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The is a New York drama so laidback that it required a decade to arrive on the UK’s cinema screens. Initially unveiled in the US in 2015, it’s a micro-budget first feature from debut filmmaker Charles Poekel, set almost entirely on a 24-hour pop-up Christmas tree stall. Poekel’s style is far too genuinely independent and unaffected to get slushy or sentimental about Christmas; in his view Christmas tree lights blink like police lights. But in its own low-key way, he positions the movie just right for a modest dose of festive warmth.

The Jaded Seller in the Brooklyn Cold

Kentucker Audley portrays Noel (someone had in the film to comment on his name before I twigged). Noel returns for his fifth year selling Christmas trees in Brooklyn, working outdoors in the freezing cold and sleeping in a not-much-warmer caravan stationed beside the trees. Several patrons inquire after the girl working with him last year. But this year Noel is alone, heartbroken and on the night shift.

There’s an observational quality to many of the scenes, with customers asking pointless random questions. One woman requests the same Christmas tree as the Obamas (this is 2014). Noel looks numb with cold physically and emotionally; he’s weary and disillusioned, though Audley’s understated acting clearly indicates that he wasn’t always like this.

Understated Moments and Glimmers of Hope

In truth, not much happens. Noel comes to the aid of a woman, Lydia (Hannah Gross), who has collapsed drunk on a bench. She pops up again later in truly poignant scenes as Noel travels through New York, making tree deliveries – and these sequences could spark a small glimmer of good cheer in the grinchiest of hearts. Poekel hasn’t made a feature since this, which is a shame – you can’t beat it for authenticity and fluidity, and it’s filmed on beautifully grainy 16mm film.

The picture of understated charm and real atmosphere, portraying the loneliness and brief warmth of the season.

Christmas, Again opens in UK cinemas from 12 December.