A Christmas Story
This movie is hilarious! Adults and children can all relate, adults remember and children are swept away in sympathy. The movie is told from the view point of 10 year old Ralphy Parker, and for those who remember well the follies of youth, it is all too accurate right down to the childhood drama and melodrama.
There might be more elaborate activities, but at the end of this movie sitting and writing out Christmas lists seems especially apt. Once the lists are complied each member of the family should be given the opportunity to present their wishes, with a plea worthy of Ralph himself. Really ham it up!
This is great, because as parents we may discover that the selections we had in mind are either all wrong or exactly right. It also gives children a chance to hear what their siblings and parents might enjoy. That way you won’t be presented with another Barbie from your four year old or a hot wheels speedster from your 7 year old who promises you can keep it with his other ones.
How the Grinch Stole Christmas
The residents of Whoville prepare for their most beloved holiday, Christmas, blissfully ignorant of the nasty surprise the Grinch has in store for them. A sworn enemy of noise and hater of all things Christmas the Grinch can’t stand the idea of enduring another holiday season. This year he takes matters into his own hands.
Employing his unwilling accomplice, Max his dog, and impersonating a certain rotund elf who wears red, the Grinch puts his plan into motion. At the last minute the Grinch has a change of heart, but is it too late to undo what he has already done? Gather the family around the TV and find out!
When all the movie fun is over, follow up with a night of family gift wrapping. To make this as much fun as possible keep the movie snacks handy. Also to avoid accidental spilling of the present beans have all the gifts in boxes before you begin to wrap them. You can wrap gifts for friends and neighbors, help the kids wrap their gifts for each other or for you. This is a fun way to get the necessary work of gift wrapping done. An additional bonus is that you are getting it done early and with help!
Christmas Vacation
The well meaning buffoon Clarke, gets himself into all sorts of trouble while trying to make this Christmas the ultimate holiday for his family. From tree cutting misadventures to uninvited house guests and oppressively nosey neighbors this movie has a joke for all sensibilities.
What you are thinking is “I live California, Florida or Arizona, Where on earth am I going to go sledding unless I get a plane ticket?”. Don’t worry, there is way to have fun of sledding without snow, or even a sled. It is called ice blocking. All you need is a hill, a bit of plastic or a towel and a big block of ice. Basically, you sit on the ice at the top of a hill use the towel or plastic to prevent your pants from getting soggy. Now that the pants are protected shove off and plummet to the bottom of the hill. This is just like snow sledding except you provided the snow.
Once the movie is over take a leaf out of Clarke’s family fun book and take the family sledding (additional lubricant is optional). When was the last time you and the whole family went sledding? The good times don’t end when the family leaves the slopes and the hot cacao is gone, memories last a life time.
A Christmas Snow
As the storm brings her face to face with the hurts of her past, she will have to choose one path; letting go and grabbing hold of a life changing forgiveness or continuing to carry her pain and bitterness with her. ‘A Christmas Snow’ will challenge you to step out on the adventure of hope that waits for the heart that dares to forgive, as the storm of the century… brings the gift of a lifetime.
Kathleen has carried around the unwanted memory of her father abandoning her and her mother on Christmas Eve. For the past 30 years, she has blamed her mother for that night and refuses to celebrate Christmas in any fashion. Although she has tried to forget her past, it has not forgotten her, and in the days leading up to Christmas she finds herself stuck in her own home with two strangers, because of an unforgiving blizzard.
The Flight Before Christmas
Nicko is a young reindeer who longs to fly just like his dad who is in The Flying Forces for Santa. However, his dreams continue to lead him into problem after problem. After he brings danger upon his whole herd, Nicko sneaks away to find out the unanswered questions about his father and to pursue his dream. Accompanied by a tough, flying squirrel named Julius and musical weasel named Wilma, Nicko embarks on the journey of a lifetime.
Just believe in yourself and you can fly!” How often have we heard that message in a movie? And, obviously, this is the message behind this movie as well. However, the question is if “The Flight Before Christmas” glorifies rebelling against those in charge and being disobedient or standing up for yourself in a good way.
