The Holiday Review
by Steve Rhodes (Steve DOT Rhodes AT InternetReviews DOT com)December 7th, 2006
THE HOLIDAY
A film review by Steve Rhodes
Copyright 2006 Steve Rhodes
RATING (0 TO ****): ***
THE HOLIDAY, written and directed by Nancy Meyers (SOMETHING'S GOTTA GIVE), is a perfect holiday present for audiences, full of enough schmaltz for everyone in the family. Although it frequently operates at the just kind-of-cute level, it does have some downright hilarious moments and some truly sweet ones too. Still, the movie is likely to remind you of LOVE ACTUALLY, another feel-good picture set during the holiday season, which was also bursting with characters and stories just like THE HOLIDAY. While LOVE ACTUALLY was sheer bliss, THE HOLIDAY isn't nearly as consistent.
The setup has two very different women who live a world apart swapping houses on a lark one day, when both of them find themselves miserable and alone. For two weeks, Amanda (Cameron Diaz), a rich movie trailer maker from L.A. with a big modern house, swaps her home with Iris (Kate Winslet), a newspaper editor who has a modest-sized, picture book cottage in Surrey. Although they are supposed to get each other's cars and house furnishings, their friends and relatives get thrown in by accident as well.
Amanda, a motormouth who can't cry, gets a knock on her new door from a handsome hunk named Graham (Jude Law). The very drunk Graham turns out to be Iris's brother. Since they figure they'll never see each other again, Amanda and Graham throw caution to the wind and head for the bedroom. Diaz just tries too hard, with the result that her character becomes one of the least convincing.
Meanwhile in L.A., Iris, who sees herself as a suffering victim of unrequited love for the recently engaged Jasper (Rufus Sewell), a cad and a coworker, finds a new man in her life. Befriending the 90-year-old Arthur Abbott (Eli Wallach) by helping him find his way home, she discovers that he is a famous writer with an Oscar on the mantle to prove it. He is none other than the guy who suggested adding "kid" to the famous "Here's looking at you kid" line in CASABLANCA. Wallach, who is as charming as he is witty, is a natural scene stealer. When Iris asks Arthur out to dinner, if he isn't busy, he gets a twinkle in his eye and tells her, "Honey, I haven't been busy since 1978." When he tells her that Cary Grant was from Surrey too, she asks him how he knows. Arthur says simply, "he told me."
Among the funniest moments is a clip of Amanda's latest trailer, one for a really cheesy movie called DECEPTION, which stars Lindsey Lohan and a two-gun firing James Franco. THE HOLIDAY is never funnier than during a four-way phone call between Amanda, Iris, Graham and Miles (Jack Black), whom Iris is starting to fall for. Juggling her three callers during a call-waiting session, Iris gets confused and says the wrong things to the wrong people.
A really precious moment that will have the viewers going "ahhhh" happens in a cute little tent setup in the bedroom of a couple of little girls in the story. Although it could be too sugary for some, THE HOLIDAY is a little treat worth savoring this Christmas season.
THE HOLIDAY runs 2:18. It is rated PG-13 for "sexual content and some strong language" and would be acceptable for kids around 9 and up.
The film opens nationwide in the United States on Friday, December 8, 2006. In the Silicon Valley, it will be showing at the AMC theaters, the Century theaters and the Camera Cinemas.
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