the only recent movie or play from a writer under 40 where it is not always clear WHAT JUST HAPPENED. Think everything, everywhere, all at once. 

Helmer describes his debut feature film as an uplifting cult movie. The definition of a cult film is that it’s beloved by a dedicated group of fans who embrace the movie (check); often the fans go from simple appreciation to active participation, like quoting lines, dressing up as characters, or attending special screenings. (Based on the premiere event, check.) Cult films push boundaries with themes or characters, and some are intentionally absurd (check.) Funny? Yes, there were chuckles throughout, like when Roman, the British boyfriend played by Max Cazier, whose first American Christmas party this is, has to be taught how to aggressively dip the chip and shove it in his mouth, American nacho macho style. 

Jaxon Keller and the rest of the cast were very believable and well acted characters typical of most family gatherings (there is always some uncle wearing a Hawaiian shirt). Performances by Joe Rashbaum as C.J. and other “older guys” in the movie were fun to watch. Jaxon plays Adam, home from college, understandably disoriented and having put distance between himself and family, experiencing it all anew. It is affective to watch him work through his feelings for his (would be) leading lady, Ally, played perfectly by Sarah-Grace Donnelly. He is a hoodie-wearing 19 year old and if he is immature, well, that’s part of the story. As for the location in Arlington and DC, don’t go looking for iconic shots of Clarendon or Key Bridge but the affluent home, talk of politics and jobs in government and visitors from other countries does more to set the stage than any physical setting could. 

The Christmas party is, not surprisingly, dysfunctional. The dinner is late and the main course roast is a questionable oblong. The hostess is stressed, for any number of reasons. The boy doesn’t get the girl. The jealous husband is jealous for all the wrong reasons. Throughout it all, the two Iranian women trade acerbic commentary — Greek chorus-like.— about the party which we can’t understand unless we speak Farsi. And when the Black congressman shows up midway through dinner, possibly uninvited, wearing a scarf, Marion Barry style, and blows up in conflict with Ally, his staffer, it’s more uncomfortable than funny. 

Helmer promised there would be more questions asked than answered in the movie, and he was right. It is thought-provoking, and stays with you. As my friend Carles Fabregat reminded me as we talked about the movie over coffee at the Ibiza yacht club, “Remember Pedro Almodovar, the Spanish cult movie director, made his first feature film on a very low budget and while the film had its critics, it ended up setting the stage for Almodovar’s future as a sought-after filmmaker.” Helmer could well be on the same path.  

Indie filmmakers know their audience and my guess is Helmer knows his, fans who are just stepping over the threshold to adulting, trying to make sense of the post-Pandemic, post Trump, post-George Floyd, post sexual ambiguity, post social media and fake news world in which they find themselves, somehow still relying on the old values of tradition, family, mentors who aren’t your parents, community and belief in the magic of the holiday season. Despite all the poor decisions and weird entanglements, unanswered questions and misunderstandings, love matters the most. And isn’t that the theme of all Christmas movies? 

And anyway, never mind the chaos, because this is a cult movie, and Helmer clearly has an immense fan club of followers who filled the Avalon Theatre and appreciated “A Christmas Party,” giving it a standing ovation at the end.  

Helmer's teamwork approach to making this movie, getting it funded, and honoring everyone who worked on it, shouting out his parents and those of Knoll and Keller, stood out. Keller told everyone at the premiere that any of these people would follow Helmer to the next film and beyond, some came with him from his last short, because just as he makes clear in the movie he cares about people, community matters to him, uplifting people is part of his game plan and … love is all around. 

“A Christmas Party” will be shown on the film festival circuit in the coming months. Follow the movie on instagram @achristmasparty and see where this director takes us next.