THE FOURTH WISE MAN
While “The Fourth Wise Man” features several big-name actors including Martin Sheen, Charlie Sheen (in a cameo role), and Eileen Brennan, there is refreshingly nothing offensive at all. With good photography and an easy-to-follow plot, it is a great film for family viewing, appropriate for both children and adults. The theme that shines clear is that any life spent serving the poor and needy is truly spent serving Christ himself. After all, Jesus said during his parable of the sheep and the goats:
“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.
It’s a Wonderful Life
I first saw this film on a Christmas night and saw it again a few months later. It has played a very strong part in my being born again with its easily relatable themes of ambition versus obligation. Everything in this film seems to be a struggle.
This film is purely for the family, but parents may want to block their childrens’ eyes during the later scenes. There seems to be such a strong timelessness about it that may mean the kids once older will be able to make educated opinions on these scenes, in particular. I get the distinct impression that God wants this film as a Christmas movie as a way for our present culture to celebrate Jesus Christ. Would that there could be more like this one. It could very well be the greatest film ever made.
Jesus
As of July 1, 1997, this film has been translated into over 406 languages and is used as an evangelism tool throughout the world. “JESUS” has had over 1 billion viewers and, as of January 1, 1997, 46 million have indicated a decision for Christ. Indoor and outdoor screenings of the 16mm version serve as the catalyst to introduce literally thousands each month to a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
This film was made entirely in Israel with a cast of over 5,000 Israelis and Arabs. With a script taken entirely from the book of Luke, this is clearly one of the most accurate Bible dramas ever produced. The story begins with the angel’s announcement to the virgin Mary of the impending birth of Jesus, visually depicts the main events of Jesus’ life and ministry, portrays a painfully realistic crucifixion, and then ends with His ascension through the clouds. Includes none of the standard Hollywood sensationalism usually written into Bible films of this financial magnitude ($6,000,000 in 1979 dollars). Wonderful attention to scriptural purity combined with excellent technical and cinemagraphic quality. Moves slower than American viewers are used to, but allows the many events depicted and message imparted to “sink in” rather than simply being lost as non-applicable entertainment.
Miracle on 34th Street
For parents such as myself who do not raise our children to believe in myths but who do let them be kids and engage in fantasy play, Doris’ character is an overblown stereotype; denying Santa does not make you a mean parent. There are two instances of drunkenness in the film, and some minor conflict. Other than that, it’s pretty much good clean fun; but a child below a certain age who watches this might tend to think that maybe Santa actually does exist.
I have not seen the 1973 remake starring Sebastian Cabot as Santa. I have seen the 1994 remake starring Sir Richard Attenborough of “Jurassic Park”, and I do not recommend it. It follows the same general plot as the original, but there are some changes. One of the Bad Guys accuses Santa not only of being insane but of “having a thing for the kiddies.” And in place of the famous mail delivery scene, the defense uses a strategy that puts God and Santa on the same level. If you’re going to watch some version of this story, my opinion is that the original was too good to warrant being remade.
THE POLAR EXPRESS
“Journey Beyond Your Imagination”
“The Polar Express” is a classic children’s story written and illustrated by Chris Van Allsburg and translated to the big screen with an equally original vision by Robert Zemeckis who directed the movie and co-wrote the screenplay.
Zemeckis adds many original details to the story about a boy who lacks the faith to believe in Santa Claus. On Christmas Eve the parents remark how much the sleeping boy has grown and that it will soon be the “end of the magic” of childhood. The boy hears and wonders at this, even as a magical train stops outside his house. The conductor tells him that their destination is the North Pole, and he gets in a car with other children who are also in their pajamas.
Thus, Santa is the Father figure who rewards belief, the ghost is the Holy Ghost who saves the boy’s life, and the Conductor is the Christ-like figure through whom alone the children can go to Santa’s city. Seen in such a light, the movie is a striking Christian allegory of seeking God, finding faith, and earning redemption as a reward.
We also learn that not everyone retains the faith of a child as they grow older and this is an important lesson for children to be taught. However, the boy does retain his faith, and small children should be prepared in advance by their parents to see a Christmas story containing characters whose function and relationship to one another is much like the function of the Trinity in the life of a Christian. By instructing children how the movie functions as an allegory, parents will have a useful object lesson for teaching their children about the allegories in the Bible, such as the sower and the seeds and the prodigal son.
