The Holiday

The Holiday_360P

The Holiday-480P

I could write volumes on what is wrong with this movie. However, for the sake of brevity, I will keep it to this: 1.) Cameron Diaz is the personification of nails on a chalkboard in this movie. 2.) The musical score (if it should even be called that) is pathetic, cloying and wantonly manipulative, which really could describe most of the movie in general, too. 3.) Those who can act are given such tripe for dialogue that I was embarrassed for them--painfully so: I had to literally pull my coat over my eyes during the worst scenes. And last but perhaps most telling: 4.) This film brought tears of sadness to the eyes of some one who saw it with me. We thought this film would be MERELY lame or predictable. However, it was BAD. Not even "good bad". Rarely is such a predictable movie so unpredictably this bad.

Seriously, it was like someone had spilled Fondue over everything it was that cheesy. It was also completely predictable and formulaic. Winslet and Diaz overacted (and badly so) throughout the whole movie.I was actually cringing when Cameron's character tells Jude that her family was so close they used to call themselves "The three Musketeers"! In fact, I was actively cringing for most of the film. I thought Kate Winslet's character was excessively stupid for being in love for three years with a cardboard man that used her when he needed to and then ran back to his fiancée. And to get over him she decides all she needs is two weeks in LA? And he still doesn't leave her alone then, but she never outrightly tell him to F*** Off, which really really got my goat because if she had the film might, just might, have been worth the €9.20 I paid to waste 2 hours of my life on this dire atrocity. The only thing I liked about the film was Jack Black but he was woefully underused. It was also as if the director told him " OK we're going for completely formulaic here, NO IMPROVISING, no off-the-cuff funny stuff, nothing, just work from the script". And they probably cut any bits out that he did do on the spur of the moment. In conclusion, if you want to numb your brain and do have a few hours and a bit of money to waste, by all means go and see this.

I think this film deserves a better rating than the current 6.9 on IMDb. I to expected it to be just like other rom com's but it was much better than i expected and very enjoyable. The story starts with Amanda (Cameron Diaz) and Iris (Kate Winslet) fed up with their love lives; Amanda's boyfriend has been cheating on her and the man Iris loves has just got engaged to someone else. They both decide to switch houses for Christmas for an escape from their complicated lives; so Iris jets off to Amanda's place in sunny L.A and Amanda goes to Iris' quaint cottage in snowy Surrey, England (if only it really did snow at Christmas!) Amanda soon meets Iris' handsome brother Graham (Brilliantly played by Jude Law) and Iris meets musician Miles (Jack Black) and you can guess the rest... The acting is strong and well handled. At first i found Cameron Diaz hugely annoying but as it went on i warmed to her character; she and Jude had lots of chemistry and their relationship was handled well and Graham's secret was a good twist. I thought Jack Black was great in this different role, he and Kate also had chemistry and he was totally believable. I wish their storyline had been a bit longer though as they spent way more time on Cameron and Jude's part. Kate Winslet as usual was funny and touching as Iris and maybe one of the best parts of the film was her relationship with the old man (Eli Wallach) they both seemed to have a connection and it was nice to hear his stories of when he was a writer in the good old Hollywood days when he knew Cary Grant and co! If you want beautiful scenery, escapism from the millions of horror and action films out there and good characterisation, than this is for you. It's not as soppy as other rom/com's and it's easy to identify with the characters, it's also very festive and my dad even liked it and he hates romantic films!

Although this isn't my typical pick on movies I'd love to see, I have to say I enjoyed screening this one. The run time is a bit long, and the movie gets a bit soft in the middle, but considering you're actually watching two love stories (as opposed to one), I guess the run time is justified. It still seemed a bit forced to get the story told in a descent amount of time (still over two hours). The performances were moderate to good, with exception of Jude Law as Graham, who was wonderful. If you're tired of holiday films that are so stacked with so much Christmas cheer that it makes you sick, this is the perfect alternative. Light enough for some serious laughs, and with enough drama to keep it interesting to audiences, this one's a good date movie. Leave the kids with a sitter. There are a few adult themes that could be uncomfortable to try to explain to a younger one.

