Friday, December 19, 2008

Holiday Movies

At the risk of sounding like a Scrooge, I'll admit that I'm not all about the classic Christmas movies. I've never seen It's a Wonderful Life (I know!) and every year TBS plays Christmas Story eighty-three gazillion times and I could happily go the rest of my life without seeing it again. I'm sorry, those are the facts.

There's only one movie that I can't go through Christmas without watching and that's How the Grinch Stole Christmas. I love the Grinch. And I'm talking about the 30-minute classic Grinch, not Jim Carrey. (Although Jim does a pretty decent job of it, too.)

With having said all that, there have been a handful of movies to come out in the last few years, during the holidays, that have become my absolute watch-again-and-again-until-my-eyes-bleed favorites. Watching these movies (and I watch them all the time) totally puts me in the Christmas spirit. So much that I want to re-hang our Christmas lights and open more presents... even in July. (I, of course, will open more presents any time.)

Love Actually is a total chick flick, which works because I am, in fact, a chick. Will The Husband ever watch this movie in a million years?

Have you met my husband? Do I really need to answer this question?

This is one of my favorite scenes. And I don't care what anybody else thinks. Aside from being a bit too skinny (the wench), I think Keira Knightly is adorable.





(Sorry, video has been removed and I can't remember what clip it was anyway.)



The movie shows bits and pieces of various people's lives until, at the end, you realize just how closely related they really are to one another. Kind of like Crash or Grand Canyon... but more romantic and sweet and sad and funny.

Moving on.

I could have sworn The Holiday was a remake of another classic movie, but after spending eighteen hours on the internet, I can't find even a reference to that fact anywhere. So, if you know something, spill it!

I didn't expect to like this movie, but I couldn't help myself. It's wonderful.

The clip is kind of long, but every time I hear Jude Law say "I love you" my tongue gets too big for my mouth and I want to start blubbering all over myself. Or something like that.

(Note to self: think of more accurate ways to describe your feelings in the future.)






I was trying to find a clip of The Family Stone, but YouTube has failed me for the first time ever. I did find some clips elsewhere and you view them here. That is, if you're interested.

I love, love, love the cast in this movie (almost more than the movie itself). Sarah Jessica Parker, Luke Wilson, Dermot Mulroney, Rachel McAdams, and Diane Keaton are fucking amazing. (And, yes, I felt it deserved the F word.) I have loved them each individually for so long that seeing them all together in one movie was almost too much to take in. Like staring into the sun. I couldn't have hated this movie if I tried.

Speaking of the gorgeous Dermot Mulroney, the moment I thought of his name, I thought of this clip from My Best Friend's Wedding. (I'm totally getting off topic here, but try to stay with me.)

Watch the first couple minutes and then tell me you don't wish that that was your finger.





(Sorry, this one has also been lost forever. Sigh.)



I could seriously sit here all day long and browse sweet, romantic clips from my favorite holiday (and non-holiday) movies all day long, but that's just going to prevent me from getting home and starting my vacation. I did mention I'm off ALL NEXT WEEK, didn't I?

Come the end of December and you're going to be mighty sick of me. I can't wait!

8 comments:

  1. Ahhh, The Family Stone ... It took my sister approximately two years to talk me into watching that movie. It was so good. The one line that comes to mind EVERY time that I think of the movie? "You know what would be really great?! If we had some pot." (Said by SJP when she's drunk at the bar.)Anyhow, *ahem*, funny movie.

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  2. I love the movies you listed. I LOVE Rachel McAdams in The Family Stone. I have The Holiday DVD sitting on my dresser and I still haven't watched it, but I will watch it this weekend after seeing that clip. And Love Actually will have another go at my house as well.

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  3. Love love love every one of those movies. The Family Stone was odd and not loved by all those that watched it with me. Fortunately the dh loves chick flicks too (I am always told I married a woman and I did, it's true) so we own all these movies and watch them together pretty often. Good movie choices!

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  4. "Family Stone" was, hands down, the worst holiday film ever made. Cancer and comedy do not mix. Ever. Tasteless in the extreme, slapsticky, implausible, and stupid. We would have walked out, only we'd hit the twenty-minute mark: after the first reel change, the theatre doesn't have to refund your money.

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  5. Ahh, I can tell I'm in good company here. (For the most part.)Jodi, I also love it when Diane Keaton says "Christmas will not be clothing optional this year!" I totally wish she was my mom. I love her.Alanna, I think Rachel McAdams is adorable! No, that's not the right word. She's... stunning. I don't know. Whatever she is, I'm jealous.MichelleSG, that is so not fair. I have to trick my husband into seeing chick flicks and then promise that the next five movies we watch will be his choice. You are a lucky woman.And Anonymous? I couldn't disagree more. But I appreciate the opposing point of view. I thought the movie was beautiful. I think using "slapsticky" to describe it is way off, even if you didn't like it. Cancer certainly isn't funny, but they weren't poking fun at it. Oh well, to each his own.I want to know what other movies you guys would add to the list!

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  6. I adore Holiday and Love, Actually.We just rented Family Man.It is a good movie for this time of year too."I choose us."

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  7. Hi Donna! I love Family Man! Someone my husband worked with years ago gave it to us right before we moved up to Monterey. I watched it often (we only had three DVDs at the time) and it became one of my favorites!

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  8. I'm catching up...My favorite movie of all time is "It's a Wonderful Life" but I have never seen all of "A Christmas Story." It's true."The Holiday" is based on a chick lit book that I just spent 18 hours trying to find but I can't. Maybe that's why you think it was a remake. Good movie, even though I detest Cameron Diaz.I just DVR'd "The Family Stone" last week and I've watched it three times already, even though I rented a bunch of movies after last week's weather stranded me at home for Christmas. I love the warmth through the whole thing and SJP is soooo uptight and yet lovable. My heart just breaks for her when she gets the strata all over herself.

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