Reindeer Games
Rudy Duncan (Ben Affleck) and his cellmate Nick are both due to be paroled from Iron Mountain (Michigan) prison a few days before Christmas. But during a rigged prison riot, a man apparently seeking revenge against Rudy instead stabs Nick, who intervenes. On release day, Rudy knows that Nick’s penpal girlfriend (Charlize Theron) will be waiting at the gate; so he decides to impersonate Nick and get himself some casual romance (and he’s the HERO of the film). Problem is, the real Nick was once a security guard at a nearby Indian gambling casino; and there’s a small-time crook (Gary Sinise) who needs Nick’s inside information in order to finalize his gang’s plans to stick up the place. Once Rudy has said that he’s Nick, he has to pretend to be Nick to everyone.
This Christmas
This year, Christmas with the Whitfield’s promises to be one they will never forget. All the siblings have come home for the first time in years and they’ve brought plenty of baggage with them. As the Christmas tree is trimmed and the lights are hung, secrets are revealed and family bonds are tested. As their lives converge, they join together and help each other discover the true meaning of family.
The Toy that Saved Christmas!
Thankfully, a miracle occured and one particular Buzz-Saw Louie toy didn’t like what was coming out of his head and decided to do something about it! With the help of Junior Asparagus, Bob the Tomato and Larry the Cucumber, there is a happy ending. Along the way there are some fun action as the heros seem to get into several tight spots. In the end, a better message that Christmas is about giving, love, and the story of the baby Jesus ring clearly.
For “The Toy that Saved Christmas,” I did see a couple of places within the video where an opportunity for mentioning God was missed. One example is the Veggie crew avoided a disaster and they stated “we are sure lucky we didn’t go down there.” This could’ve been “God was watching out for us to keep us from going down there.”
The intermission for the video was a “Silly Song with Larry” that had Larry waiting for Santa Claus with three cookies. Larry gets some unusual visitors and winds up with no cookies (he has the I.R.S. to thank for that!). Don’t worry, Santa Claus is really Bob the Tomato dressed up!
The Perfect Holiday
The screenplay and cinematography may be cheesy, but the characters are certainly sincere, real-life people dealing with real-life problems. Benjamin is a fine example of a gentleman, father figure, friend and husband and although he initially lies to everyone about who he is, he eventually realizes the error of his deception and comes clean, making him an honest man with a conscience as well. He does everything he can to be a friend to Nancy’s oldest son, John-John, who can’t let go of his previous father. This relationship demonstrates strongly the importance of having a fully functional family and how a father’s influence is so important to a son’s life. Also, although the film is more about Santa then it is about Jesus, the lyrics of one of his songs include, “If it wasn’t for our Savior’s birth, then tell me what is Christmas worth?”
“An African American take on the classic and beloved Christmas family film, ‘The Perfect Holiday’ tells the story of Nancy (Union), a divorced mother of three who is so busy raising her children that she’s forgotten to take care of herself as well. With Christmas fast approaching, she decides to take her kids to the mall to meet Santa Claus, not knowing that her youngest daughter Emily (Khail Bryant) has sensed her mother’s sadness and is determined to use her time with Santa to make her mom happy again. Just a few days prior, Emily heard her mom say that all she wanted for Christmas was a compliment from a man, so that’s exactly what she tells Santa. Ironically, Santa, as it turns out, is office supply salesman and struggling songwriter Benjamin (Chestnut), who ends up giving Nancy just what she wants for Christmas, and much, much more.”
The Nativity Story
The glory days of the Biblical epics seemed to have died out in the early 60s. When the quality of Biblical epics deteriorated, it became impossible to justify the large budgets they required. As a result, the past three decades have seen few Biblical sagas, and even fewer good ones.
Now comes “The Nativity Story,” a Biblical saga about Joseph and Mary and the birth of the Christ, Jesus. It is not easy to take a person’s entire life and compress it into a two hour movie. This is perhaps why most movies about Jesus have failed to capture His greatness. However, with Mel Gibson’s “…Passion…,” it became apparent that movies are most effective when they take a small snippet of the Lord’s life and focus the movie on that brief period, allowing the characters to become more developed and less of a cardboard cutout.
