Truth be told I’m not too surprised that “Nothing Like the Holidays” has become an obscure holiday film in spite of doing everything right in terms of holiday films. It’s called “Nothing like The Holidays” for a broader appeal, considering most Puerto Rican families celebrate Christmas strictly, and yet it’s still a shelf filler after its release in theaters because let’s face it, there’s not a Caucasian face among the cast. America loves the plight of the American family filled with blondes and brunettes while something like “Nothing Like the Holidays” which is essentially a film about a family trying to deal with their demons and unrequited emotions, is pushed to the wayside.
Tag Archives: Christmas
Bikini Bloodbath Christmas (2009)
“Gina Davis… like the wind… never forgets.”
2010 was a really rough year for yours truly so imagine my happiness when I learned that director Thomas Edward Seymour and Jon Gorman were ending the worst Christmas of my life with a Bikini Bloodbath. Finishing off their trilogy of trashy slashers, “Bikini Bloodbath Christmas” takes all of the good things about Christmas, destroys it, and instead trades it for a lot of booze, sexy women, bikinis, and a really evil chef Death who likes to kill people with a claw hammer… and stuff. Why is he killing people still? Who knows? But there are big boobs, sexy women and Debbie Rochon returns yet again.
Elf: Ultimate Collector's Edition (DVD)
Anyone in the market for a nice gift set this year may want to refer to the “Elf: Ultimate Collector’s Edition” set, a nice gift pack that will make a nice stocking stuffer for anyone who genuinely enjoyed Will Ferrell as an overgrown adopted Elf who goes in to the real world when he leaves the North Pole. “Elf” is really the only Will Ferrell movie I actually enjoy mainly because Ferrell is so unlike Ferrell here. He’s much more innocent, much more likable and never plays on his whole inept shtick he’s used to milk his film career since leaving Saturday Night Live. Now an apparent Broadway Musical (Ah, Broadway, you’ve sold your soul), this original film is a delightful and often hilarious fish out of water film about finding yourself after a life changing revelation, and trying to maintain innocence and optimism in a world filled with misery and cynicism.
Yogi's First Christmas (1980) (DVD)
As an animated movie, Hanna Barbera could have done much better. “Yogi’s First Christmas” isn’t the worst animated movie I’ve ever seen but in terms of quality, it all feels like such a rushed product that was pushed in to production in time for Christmas. The line work is shaky, the coloring is bland, the character models are fuzzy and there are even a few errors that will give the keen observer a hard time.
Treevenge (2009)
Well if zombies or robots weren’t the harbingers of the apocalypse then it seems only natural that we’d be invaded by pissed off Christmas trees tired of being decorated, pushed around, and inevitably shredded. Jason Eisener, the director of the faux movie trailer “Hobo with a Shotgun,” returns giving us more of a reason to like what he’s doing and what he’s intending to do with the independent film scene. Not only does the man’s style get sleeker and more stylish with every output, but he also knows how to push all the right buttons with clever fare like “Hobo” down to ridiculous material called “Treevenge.”
Tom and Jerry: A Nutcracker Tale (2007)
If you go into “A Nutcracker Tale” expecting full blown Tom and Jerry mayhem involving burning hands, cut tails, and knives to the butt, then you’re going to be disappointed. We’re now at a time of sheer confusion where a cat cutting a mouse’s tail is crossing the line yet we’ll willingly allow our children to watch MTV. Censors and the FCC can never seem to make up their damn minds, anymore.
The Snow Queen (2007) (DVD)
One of the appealing aspects of “The Snow Queen” that instantly won me over the unorthodox atmosphere present within this fantasy world. Director Julian Gibbs never quite opts to provide a set and strive for a period piece, instead he makes a noticeably unrealistic set piece and alters it enough to make the world of “The Snow Queen” from the impoverished village to the winter wonderland look like a moving painting as done from a surrealist of a sort. The pastels and shades to “The Snow Queen” are so utterly appealing to watch, and while I could notice the CGI, I absolutely loved what Gibbs was going for with this.