Nugget Is Dead: A Surprise Bisexual Christmas Comedy

Australian streaming giant Stan have begun their annual launch of Christmas themed films to get you into the festive spirit and this year they are offering something different with the original film, Nugget Is Dead: A Christmas Story

From the title of the film it’s not something you’d pick as an Aussie queer Christmas special, but the film certainly delivers in plenty of unexpected ways.

Nugget Is Dead

As the titled of the film suggests, the entire premise hangs off three simple words, “Nugget is dead”.

Steph (Vic Zerbst) is attempting to negotiate a Christmas away from her hectic family with her new boyfriend.

Whilst she spends her days in the city studying to be a dermatologist, her eccentric yet loveable bogan family still reside in the suburbs.

Steph’s new boyfriend Sebastian (Alec Snow) however has a family of a very different and much wealthier background, the opening scenes of Steph attempting to explain her family dynamics to Sebastian and his mother set the tone well.

Just as her plans to escape her chaotic family for Christmas seem about to come to fruition she receives the call from her mother that changes it all, “Nugget is dead!” Her mother screeches down the phone.

Thankfully the beloved family dog Nugget is not dead, he has however had a turn of ill health that brings Steph careening back into the family home, where she hasn’t told them of her plans to skip out for the annual Christmas celebrations.

Now as they await test results for Nugget Steph is stuck in family limbo as Sebastian becomes more and more distant.

This less than perfect turn of events does however land Steph squarely in front of her gorgeous local vet, someone her mother and aunt are quick to discover is a lesbian. The pair are less than subtle in attempting to direct Steph towards Dr Ella, with Steph finding herself drawn to the charismatic vet.

With the primary story set the rest of the film unfolds in true Aussie bogan Christmas style.

As is expected much of the humour is derived from the dysfunctional of this simple suburban family.

Steph’s mum Jodie is separated from her father John, however the pair still live together which adds for an entertaining dynamic.

Her overly intrusive Aunty Ros and enthusiastic uncle “beef” live directly next door to the family home. They are joined by Steph’s not so not so bright cousin Shayla, an aspiring beautician who Steph is convinced it out to sell her an MLM scheme for false eyelashes, and her hapless boyfriend Hassan

Rounding out the troupe is the shy and reclusive littler brother Ryan who still lives in the family home, creating his own comedic situation when he invites his mystery internet friend over for Christmas lunch.

Together each of these characters help construct a set of dysfunctional that most Aussies can relate to in one way or another, with great comedic setups and one liners the film delivers plenty of laughs and serves as a refreshing Christmas comedy.

Bisexual representation on screen

While much of the film centres around this noisy, bustling and intrusive set of family dynamics, contrasted against the high strung personality of Steph, the approach to the central characters sexuality is refreshing.

From the get go the film establishes that while Steph is dating a man, she is openly bisexual. Despite her having a boyfriend that they’ve never met, the family are quick to try and set her up with the beguiling vet, Dr Ella Lander. There is no rejection of her sexuality, it’s dropped front and centre as a mere matter of fact attribute of the character, rather than something that is debated or sensationalised.

It’s a refreshing take on bisexual representation, particularly for a leading role in a feature film. It’s handled with a natural ease that doesn’t seek to invalidate, hide or dismiss Steph’s bisexuality. Rather her sexuality is naturally folded through the narrative in quite the way we would come to expect any other characters arc of sexuality and relationship complexity.

If you’re looking for a queer Christmas comedy that strays from tired tropes and delivers in bogan one liners and punchy situations that will both make you laugh out loud and tear up in equal measure, Nugget is Dead is well worth the worth.

You can find steaming now on Stan Australia.