Now, while arranged marriages did take place, it is highly unlikely that Joseph and Mary’s were arranged, for such marriages were largely reserved for the wealthy upper class. Even more odd is that, in such a small village, Mary should not initially have known Joseph better. It is true that the parents usually had to give their consent for marriage, but it was not common for a poor family to arrange a marriage for their daughter to a relative stranger she did not love. Having said this, the plot gives Mary and Joseph a chance to grow together, rather than having the relationship “prefabbed.” It is done to allow the director to better show their growing love, and on that level it does work. In most every other instance, the movie stays true to its source.
Scrooged
The movie was well made, when it comes to photography, acting, etc. There were two places the movie goes really wrong. First there is a scene in which on the back wall of the office of Frank Cross (played by Bill Murray) there is a definition of a cross, reading “something you nail people too.” In another scene, the Lord’s name is taken in vain, many times. Exodus chapter 20, verse 7, shows it being unacceptable to do this.
THE STAR OF CHRISTMAS
The Star of Christmas” is a story within a story and a prequel to their upcoming Easter release, “The Easter Carol”. Phil came up with the idea of taking the Charles Dickens classic A Christmas Carol and put it in the context of Easter. While working on this “Big Idea,” he got the thought of a prequel that will later set up the other story.
Our theatrical duo has hit few minor snags. They only have three days left and the songs are not finished. They haven’t cast anyone for the part of the Princess and London’s most influential theater critic, Prince Frederick has not yet agreed to come. Cavis is stressed and distressed. He has this vision that this musical could teach all of London how to love.
The Star of Christmas” is the first Holiday release for our imaginative friends at Big Idea since the 1996 release of “The Toy That Saved Christmas”. A lot has happened since those early years. When the first Christmas video hit the marketplace, Big Idea was still in its infancy. Only about 10 people were on the staff at that time. Phil Vischer and Mike Nawrocki’s company has grown by leaps and bounds since then, but their simple passion continues to permeate everything that they do.
The Merry Gentleman
A truly original Christmas story, ‘The Merry Gentleman’ is a heady mix of suspense, gentle romance and quiet humor—a riveting, uniquely entertaining tale of forgiveness and redemption that blends a hopeful spirit with a surprisingly dark heart.”
When Kate meets Frank Logan, the two discover unexpected satisfaction in their mutual, shared silence. Haunted by the troubling choices he has made, Frank finds a kindred spirit in the younger Kate, and for a moment the two seem destined to redeem and remake each other.
As the holidays and New Year pass against an urban landscape that seems both breathtakingly beautiful and starkly quiet, Kate and Frank’s friendship becomes one of necessity and survival for these two lost spirits. But neither lonely soul can escape the lives they have left behind. As events unfold and the painful truth slowly emerges, Frank is forced to face the man he really is, while Kate struggles to be the stronger woman she needs to be.
Arthur Christmas”
It’s a clever idea and worthy of a few laughs, but it gets a little forced when the elf begins to go way off on a tangent, addressing every element of Santa Claus’ operation by telling the audience that none of it is going on. Little kids might find it funny, but in the post “Shrek” era, when adults sometimes expect these movies to have enough humor for everyone, parents in the audience may already be groaning with the expectation of being dragged to this movie come next November.
Ok, so that’s about all we get, but that’s enough. We don’t know what the actual plot will involve—maybe Santa will have a strained relationship with Arthur, maybe Arthur needs to become the next Santa—but it’s an interesting premise, and when just about every Christmas movie that gets released is immediately forgettable, having an interesting premise is helpful.
The Nightmare Before Christmas
Parents need to know that this offbeat, stop motion-animated movie is one of the great family films for all ages. That said, it does have scary Halloween creatures in it — characters take off their own heads and limbs, and there are skeletons, nasty toys, and a creepy villain named Oogie Boogie. A Christmas tree even burns up. Some little kids who aren’t old enough to distinguish this fantasy from the goings on at Halloween (or those prone to nightmares) might steer clear, although you can always pause the TV and talk about what’s scaring them. The special 3D version is identical in content and storyline to the original, but the enhanced visuals may add marginal spookiness and could further blur the line between fantasy and reality for some younger kids.
