12 Days of Christmas; Movie Blog Style.
It’s the Holidays again. Time to wrap all those fruit cakes you got last year and pawn them off on your friends and relatives. Head out to the stores and wait in long long lines – dealing with cashiers that are grumpy as hell this time of year. Hitting up the Body Shop for some candles and lotion for your sister, quickly oh so quickly. Finally paying a visit to Victoria’s Secret for your girlfriend -well actually this is more for you so maybe Frederick’s is better-.
I love Christmas and the Holiday season, it seems to bring the best out of many, the worst in others, parties, slacking off at work, lights, gifts, music and great movies. For the past week I’ve been getting home from work and popping my favorite Holiday movies in the DVD player. This got me thinking -and I didn’t hurt myself- about the 12 days of Christmas but in Movie Blog style. So here we go with 12 days of Holiday movie reviews all leading up to the day I get my new iPod that plays video.
On the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me: Scrooged (1988)
Scrooged stars Bill Murray as the youngest president in television history. At the top of the ladder at the IBC TV network, Frank Cross is the typical evil executive with only one thing in mind – owning the ratings on Christmas. Completely focused on work and his professional success, Frank Cross has no reservations with terminating peoples employment during the Holidays, scaring old ladies to death with radical advertising, sending poor bath towels to his family for Christmas, cutting Holiday bonuses or making his assistant work late on Christmas Eve.
This cutthroat business attitude may be fine for Frank but others feel he needs a wake up call. Enter the ghosts; just as Charles Dickens wrote in A Christmas Carol, Frank would be visited by three ghosts who will show him the error of his ways and lead him to kindness and compassion.
Truly a funny take on this classic story, Bill Murray plays this part fantastically, you can see the Oscar nominee potential in 1988. Along with Murray there is a wonderful cast of actors. Karen Allen plays Claire, an ex-girlfriend from way back who got away due to his own selfishness and greed. Personally I think Karen Allen is a doll. I’ve liked her since seeing her in Raiders of the Lost Ark –Animal House followed-. Claire is the sweet and caring girlfriend that we all want most of the time and Frank finds himself seeking her help and company during his “episodes”.
A few other familiar faces are Bobcat Goldthwait, David Johansen (aka Buster Poindexter as the ghost of Christmas past), Carol Kane (as the ghost of Christmas present), Wendie Malick -hey, she went to my highschool-, Brian Doyle-Murray and the second youngest brother John Murray. All around a fun group which echoes through the movie with chemistry.
When I look for a good Christmas movie or any Holiday movie for that matter, I like the ones that not only make me laugh or smile but also the ones that get me a little choked up at the end. This movie does just that. The actions of Frank Cross and other characters lay out a number of big laughs but when this “Scrooge” opens his heart at the end, Murray has an emotional Christmas moment which hits you were it counts.
If you are looking for a funny Christmas flick which is targeted more towards teens and adults give Scrooged a try. It makes a nice addition to your collection.
Dickens would approve I think.
