Monday, December 21, 2009

Movie Monday - Holiday Favorites!




Feature Presentation...
MONDAY MOVIE MEME


It's that Wonderful Time of the Year! Molly has chosen to start of this Christmas Week posting about favorite Holiday Movies! So, fellow bloggers, come up with a list of your favorite holiday movies and post about them. Then link your post back to Molly and Andy's at The Bumbles Blog!


The Christmas Story (1983) Molly, I know you posted about this one already but it is one of my favorites. TNT (I think!) runs this movie for 24 hours Christmas Even to Christmas Day. I never tire of seeing Ralphie (Peter Billingsley) coming downstairs in that big pink bunny suit given to him by his aunt or in watching his face light up in awe as his father (Darren McGavin) unpacks his winning raffle prize, a lamp in the shape of a "woman's leg garbed in fishnet stockings" from the box and place it in the front window with it's tassle-strewn lampshade for all the neighborhood to see much to his wife's (Melinda Dillon) dismay! This brilliant movie is based on the short stories and semi-personal anecdotes of Jean Shepard. There are so many wonderful scenes in this movie. If you haven't seen it, be sure you do!

Miracle on 34th Street (1947) Poor, poor Santa Claus is put on trial! Kris Kringle (Edmund Gwenn) complains to Macy's that their "Santa" is drunk and reluctantly agrees to appear in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade at the behest of Doris Walker, Macy's event director (Maureen O'Hara). Doris' 9-year-old, Susan (Natalie Wood) does not believe in Santa because her mother has raised her to be a practical child who has no imagination. This troubles Kris and he is determined to convince her otherwise. This is a wonderful, magical movie.

We're No Angels (1955) including Humphrey Bogart, Peter Ustinov, Aldo Ray and Joan Bennett. In this comedy, three convicts escape from prison and hide out in a nearby French colonial town. They find a store that offers goods on credit and discover the store is owned by a family in financial straits. The convicts decide to stay and help the family with the store as a cover for their ruse...and fun ensues! I don't want to reveal any more about this gem of a movie. Suffice to say, this is one of Bogart's few comedies and it's fun to see him in a different light. This is an extremely fun, cute movie!

The Shop Around the Corner (1940) A romantic comedy starring Jimmy Stewart and Margaret Sullivan who play employees in a shop in Budapest. They do not like each other at all. Both are pen pals and falling in love with their respective partner in correspondence. But what they don't realize is that they are each other's pen pals! This is a delightful, enjoyable movie!

Broadway Danny Rose (1984) A comedy in black & white written by and starring Woody Allen and including a cast comprising Mia Farrow, Nick Apollo Forte, Sandy Baron and Milton Berle. Allen plays a talent manager who does everything for his clients who are generally incompetent and talent-less except for one who is somewhat talented. This somewhat talented client needs Allen's help desperately the day of a big show. But by helping out, Allen gets himself involved in a romantic triangle that involves the mob! The story is told in flashbacks by a group of comedians who are telling stories and anecdotes over lunch at New York's Carnegie Deli. I often watch this movie over the holidays because there are some very funny scenes that involve Thanksgiving dinner hosted by Allen for his clients. This is a hilarious and wonderful movie that was nominated for an Academy Award.

12 comments:

  1. I just love The Miracle on 34th Street. That's a great movie. I haven't seen it for a few years, I need to look it up.

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  2. Don't you always just feel so darned SAD for Santa, up there, being maligned? I love that movie!

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  3. I love "Miracle on 34th Street" too! My other favorites are "Holiday Inn", "White Christmas", "Scrooge" (B&W version) and "Christmas in Connecticut".

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  4. A cat lover and a reader too! How many do you have? We have six, all rescues. My entry is here

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  5. Just briefly stopping by to wish you (& yr cats!) Happy Holidays! Recently posted latest Christmas edition of "Your Lola Lifeline" - and look forward to "seeing" you again sometime soon!

    Have a great 2010 too!

    xxLOL LOLA:)

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  6. Nicole: It's one of my favorites. I love the courtroom scene with the prosecuto's young son on the stand. And Kris Kringle looks so much like Santa Clause. It's a sweet movie! I hope you get a chance to watch it this year!

    Sandy: I totally do, Sandy! And he's so sweet and good-natured! I hate seeing him in the asylum. But he feels so goow when all of the sacks of mail are paraded into the courtroom!

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  7. Kathy: Those are great Christmas movies, Kathy! I knew I forget some wonderful ones. I especially like Christmas in Connecticut and White Christmas! Both have been on cable several times already this month. I have also been enjoying the ABC Family Channel after I read on your blog that you and Seashell are watching it most days because it is hosting holiday shows for the entire month. Thank you for bringing that channel to my attention! It's delightful and entertaining!

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  8. Irishcoda: Hello & welcome! A blogger after my own heart! We have 8 cats all rescues and 2 - 3 we feed on a regular basis. Aren't they wonderful?
    Thank you for visiting my blog!

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  9. Nora: Hi! How are you?! I haven't seen you in a while. I stopped by your blog a few times but I guess you have been very busy! Thank you for stopping here to visit!
    Happy Holidays! And Happy New Year to you and Lola! I'll be by to visit soon!

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  10. Thanks for the great holiday recommendations :)

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  11. What a great list of movies, Amy! I haven't seen A Christmas Story all the way through--only bits and pieces here and there. Maybe someday . . .

    The original Miracle on 34th Street is one of my favorite holiday movies. :-)

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  12. I love The Shop Around The Corner! I thought I might be the only person I know that has ever heard of We're No Angel.

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