Families can talk about why we celebrate the holidays we do. What does your favorite holiday mean to you? Has anyone ever tried to ruin one of your holiday experiences, and how did you overcome that? When you get tired of something, what are some creative ways to bring excitement back into it?
Home By Christmas
Ed Preston (old Ed is played by Tony Barry, young Ed is played by Martin Henderson) is on his way home from rugby practice in 1940, when he signs up for the New Zealand Army to fight in World War II. His new wife, Tui, is pregnant and distraught, but he tells her not to worry, he’ll be home by Christmas. And so he is – four years later – after escaping from a prison camp in Italy. But while Ed is away, Tui has fallen in love with another man.
The story is told through an interview with a veteran, which is a fitting way to communicate the events of World War II. Most of us have an elderly relative who went through the battles in far off lands and this method captures the time and distance between those happenings and us. This structure combines with richly-coloured recreations and stylised stock footage that imbue the aesthetic with a faded old world charm, capturing a sense of both romanticism and the harsh realities of combat.
Tuesday, After Christmas
The actors are quite good but have little to do, which at times is just awkward. (In one scene, Adriana and her sister barely seem know one another.) The voyeuristic film is so understated that if we didn’t know Paul was having an affair, the action on-screen would have little resonance. The fly-on-the-wall approach, however, requires a more economical screenplay that the film simply does not have.
As in his previous film “Boogie,” the director again focuses on a man in crisis. Successful, 30-something banker Paul (Mimi Branescu) is married to Adriana (Mirela Oprisor) and has a daughter Mara (Sasa Paul-Szel, wonderfully spontaneous), but is having an affair with the younger Raluca (Maria Popistasu), the girl’s dentist. In the days before Christmas, Paul realizes it’s time to choose between one of his two lives.
Technically, Muntean and cinematographer Tudor Lucaciu make great use of the camera. The director allows an actor to wander offscreen as he continues speaking to linger on someone else’s reactions and later may or may not return to them. And in one of the film’s stronger scenes we just see Paul and Adriana’s feet, which he massages.
Comfort and Joy
After hitting a lamppost in her Jaguar on Christmas Eve, Jane wakes up to a new life. Jane no longer owns a Jaguar, designer clothes, and is unemployed. What she does have is a husband named Sam Keller and two kids. Having a husband and two kids out of the blue freaks any single woman out.
Women who are single and loving it will think that “Comfort and Joy” is a horror movie instead of a Christmas movie. However, as the plot moves along, single female viewers realize that Jane has a great new life and has become a better person because of it. Lifetime movie, “Comfort and Joy,” shows that power, money, and work isn’t everything.
The only disappointment in “Comfort and Joy” is the lack of scenes containing Dixie Carter. Dixie plays Frederica, Jane’s meddling mother. But, Dixie doesn’t do much meddling because she is only in two to three scenes. Other than that, “Comfort and Joy” is a fun and clean family movie. Keep in mind there is a scene at Renee’s apartment that has a few gay guys as guests. Nothing inappropriate happens in the scene, so the kids should be fine.
‘A Christmas Tale’
Taking place over a few days around Christmastime, the film’s narrative may be more conventional than Desplechin’s earlier work, but it’s as juicy and tonally unpredictable as anything he has made. In an interview for the DVD edition of the Desplechin film “Kings and Queen,” Almaric acknowledged that when filming one of his movies, half the time the actor wasn’t sure what sort of emotional attack he was supposed to be bringing to a scene. That’s the way the director wants it. Anything to avoid the obvious. As a result, each new confrontation has within it a spark of paradox and contradiction. Recriminations delivered with a smile; sudden bursts of anger in the middle of revelry; that’s why Desplechin’s pictures have such vitality.
