Get set to meet the yule mule
This year, Willem Dafoe narrated a lovely documentary called Do Donkeys Act? I thought it was a rhetorical question, but The Star answers with a resounding yes. According to this gentle animated tale, a donkey named Bo (voiced by Steven Yeun) was adopted by a Nazarene couple a couple of thousand years ago, and helped thwart Herod’s plan to murder their baby.
In case you haven’t guessed, the baby was Jesus, and the couple, voiced by Gina Rodriguez and Zachary Levi, one Mary and Joseph. Director Timothy Reckart holds our hand through the story, which covers the major beats of the Nativity tale, but adds subplots with animals that include Bo’s best friend Dave the dove (Keegan-Michael Key), a pushy sheep (Aidy Bryant) and a trio of camels, one of them (Oprah Winfrey) at least as wise as their riders.
My biggest complaint with The Star is that it contains almost as many animals as the ark. With a pair of dogs, a chatty cow, a second donkey and more, it’s a crowded tale. And I haven’t even covered the rest of the human cast, headed up by Christopher Plummer as the voice of King Herod. (The hardestworking octogenarian in show business can also been seen this season as Ebenezer Scrooge in The Man Who Invented Christmas, and as a late addition to the cast of All the Money in the World.)
On the plus side, the animators have clearly spent time and effort on the star of Bethlehem, which looks downright nebular and shines (as the carol tells us) both day and night. And in the nice-if-you’re-Christian column, a clever in-joke about Zechariah, father of John the Baptist, which also tells us this film’s hoped-for demographic. Overall, The Star is content to deliver its news to the faithful.
It’s not out to change minds, although it does suggest that even a stubborn donkey can find a new purpose at Christmas.