2008 Woodie Awards
Christmas movie guide: the best and worst holiday flicks
Alison Jalbert
Issue date: 12/7/06 Section: Entertainment
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It's the holiday season, so you know what that means-you're constantly being barraged with holiday movies from the second the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade ends until the last pine needles have fallen off your Christmas tree.
Some of them are bad, some of them are good, and some of them aren't even worth watching in a post-Christmas dinner stupor. To help you sort out the holiday movie options out there, I give you my personal picks of the best and worst movies of the holiday season.
We'll start out with my favorites, because I really try to be a glass-half-full kind of girl. One recent movie that has become a staple of my holiday viewing is the 2003 comedy "Elf." This movie tells the story of sweet, innocent Buddy the Elf, (Will Ferrell) who finds out as an adult that he is not, in fact, an elf, but a human who was adopted after he climbed into Santa's bag as a baby.
Buddy makes the long journey from the North Pole to New York City in search of his biological father, played by James Caan. The story is simple yet sweet, and there are plenty of funny moments as Buddy experiences life as a human. And let's be honest, the sight of Will Ferrell in bright yellow tights could make any movie funny.
I don't know about your holiday family gatherings, but mine are far from perfect. Maybe that's why "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation" is such a refreshing holiday movie. Chevy Chase reprises his role as well intentioned but ill-fated Clark Griswold, who simply wants to have the best Christmas ever. As hard as Clark tries, nothing seems to go right, from a disaster with the Christmas lights to a crazy uncle burning their Christmas tree down.
This movie is a great holiday flick because it's not only hysterical, but it paints a more realistic picture of what the holidays are actually like. We may not all have a Cousin Eddie who empties his motor home's toilet into our sewer, or an Uncle Lewis who burns down our Christmas tree, but I think "Christmas Vacation" helps us to appreciate our families, despite their quirks.
Some of them are bad, some of them are good, and some of them aren't even worth watching in a post-Christmas dinner stupor. To help you sort out the holiday movie options out there, I give you my personal picks of the best and worst movies of the holiday season.
We'll start out with my favorites, because I really try to be a glass-half-full kind of girl. One recent movie that has become a staple of my holiday viewing is the 2003 comedy "Elf." This movie tells the story of sweet, innocent Buddy the Elf, (Will Ferrell) who finds out as an adult that he is not, in fact, an elf, but a human who was adopted after he climbed into Santa's bag as a baby.
Buddy makes the long journey from the North Pole to New York City in search of his biological father, played by James Caan. The story is simple yet sweet, and there are plenty of funny moments as Buddy experiences life as a human. And let's be honest, the sight of Will Ferrell in bright yellow tights could make any movie funny.
I don't know about your holiday family gatherings, but mine are far from perfect. Maybe that's why "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation" is such a refreshing holiday movie. Chevy Chase reprises his role as well intentioned but ill-fated Clark Griswold, who simply wants to have the best Christmas ever. As hard as Clark tries, nothing seems to go right, from a disaster with the Christmas lights to a crazy uncle burning their Christmas tree down.
This movie is a great holiday flick because it's not only hysterical, but it paints a more realistic picture of what the holidays are actually like. We may not all have a Cousin Eddie who empties his motor home's toilet into our sewer, or an Uncle Lewis who burns down our Christmas tree, but I think "Christmas Vacation" helps us to appreciate our families, despite their quirks.
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