All four of us came down with a stomach virus last week (actually 12
extended family members in total got it!), so we spent last Monday
sprawled all over the family room in couches, recliners, and the floor,
sipping water, nibbling crackers, and watching mindless TV. This was a
good movie for that state of mind!
We watched
Scrooged,
a 1988 version of A Christmas Carol, starring Bill Murray. You probably
already know the general storyline! In this adaptation, Murray plays
Frank Cross, a television executive willing to sacrifice anything to get
good ratings. Christmas is coming and besides holiday specials like
The Night the Reindeer Died starring Lee Majors, Cross has ordered his staff to put on a live version of
A Christmas Carol,
requiring everyone to work Christmas Eve. Of course, on that fateful
night, Cross himself is visited by the ghosts of Christmas past,
present, and future (with the Christmas Present ghost a small fairy
played by Carol Kane). You know how the story goes. Karen Allen co-stars
as Cross's ex-girlfriend, who remembers him when he was a good guy and
not so corrupted by greed. There are some fun cameos here, like Mary Lou
Retton playing Little Tim in their live version of the story! The movie
was nothing spectacular, just a fun little bit of holiday fluff, with
classic 80's SNL Bill Murray. Perfect for a day when we were wracked by
fever and looking for some distraction that required no thought!
Some of our other favorite holiday movies include
Love, Actually (one of the best!),
The Holiday,
National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (more pure silly fun),
Miracle on 34th Street (the original, naturally), and, of course,
It's a Wonderful Life. My kids love
Home Alone, of course, and I really loved
The Family Stone.
We
are more likely to watch old Christmas TV specials than movies this
season - we have a large collection on DVD and, yes, many on VHS: shows
like
Santa Claus is Coming to Town,
Rudolph,
Frosty the Snowman,
A Charlie Brown Christmas, and various Muppet Christmas Specials (our favorite is the 1998
A Muppet Family Christmas - cracks us up every time!).
The Snowman
is a beautiful video to watch during the holiday season, adapted from a
picture book and featuring gorgeous colored pencil drawings and
beautiful music.
What are your favorite holiday movies and/or Christmas specials?
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