Sappy Holidays!
I have a confession to make: I love cheesy made-for-TV holiday movies. Yes, it's true most of them are poorly written, overly emotional and feature B-list actors in performances that will not bump them up to A. But I can't help myself. I love them.
There are, of course, the classics. A Charlie Brown Christmas. Rudolph the Rednosed Reindeer. It's a Wonderful Life. A Christmas Story. It's an annual ritual to inaugurate the season with these tried-and-true heart-warmers. I love to snuggle up on the couch with some hot chocolate and watch the Peanuts gang do their crazy dances.
But I also love the newer ones. There are basically two story lines: A. Boy meets girl, boy and girl get in a fight, Santa saves the day and boy and girl are reunited. And B. Down-and-out-but-adorable kid has hit a rough patch and loses faith in humanity until Santa steps in and makes things better and daddy comes home/sister gets well/homeless guy gets a job.
I caught parts of a new one on ABC Family the other night. I can't remember what it was called, but it featured Patricia Heaton and the mom from My Big Fat Greek Wedding. It was plot A. A heartwarming tale of feuding Italian families who reconcile in the end and Patricia gets to marry the cute guy from the rival family. Not the best holiday movie ever, but they threw in lots of fun Italian exclamations and there was a wise and funny grandmother in the mix.
As the holiday season gears up, I can only assume there are more sappy but fabulous holiday movies to come and I am ready. Bring 'em on! I've got plenty of Kleenex. Stay tuned for more reviews.
posted by Nancy Drew @ 9:12 AM
4 Comments:
Nancy-- I solved my technology problems (and then posted to the wrong blog, but whatever... I'm back in the game)!
Anyway, I too love cheesy holiday fare. Last year, Mame and I saw a fabulous double feature about Santa's daughter, who left the North Pole to live a normal life. In the first film, she found love with a widower and helped his bratty kids suck it up and be less annoying. In the sequel, she fought her evil sister (or maybe she was an elf, I don't remember...) to keep her from shutting down the North Pole and ruining Christmas.
Go holiday movies!
That sounds awesome! I'll have to keep my eyes out for those movies this season.
I realized last night that I'd missed a third archetypal holiday plot line: the Scrooge/Grinch plot, where some cranky old man/green monster on the hill/bitchy female executive comes to realize the true meaning of Christmas and right their past wrongs.
Sounds like your second movie fit this C plot nicely. Or perhaps the good sister just killed off the evil sister and she never had the catharsis? That would be pretty edgy.
I can assure you there was no edge in this movie.
My tearjerking favorites are "A Charlie Brown Christmas" in a double feature with "The Velveteen Rabbit". I mean, who can't keep from crying when Charlie B. unveils his tree? Or when the rabbits start to dance, and the velveteen rabbit learns that "he hasn't got any hind legs!", while George Winston starting playing some demonical whirling-dervish version of "Carol of the Bells", and the velveteen rabbit just has to sit there and watch like some little toady until Nana comes by and "makes a swoop"? Or when the old horse gives his sage advice about being old and well-loved? I go to pieces on these for sure.
"Christmastime is here..."
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