There’s a speech that Hugh Grant gives at the beginning of Love Actually that just gets me every time. He talks about watching people at the airport as they greet their loved ones, and how none of the phone calls from the planes on 9/11 were messages of hate, but ones of love to family and friends. I’d like to say that it gets me just because he mentions that horrific day in such a beautiful context. But, that’s not it.
Christmas means alot of things for me. Mostly though, it’s about family. Too many times it’s about forgiving all the things we’ve done to each other throughout the year. It’s about finding the right presents and not spending every dime I have. Often it’s about buying myself something else I don’t really need. It’s about stretching myself thin to try and spend time with all the important people in my life. It’s definitely about the pancakes. And, like EVERYTHING else in my life, it’s about the movies.
Since my brother and I were old enough to go, every Christmas Eve my Dad has taken us to the show. What we’ve seen the last few years has been determined by the new edition to the group, my four yeard old brother (and most favorite person in the world) Avi. To put that into context, I turned 30 this year.
So, last year it was Bolt, before that it was Alvin & the Chipmunks, and before that it was Night at the Museum. This year, of course, it will be the “Squequel” starring Alvin and the gang, but, honestly, I don’t mind. In fact, I pretty much enjoyed the first one.
The funniest thing is probably that I remember the bad movies more than I remember the good ones (Street Fighter and Toys spring immediately to mind…Dungeons & Dragons as well.). Of course, there was the three year affair with Peter Jackson and his Lord of the Rings trilogy. Yeah, they’re good films…but so very, very long…I’m not sure we’ve ever gone to see a Christmas movie on any of those outings…
Which brings me to this: My favorite Christmas movies!
I love Christmas movies…but, there’s a catch. I love Christmas movies that aren’t NECESSARILY about Christmas. With two huge, glaring exceptions. Guess I should get them out of the way first, huh?
Christmas Vacation may not only be the funniest Christmas movie ever made, but it’s one of the funniest films of all time. If the road to hell is paved with good intentions, Clark W. Griswold will probably burn for eternity. Easily one of the most fully realized characters ever put to film, he’s not the husband or father you’d like him to be, but he is one we all know and love. During the course of this movie, as well as the series’ other installments, he commits all manner of sins. But, in the end, no matter what he does, no matter how depraved or insane he gets, you still root for the guy to come out on top. Maybe it’s because we’ve all been there. Maybe not specifically in his shoes, but standing next to him as he cuts down the tree in the front yard, perhaps? He’s not doing it because he wants to, he’s doing it because he HAS to. Because his family deserves to have the best Christmas EVER, and if that means he has to run up a million dollar power bill, or go to jail to achieve it, then, well, that’s what he has to do. It’s because he does the crazy things so unselfishly that we can forgive him his weaker moments, like fantasizing about adultery or holding people hostage. He does it all for his family.
Then there’s Elf. Who would have EVER thought a movie about a human being raised as one of Santa’s elves could be so touching. Beyond the goofiness of it all is the story of someone who just wants to fit in, who wants to be part of a family. I’ve never really thought about the similarities between Elf and Christmas Vacation…but they are there. Buddy does everything he thinks he’s supposed to do to try and show his love for his new-found family, it’s usually naive, sometimes it’s incredibly sweet, and sometimes it’s borderline creepy. But, because he does it out of love (and the need to feel loved back) it somehow makes it all okay. The perfect example is when he stumbles onto Jovie singing in the shower and decides to sit and join her. Easily one of the nicest, sweetest, funniest moments of the movie…but it’s soooooo creepy, isn’t it? But, for Buddy he’s just doing what he thinks is okay, and why shouldn’t it be? It’s funny, it’s poignant and it shines a light onto what kind of people we’ve turned ourselves into; that we mistake innocence for creepiness, kindness for indifference and love for selfishness. It’s almost the perfect Christmas film.
Like I said, only two Christmas movies I like are ACTUALLY about Christmas. The others, well…they’re still about family, kind of.
John McClane’s desire to work things out with his wife and put his family back together leads him to possibly the worst night of his life…Die Hard is a Christmas movie, there’s no arguing it. “Now I have a machine gun, ho ho ho.”
Vicious little creatures terrorize a small town. A kid, his girlfriend, his family and an albino Ewok reject have to save Christmas before the Gremlins destroy it. But, the most horrifying thing about this Christmas tale of terror isn’t the monsters trying to eat the townsfolk, it’s Kate’s story about finding out how Santa Clause isn’t real. It’s the saddest, most horrible story ever told, and it makes me laugh Every Single TIME.
What’s this, what’s this? A town where they celebrate Halloween year round? How delightful! No, turns out it’s boring, so when Jack discovers Christmas and tries to bring it back to Halloweentown, it makes for quite an exciting mish-mash of creep and sweet. It’s like turning everything you know about Christmas on it’s head, making it absolutely terrifying, and somehow still emotionally satisfying.
I hate romantic comedies. HATE them. Mainly because they’re drivel. Horribly acted and usually undeserving of the emotion the slowly try to drag out of you. Except Love Actually. From Alan Rickman’s devastating ”I’m a classic fool” to young Sam’s hopeful “Let’s go get the shit kicked out of us by love,” the end of this movie runs the absolute gamut. And it does it successfully. If there is an emotion the human body can feel, you feel it here. Exploring every single type of love one can find in this world, this is hands down the best movie about that subject ever concieved. So many great moments, so many great lines. “Worse than the total agony of being in love?” “Oh. No, you’re right. Yeah, total agony.”
Finally…is there ANYTHING more satisfying that watching Carol Kane hit Bill Murray in the head with a toaster? I guess this might TECHNICALLY be about Christmas, but not any kind of Christmas I’ve ever seen celebrated. Other than Groundhog Day and Ghostbusters, this might be Murray at his best, comedically. His slow mental break from reality is sobering and hilarious. Yeah, you learn something at the end, but it’s the laughter that makes the sap easier to swallow.
There are more; Lethal Weapon, It’s a Wonderful Life, The Ref, Bad Santa, Home Alone, Trapped in Paradise, The Family Stone…all great, none of them I own, I don’t watch them every year. The other 7…well, they never fail to put me in the mood for my favorite day of the year. Man I can’t wait to eat some pancakes.
