TV & Showbiz
Brits baffled at Americans pulling Christmas crackers in Netflix film
WHAT HAVE I JUST WITNESSED.
Daisy Jackson -
28th December 2024 
If you’ve immersed yourself in all things Christmas in recent weeks, whether it’s eating non-stop festive food or binge-watching anything with a bough of holly on the cover, you might also have felt the simmering rage induced by A Kindhearted Christmas.
This typical Hallmark movie, starring 90210’s Jennie Garth, follows its lead character as she spreads festive cheer around her picturesque town through anonymous gifts.
While she hopes to remain the town’s well-wishing Secret Santa, she risks exposing herself when she starts to fall for a local news anchor.
So far, so tacky (which is exactly what a Christmas film should be).
But it’s not the wishy-washy script or woeful audience reviews (27% on Rotten Tomatoes) that has sent Brits into a fiery rage.
It’s one particular scene of A Kindhearted Christmas, about an hour in, when the starring couple pull Christmas crackers together.
But rather than the traditional way, where you share a cracker with someone else and tug it to see who wins the bigger half, usually elbowing someone in the head in the process, they… pull the crackers by themselves (?!).
In the scene, lead character Jamie is having a romantic dinner with Scott (Cameron Mathison), when he presents her with a pair of novelty Christmas crackers.
“These are Christmas crackers from England,” he tells her.
“Typically, you open them before the meal, but my parents always used to make us wait until dessert.
“I’m gonna show you how to do it.”
Strap in guys because he’s about to explain exactly how NOT to pull a Christmas cracker.
“So you go in here and you find the little tab,” (here he shoves his fingers into the hollow handle of the cracker), “And I’m gonna show you right here why they call them a cracker.
“Make sure you squeeze them hard, and then on the count of three, everyone pulls at the same time.
“There it is, you see, isn’t that good?”
The sight of two people pulling Christmas crackers on their own might be the most bleak thing we’ve seen all season – and of course, other viewers have agreed.
When one person shared the clip on TikTok, Specsavers replied: “What have we just seen…”
Someone else said: “Hang on America doesn’t have them and this is how they think we open them. I’m confused about where they got this info from.”
One comment reads: “The whole of England is so confused right now.”
Someone shared: “‘We should add a scene with British Christmas crackers!’ ‘OK, but how do you open them?’ ‘Who cares!'”
One person said on X: “So the scene with the christmas crackers in A Kindhearted Christmas is just ridiculous. It just shows that absolutely zero research was done at all. I can not believe the movie was released with that scene left in. I hope the director is embarrassed.”
@netflix @NetflixUK . So the scene with the christmas crackers in A Kindhearted Christmas is just ridiculous. It just shows that absolutely zero research was done at all. I can not believe the movie was released with that scene left in. I hope the director is embarrassed.
— Charlie Katie (@QueenxxxUnicorn) December 9, 2022
Someone else said: “I’m watching A Kindhearted Christmas and they’re trying to claim you pull Christmas crackers with yourself… Nooo the whole point is it’s a fight to the death”
Another wrote: “Thank you for the nod to the British tradition of Christmas crackers, but you broke hearts everywhere here by having them pull their own!”
And someone posted: “Watching A Kindhearted Christmas on @NetflixUK. Do Americans really not know how to pull Christmas crackers?” (Technically, they are Canadian).
Watching A Kindhearted Christmas on @NetflixUK. Do Americans really not know how to pull Christmas crackers? pic.twitter.com/fXLZ4hcBlB
— Laura Haynes (@TheLauraHaynes) December 4, 2022
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Featured image: Netflix