By now Desplechin has absorbed his techniques so effortlessly they’re like breathing, or seem that way on film. He’ll try anything: split-screen effects, monologues addressed to the camera, shadow puppetry. (If it were it up to me, all expositional matter in all films would be accompanied by a puppet show.) “A Christmas Tale” glances on a world of feelings and surprises, from Junon’s casual anti-Semitism—Henri’s latest lover, a Jew, is played by the excellent Emmanuelle Devos—to the vexing exhilaration accompanying a dangerously fraught inter-family affair. As with Desplechin’s breakthrough film “My Sex Life … or How I Got Into an Argument” and the more recent “Kings and Queen,” “A Christmas Tale” doesn’t go in for handy morals or tidy reversals. His films are great, chaotic, unsettling fun. This one’s scored, elegantly, to a mixture of standards and classics and original music by Gregoire Hetzel, and as happy as I was to see and hear it the first time, it was even richer the second.
A Christmas Carol
The classic story of rich miser, Ebenezer Scrooge, who is shown the light with the help of 3 spirits. Although the Alastair Sim version (1951) is still considered the best version by critics, there are those of us out there that know this, the George C. Scott version is truly the best and most faithful retelling of the Charles Dicken’s classic, with standout performances by Scott, Warner, Rees, Edward Woodward and Susannah York. Top that off with authentic scenery (not shot on a sound stage) and a powerful score, this version has it all! Merry Christmas.
Disney’s A Christmas Carol
Following the book very closely, director Robert Zemeckis exposes the dark story beneath the heart-warming moments. Frankly, it’s a bit scary. Looking back at the book, readers will find that the original story in itself is pretty frightening. Beyond the fact that this old miser is visited by ghosts, the story and this new movie feature the characters Ignorance and Want (two demon-looking children), other haunting ghosts, and zombie-like creatures. The film’s outstanding cast and animation is overshadowed by the non-festive feeling you have after watching it.
Black Christmas
The film begins with a party at a sorority house to mark the beginning of Christmas break. While the party is going on, we see an unknown man (from a first-person viewpoint, ala Halloween) sneak into the house via the attic. Within minutes he has already claimed his first victim, Claire (Lynne Griffin) with a very shocking bag-over-the-head murder before dragging her body to the attic and putting it right in the window for all to see. The body remains there for the duration of the film!
We now discover that the sorority has been plagued by obscene calls for quite some time, and they gradually begin to get weirder and worse with each occurrence. Meanwhile the sorority sisters are being murdered one by one in horrible ways by the mysterious man who has taken up residence in the attic.
ON STRIKE FOR CHRISTMAS
The cast of the movie also includes David Sutcliffe as Joy’s husband Stephen, Victor Zinck, Jr. as her son Jeremy, and Evan Williams as her son Mark. The character of Jeremy was just awful. It felt stiff and forced and it wasn’t until the very end of the movie that I could stand looking at the boy. On the other hand, I think Evan Williams managed to steal almost every scene he was in especially if it involved any kind of humor. The delivery of lines during the scene where they are baking was perfect. I would like to see him in another movie or TV show to see if he is just as good. Daphne Zuniga was wonderful, of course, but I am always a fan. She played an entirely different character than her most recent stint on One Tree Hill. It was refreshing to see her not evil, and more reminiscent of her Melrose Place days.
I think this was a cute and fun movie. The general message, of course, is that family is better than any type of material things. However, the path they took to portray that message was fun. Some parts, naturally, were a bit far fetched or stretched reality, such as the newspaper war, but overall it had a nice feeling. I am almost ashamed to admit how much Joy’s speech at the end moved me. I am a sucker around the holidays.
ON STRIKE FOR CHRISTMAS is an original Lifetime Movie Network film which premieres this Sunday, December 5, 2010 at 8:00 p.m. ET/5:00 p.m. PT. The movie is about a wife and mother, Joy (played by Daphne Zuniga), who gets fed up when her family refuses to help her with Christmas. After almost breaking her neck to hang Christmas lights, Joy is inspired by a local grocery store strike to start her own kind of strike. Things get ugly, however, when Joy recruits almost the entire female population of the town to join her.
THE CHRISTMAS CHOIR
THE CHRISTMAS CHOIR is one of the best Christmas movies the Hallmark Channel has ever made. It is loaded with lessons on compassion, forgiveness and humility and features song after song glorifying God
THE CHRISTMAS CHOIR, about some homeless men organized into a choir, is one of the best Christmas movies the Hallmark Channel has ever made. While showing the evils of alcoholism, it is loaded with lessons on compassion, forgiveness and humility. It also features song after song glorifying God and mentioning the birth of Jesus.