The Holiday is about two women who each have recently had problems with the men in their lives. Amanda lives in California and Iris lives in England. Neither of these women have ever met before, but they both want to escape for the holidays, so they talk online and decide to swap houses and automobiles for two weeks, so in other words Amanda would be staying at Iris's house in England and Iris would be staying at Amanda's house in California. Once they both reach their destinations they are both pretty bitter about men, but each of them soon meets different men in their lives who mean a lot to them and may make their holiday something to remember. The Holiday has good direction, a good script, good performances by the entire cast and good original music. At first I wasn't really getting into this film and thought it would be a film that would probably appeal more to a woman than to me. Also the Amanda character played by Cameron Diaz annoyed me at first and I found her kind of artificial and ego centric. However as the film played on I found myself really liking this film. The characters grew on me and I found quite a bit to like about this movie. The chemistry between all the different characters works very well and their parts are all quite well written and the actors playing them each do a good job. I found that the film also developed and showed a lot about these characters which I enjoyed because the more I got to know about them the more I liked them and they were able to grow on me more. Each character in this film brings something unique to the table by being different and by really making this film more interesting than perhaps it sounds. The really rewarding thing about this film is how well the characters work with one another and that they are well written and well acted. This film is a romantic comedy and for the most part a lot of romantic comedies do not do a whole lot for me because I find them silly and more for the female viewer than the male viewer, but this movie offers a lot of humour, heart and is just generally a pleasant feel good film that I think both male and female viewers will enjoy. One of the better films of the year and one of the better romantic comedies of recent years as well.

Well yes, a 2006 romantic comedy that delivers what it promises. Mostly due to the disarming likability of the four leads plus Eli Wallach. Not for cynics, naturally, but very few things are and what the hell I laughed I was moved and I surprised myself all the way through. I came out of the theater smiling from ear to ear. Listen, that's not small feast in a world that seems too self conscious to be cute, even smartly cute like in this case. Kate Winslet can't help but being truthful so, there you go, you identify with her Rufus Sewell situation rooting for her - and I'm a guy! Cameron Diaz is, how can I put it? Yes adorable. A scatterbrain with a brain. Jude Law is another than I don't remember when was the last time he was this charming and Jack Black manages to keep it real and I was taken for a ride, going along, falling happily in Nancy Meyer's lovely trap. Well done!

This was a really good, light hearted movie, with GREAT characterization. There are points where the movie is a little slow, but not slow enough to loose your interest. All of the characters are wonderfully developed especially Jude Laws-the under-story of Jude's character adds an extra dimension to his character and really makes you love him all the more. Kate Winslet's character is another that was well worked out. She helps out this little old man . . . and the character development between her and this older gentleman is wonderful . . . it adds so much to her character, makes her more human, more real, someone very likable and someone you want to end up with a good ending. Jack Black's character was sweet, not corny . . . and you end up liking him very much. He was not a goober like he usually is in his movies. Over all, it was a wonderfully character driven movie, that was enjoyable and had you leaving the theater feeling good. I recommend it highly!

If you are expecting an epic cinematic masterpiece, then "The Holiday" is not for you. However, if you are looking for a light, entertaining movie, I would definitely recommend this film. While the previews were intriguing, I was thrilled to find that not every plot element was revealed before I even entered the theater. I completely enjoyed Kate Winslet as hopelessly devoted Iris. She was neurotic, a bit spineless, and absolutely winning. Although I do wish that her story had been developed more thoroughly. I felt a bit like her relationship was rushed through and the film spent a majority of the time focusing on Amanda (Diaz), Graham (Law), and their developing relationship. Despite the fact that I am not a huge Cameron Diaz or Jude Law fan, I was pleasantly surprised with their part of the story! Jack Black kept his character to an energetic hum rather than an explosion of crazy antics. You've just got to love that eyebrow! The scenery was beautiful! The supporting cast was hugely entertaining. I laughed out loud. The ending is fairly predictable. This is a romantic comedy after all. However, "The Holiday" is a great film for those of us who would like to suspend reality for a while and just enjoy. Go see it!