All was Right with the World

‘Tis the season to be merry.
Well that’s my name, Merry
No shit!!

Sorry had a Christmas Vacation flashback. We will deal with that movie in due time. The Holiday Season is upon us (you have to say Holiday Season nowadays to be PC so the Jews and the Blacks don’t get upset). I for one refuse to acknowledge the Holiday Season until at least after I have had Thanksgiving dinner. As we know the rest of America starts celebrating the Holiday’s somewhere between 4th of July and Labor Day. My favorite part about the Season, besides eating of course, is the Christmas movie. There are the classics as we all know and then ever year there is a litany of new Holiday movies starring some actors of the day that will be shown one time and then thrown in the garbage where the rightfully belong. There is also the Christmas episode of every television show, which always moves me to violence (I mean tears). Now, we will review some of my favorites.

It’s a Wonderful Life. Ok so not a favorite of mine. I kind of see the appeal to this movie, but overall I think it is average at best. The only good thing that ever really came from this movie was a hilarious SNL Sketch with Dana Carvey doing a spot on Jimmy Stewart. I guess it has that true Holiday feel to it, where George realizes as long as he has the people who love him around he is a rich man.

Christmas Vacation. A vast departure from It’s a Wonderful Life, but nonetheless it certainly has its place among the Holiday favorites. This movie is brilliantly funny. Chevy Chase as the bumbling Clark “Sparky” Griswold is at his very best. The classic scenes of him trying to hang the light, him flipping out when the lights don’t work , and the peace de resistance when he has the melt down after being enrolled in the Jelly of the Month Club. According to Eddie, “That’s the gift that keeps on giving all year round.” Speaking of which, how the best supporting actor award is not named for Randy Quaid after his portrayal as Cousin Eddie is beyond me. He defines what a supporting chatacter is all about and absolutely steals the show. I love every second of this movie and cannot wait to watch 14 times this December.

A Christmas Carol. Of course this an all time great story from master novelist Charles Dickens. I fell in love one of the more recent incarnations of this movie made by TNT and starring Patrick Stewart as Ebenezer Scrooge. He plays the part very very well. The movie is well done with its attention to detail and it’s use of lighting and sound. It is the ultimate heart warming Christmas tale.

A Christmas Story. Here is where history is made. It is the Citizen Kane of Christmas movies. There is nothing that this classic does not have. The setting and scenery are absolutely perfect and bring back such a nostalgic feel. Even though I did not grow up in 1940’s America the movie places you back into your childhood and how the one present you wanted was the most important thing in your life. The movie at no point takes itself seriously, it is a cynical view on everything commercialized that Christmas has become. All the characters in the movie are charicatures of themselves. The father and mother, the Bumpus Hounds, Ralphie’s buddies, the bully Scot Farkus everyone has their place in Ralphies particular little world which revolves around the classic line, “You’ll shoot your eye out.” That is as identifiable a line as there is in movies, right there with, “ Rosebud”, “Frankly my dear, I don’t give a damn”, “Play it again, Sam”, “May the Force be with you”, “There’s no place like home.” Then in the end it has its true Christmas moment, that no matter what events have taken place in the last few days to make this family miserable, they are all together having a good laugh and enjoying each others company on Christmas night.

I will not tackle all these made for TV Christmas specials. All of these things look awful, there were 2 on last night and by my count at lest 4 more to come. I cannot wait to watch any of them. The one thing I am looking forward to is the Christmas episodes of M*A*S*H. As many of you know I love that show, and I love the Christmas episodes even more. They are excellent episodes. I cannot wait to watch every one of them, and all my other Holiday Classics.

And for those of you A-Holes who are going to tell me how great Bad Santa is and how it is a great Holiday movie I am gonna tell you all to suck it. I watched that movie this August and it is OK. It has it’s moments were it can be funny, but it is just set in the context of the Holiday season, not really and Holiday movie. Get over your Bad Santa fix, actually I saw Badder Santa the uncut version. I do love the fat kid in it who always wants to eat sandwich’s