Just Another Christmas 2020

On Christmas Eve 2010, Jorge, Leandro Hassum — a man born on Christmas who hates celebrating his birthday — wakes up ready to brace for the holiday, only to clash with his family over tradition. His grandfather-in-law, Vô Nhanhão, Luis Franke, who has not spoken in years, hints that this season will teach him the true meaning of Christmas. That same night, his wife Laura, Louise Cardoso, presses him to dress as Santa and climb onto the roof, hoping to spread holiday cheer. A misstep sends Jorge tumbling off the roof and into unconsciousness, setting a strange course for the years ahead.

In 2011, a confused Jorge awakens on Christmas Eve with a shiny new car, a promotion at work, and a fresh smoking habit, yet he cannot remember the year that just passed. The familiar family rhythms reappear in microcosm: Leozinho, Bruno Braga, asks for money; Luana brings a new boyfriend into the fold; and Tio Victor, José Rubens Chachá, bolts from the dinner table with the turkey. The ritual repeats itself, leaving Jorge to wonder how many holidays have blotted together in his life.

By 2012, Jorge wakes again with no memory of the previous year, and he schemes to dodge another Christmas entirely. He leans on sleeping pills, hoping to skip the inevitable family gathering and the endless parade of expectations that come with the holiday season. Yet the cycle persists, nudging him toward a reckoning he can no longer dodge.

The years widen the picture, and in 2021 Laura intervenes, thwarting another pill-induced escape. Jorge learns more startling truths: he has undergone two bypass surgeries as a consequence of his smoking, and he is entangled in an ongoing affair with Márcia, his secretary at work. Márcia, Danielle Winits, becomes a focal point as the life he thought he was living collides with the life he might have had.

2022 finds Jorge facing a fractured family. He divorces Laura and moves in with Márcia, only to uncover a pre-recorded video from his future self urging him to embrace his new life. A dark moment follows a suicide attempt, but the narrative expands to reveal that his son has graduated from college, Tio Victor has died, and Laura still harbors feelings for him. As the night unfolds, Jorge pleads with Laura not to give up on their connection, even as Márcia’s hopes ride alongside him.

In 2023, a twist of fate lands Jorge on a secluded island, where he learns that his life with Laura has endured, even under the shadow of Nhanhão’s curse. Each Christmas Eve becomes a new vacation with his family, and as the years pass, he learns that he has become a grandfather, that his brother-in-law Leo has grown wealthy, and that his daughter faces terminal breast cancer. To spend precious time with her, they revisit her favorite movie, Shrek the Halls, a film she had urged him to watch back in 2010. The next year brings devastating news: his daughter passes away.

Near the end of the night, Nhanhão gives Jorge a blunt instruction: simply “make a wish.” After Laura brings out his birthday cake, Jorge closes his eyes and makes a wish, only to awaken once more on Christmas Eve of 2010. This time, he is determined to choose differently, to pause the cycle and steer his life toward healthier paths and deeper connections. The loop, while stubborn, becomes a canvas for recalibrating his priorities, preserving the joys of family, memory, and love across another chance at life.

make a wish