The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey (2007)

To me, this movie is perfection.

When a movie has you begging for it to end not even half way through it's pure crap. We've all seen this movie and this characters millions of times, nothing new in it. Don't waste your time.

This movie tries so hard to be funny, yet it falls flat every time. Just another example of recycled ideas repackaged with women in an attempt to appeal to a certain audience.

True to its essence, the characters remain on the same line and manage to entertain the viewer, each highlighting their own distinctive qualities or touches.

The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey is a Christmas film, that shows us how to love others in many ways. This movie is a great non-rated film with morals and it has something for all ages! Tom Berenger does a wonderful job playing a gloomy Jonathan Toomey. Children make fun of his sad disposition, but when you learn more about the man, you understand why he is downcast. Jonathan is a widower, who lost his wife and baby son and he is a very lonely man.Jonathan's life gradually changes in a positive way, when he mets Thomas, played by Luke Ward Wilkerson, and the boy's mother, Susan McDowel, played by Joely Richardson. These two come into the man's life, after Thomas's father is killed in a war.The lonely threesome become friends, when Jonathan agrees to make a wooden nativity set for Thomas. Their relationships are strained at first, but later on Jonathan warms up to Thomas, after the boy is sweetly particular about how the manger characters should be carved.During the cute movie, other relationships build with Thomas and other children, and his mom and lovable aunt. (The aunt thinks that she lost her husband in the war, but later we find out that he was just lost in action for awhile.) The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey was very well done, except that I would like to have heard more religious Christmas music in the movie. Also, I did not enjoy the whiny country singer at the closing of the film. However, the movie still deserves a 9 out of 10, because the story was very well developed and it shows how the love of Jesus can make a positive difference in people's lives. The top stars in this movie are really Jesus, our Lord and Savior, and a caring, sweet boy, Thomas!

What a nice warm and cozy film to watch around Christmas time. Tom Berenger plays the crusty Jonathan Toomey who lost his wife and young son through a tragic accident. Mr Toomey begrudgingly agrees with a recently widowed woman Susan McDowell (played by Joely Richardson) to let her 10 year old son Thomas (played by Luke Ward Wilkenson) watch Mr. Toomey carve out a replica wooden nativity scene that the young lad mistakenly left a family heirloom behind in a train station.Gradually young Thomas wears down Jonathan Toomey's edgy personality and together young Thomas McDowell, the widower Susan McDowell and crusty Jonathan Toomey realize while meeting at Jonathan's home each night they begin carving out the wooden pieces of the nativity, that kindness and sharing in the true spirit of Christmas can brighten everyone's lives including people who have lost their most loved family members. It is a beautiful sad story with a happy and simple Christmas themed ending. We loved it.Watch for a young girl named Celia who is smitten by the bereaving Thomass McDowell when he moves in to the country to live with his mom and his auntie. The young Celia is actually Saoirse Ronan who went on four years later to star in the rock em sock em action flick "Hanna"

Most theatrical films today don't enter the realm of traditional values or refrain entirely from using words that make you feel uncomfortable with young children watching. Nor is there ever a product placement for Coca Cola very far away to remind us of crass commercialism. I picked this film up at my local library given it's Christmas themed title, and I don't know if I would ever have become aware of it otherwise. In many respects it's a melancholy tale dealing with heartache and loss, but counterbalanced by scenes of the young Tommy (Luke-Ward Wilkinson) making new friends in a new town and getting involved in the kind of mischief a youngster often finds himself in. The nativity set that serves as the dynamic for bringing the McDowell's together with Jonathan Toomey (Tom Berenger) also inspires the hermit woodcarver to re-evaluate his own life given the personal loss that's only alluded to briefly at the very beginning and end of the story. The attentive viewer will come away reminded that there are such things as happy sheep, proud cows and important angels that can help us connect with fellow travelers on this mortal coil. Set aside an evening for a family viewing of this heartening tale to recapture that Christmas spirit one more time.

This story of the meeting of lonely and sad people is a gentle, moving and warming tale that I think both older (8+ ?) children and adults will appreciate. The cast generally give a good performance and gel well - you can really feel the changing relationships as the story plays out. Luke Ward-Wilkinson does rather well and is very likable - he does not annoy like many child actors. Berenger also portrays Mr Toomey in a very believable way.The cinematography is nice in many places, especially the idealistic scenes of the country village. The outside of the Toomey house looks very much like a studio set, shot from the immediate front, but this somehow adds to the overall feeling of separation and is in no way a problem. Aside from the issue of death, there are no disturbing scenes, "colourful" language, or issues not suitable for youngsters and this makes for a very enjoyable, slow paced, experience.The film starts and ends in a Christmas setting, the remainder being time between, and so would suit a festive, wintery viewing with the whole family. The film does make you appreciate the ones you love and want to give them a hug.It would be nice to know "what happens next" but maybe that is part of the appeal of the story - following the journey up to a point, then leaving the characters with their new start.