Very strong Christian worldview with very strong moral values calling for forgiveness, charity, humility and honesty, including the choir sings songs giving glory to God; two moderately bad words; no violence, sex or nudity; alcohol consumption and drunkenness are portrayed and condemned, with overcoming problems with alcohol a big part of the story; and, theft occurs with thief later repenting and returning stolen goods.
THE CHRISTMAS CHOIR is tremendously inspiring. It extols charity, compassion, humility, and the wonderful joys and healing effects of forgiveness. The choir sings song after song glorifying God. It does not sing “Jingle Bells” or “White Christmas.” Instead, every song is a Christmas carol honoring the birth of Jesus. The movie contains a couple bad words, alcohol consumption and drunken behavior, but it clearly shows how people can overcome such misbehavior.
A Nanny for Christmas
The new romantic comedy “A Nanny for Christmas” is an enjoyable tale with a happy ending.
It is an absolute pleasure to see Ruccolo, who once appeared alongside Ryan Reynolds in the television sitcom “Two Guys, a Girl and a Pizza Place,” back in action. His charismatic performance here demonstrates why he deserves more work.
Of course, Ally is hardly in the position to turn any paying job down and grudgingly accepts. Meanwhile, she bumps into a charming advertising executive named Justin (Richard Ruccolo) and takes the first step toward a Christmas miracle.
The 12 Men of Christmas movie
Chenowith is the big city gal who finds herself in Montana due to her fiance cheating on her with their boss. Ann Heche could have done this movie in her sleep. It’s pretty much her TV series. The uniqueness is that Chenowith is a marketing whiz and her gimmick in little town Montana is in putting together a calendar of 12 rugged guys to help lure businesses to the area for retreats and such.
Sadly, I’m very disappointed in The 12 Men of Christmas and the main reason for that is simply that it is a retread. Though the details around the story have some uniqueness to them, we’ve seen this before; in fact, we’ve seen it several times. Two examples off the top of my head are the TV series Men in Trees and the TV movie, Daniel’s Daughter.
Kristin Chenowith stars in this 2009 holiday movie, The 12 Men of Christmas. Chenowith is a refreshing actress. She’s very petite with a petite, off-beat sounding voice. She’s a perky blonde who can both act and sing. When I heard about this new seasonal flick, I was curious what it would be about.
Kristin Chenowith stars in this 2009 holiday movie, The 12 Men of Christmas. Chenowith is a refreshing actress. She’s very petite with a petite, off-beat sounding voice. She’s a perky blonde who can both act and sing. When I heard about this new seasonal flick, I was curious what it would be about.
Christmas Evil
The movie opens in 1947 New Jersey at the Stadling house. Young Harry accidentally catches Santa (his father) groping his mother. He runs upstairs to the attic where he cuts his hand on a piece of broken glass from a Christmas globe. Thirty-three years later, he has a job he hates at the Jolly Dreams toy factory. He desires to be the next Santa Claus. Harry spies on neighbor kids to see if they’re being naughty or nice. Then he writes the names of the good children in one book and the bad children in another. After he cancels Thanksgiving dinner with his brother Phil and his family, he designs a Santa suit for himself. Some time later after he attends the company Christmas party, he realizes that people think he is a dope and don’t really respect him. So Harry decides to fulfill his fantasy and become the next Santa. He makes some toy soldiers and steals some company toys. The new Santa then brings them to the children’s hospital. Next, he fills a bag of dirt and leaves it outside the home of a naughty neighbor boy. Harry waits outside a church and, when mass ends and the congregation comes out, three people taunt him. As a punishment for being naughty, “Santa” kills them in front of the exiting parishioners. Then he goes to his brother Phil’s home where he destroys the defective Jolly Dreams toys and replaces them with the toy soldiers he made. Finally, he breaks into his coworker Frank’s home, delivers the toys, kills Frank for taking advantage of him, and escapes in his van. The whole area is warned not to approach anyone dressed as Santa.
Despite its relative success and many deeming it one of the best horror Christmas