A favorite Christmas movie for our family, like many of your families, has been National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation. We didn’t watch it this year because I can’t find my copy. But that’s okay … I can almost recite the dialog.
B
ut I did discover there was a sequel made: National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation 2, which is about Cousin Eddie’s vacation trip to the South Pacific Islands with his family. The movie starts with Eddie being fired from his job with a nuclear research facility because his co-worker, a chimpanzee, was far more intelligent than Eddie. However, because the chimp bit Eddie on the butt and the company feared a lawsuit, they offered him and his family an expense paid trip to the South Pacific.
Within the first 30 – 45 seconds, you know this is a terrible attempt at film-making. It starts out horribly lame and unfunny only to get continually worse as the movie “progresses.”
My daughter and I watched (she was texting w/ friends most of the time) out of morbid curiosity just to see if it could possibly get any worse. It did. Consistently. Randy Quaid as Cousin Eddie in Christmas Vacation, is hilarious! Randy Quaid as Cousin Eddie in the sequel is pathetic.
Why do the people in Hollywood do this? Surely they know a movie that bad isn’t going to make it … other than idiots such as myself renting it from Netflix.
On Christmas afternoon, the Wife, Daugher and I went to see The Blind Side … the story of NFL rookie, Michael Oher being adopted by a wealthy, white Memphis family. It stars Tim McGraw and Sandra Bullock. I would give the movie two thumbs up, but I am neither Siskel nor Ebert, for which I am thankful because one of them is dead!
Be that as it may, it is a feel good, lots of laughs, a few tears movie that made Christmas Day just a little bit better. And for the record, Sandra Bullock as a blonde is HOT! I’ve always liked most of her movies, but I think this may be her best to date. Tim McGraw was not as convincing an actor, but he was a far sight better than Randy Quaid. If you look at the two actors and the two people they are portraying, the resemblance is strong.
So … if you’ve never seen Christmas Vacation 2, D O N ‘ T ! ! ! If you’ve not seen The Blind Side, D O ! !
What Christmas movie(s) did you watch?
I read the book a couple of years ago, I guess and saw The Blind Side on opening night. I just loved it!
Last night, we watched The Proposal again. That wasn’t a Christmas movie and we didn’t watch it on Christmas but we like the movie.
Prosper wants to see Invictus so maybe we’ll see that before he goes back to the dorm.
We love White Christmas and It’s a Wonderful Life. We also watched Miracle on 34th Street (the old one).
We’ve also added Hogfather, based on Terry Pratchett’s novel of the same. Mr. Pratchett claims to be an atheist (but one of those who doesn’t shove it in your face and disrespect your belief). His premise is that we made god/gods in our image rather than the other way around, and he presents his thesis well, although the flaws in this thinking are obvious when you get to the end of the movie/book. All in all, Mr. Pratchett is amusing and has a great affection for his characters and their flaws. Hogfather is one of a series of novels from his Discworld collection.
We finally saw the Blind Side this weekend too. I loved it as well. The theater was packed…I thought I was the only one who had not seen it yet.
I watched Christmas Vacation three or four times this year. We watched A Christmas Story and The Preacher’s Wife…although I still like the old black and white The Bishop’s wife better….
Other than that I watched a lot of football where the little cheerleader girls had on Santa outfits…..
My kids wanted to see Alvin and the Chipmunks. I REALLY did not want to see that. The only other “grown-up” movie showing at the same time was “Up In The Air.” They saw the chipmunks, I saw “Up In The Air.”
I tend to think I should have been a hermit. I often prefer to be alone, I love to travel because of the time alone (and the ability to selfishly do what I want, when I want, watch what I want, etc.). I know…it’s selfish. The one line in this movie that hit me hard (and the ultimate message of the whole movie) was when George Clooney asked his brother-in-law to be to remember the best times in his life. They were with other people, right?
Right. Even though I’m a loner, I still need people. Yet another reminder of God’s wisdom in creating the Church, and sending me to be with His people on a regular basis.
We didn’t watch any movies, played a lot of board games instead. Had a good time!
Sandra Bullock is Larry’s favorite “other girlfriend” and my favorite “other boyfriend” is Sam Elliott.
We watched It’s a Wondeful Life and A Christmas Story, both very good movies.
We “watched” CV2 a couple of years ago, like you, just to see if Cousin Eddy was as good as he was in CV1. Like you – opinion, CV2 was a bust.
Blindside – one of the best movies made this year. “Big Mike” is the starting Left Tackle for the Baltimore Ravens this year. I’m not a BR fan but I do look for him when the Ravens are on T.V.
Best movie without a doubt – Christmas Vacation. Just ask the 40 or so people who crammed our livingroom to watch it again this year.
I watched the beginning of the Griswold’s Christmas, recorded it, and watched some toward the end. So, I’ve got it to watch, but we were busy with a guest and some other things Christmas day.
We DID watch some really neat old (30s) black & white movies that were Christmas stories on TCM (Turner Classic Movies) channel on DirecTV Christmas Eve day that were tons of fun and different than the same ol’, same ol’. One was “The Great Rupert” that had Jimmy Durante in it, with a very poor family, and a squirrel who helps them by showering them with money hidden behind the wall of a wealthy man’s house (where he hid it – he thought). It was a really cute and sweet movie that makes you laugh and feel good. Not many of those made any more.
Tom & I want to see (very much) “The Blind Side.” But close friends of ours say to read the book, first. So, we’re going to look for it at the library and wait to watch it on DVD.
We were planning a “movie day” for Saturday (going to see two matinees in a row w/lots of “buttered” – don’t say a word – popcorn). But, we cooked all day, instead, to have Tom’s sister & family over for chili and cornbread, etc.
Cheers! Dee
Watched It’s a Wonderful Life. Like you with the CV movie, I can quote most of WL word for word, but I still love it. It has such a message, y’know? I don’t watch a lot of Christmas movies, especially the newer ones made for tv ESPECIALLY, because they’re mostly sad.
I want to see Blind Side but haven’t, yet.
We knocked off a BUNCH of Christmas movies this year…
Elf
Home Alone 1 & 2
The Santa Clause 1,2 & 3
Charlie Brown
The Kranks
Deck the Halls
and Christmas Vacation
My boys got me Christmas Vacation 2 on CD a couple of years ago … BAD!
Looking forward to watching Blind Side. Thanks for the heads up.
Not a Christmas movie, but we went to see Sherlock Holmes. It was action packed and fast moving from beginning to end. A little hard to follow at times, and will have to watch it again when it comes out on PPV to catch all the details we missed (you gotta love rewind on DVR). Definitely a sequel coming. As always the best part of the movie was the bucket of butter soaked popcorn with refill.
“You couldn’t hear a dump truck driving through a nitro glycerin plant!”
“Eddie, If I woke up tomorrow with my head sewn to the carpet, I wouldn’t be more suprised”
A couple of my favorite quotes. Love that movie.
“GRANDMA GOT RUN OVER BY A REINDEER” is one i watch every year, there
are others that i watch
Christmas Vacation is good. I really liked Elf. Saw Four Christmases at home with the family. That was a wasted free movie from Red Box.
I am on the way today with wife and friends to see Blind Side. Read book and it was very good. Wasn’t “Ten” a good Christmas movie?
Peace.
Saw the Blind Side when it came out Thanksgiving. I think it was the best Sandra Bullock movie to date (and I own almost everything she is in). Watched the Santa Clause Movies 1-3, Elf, White Christmas, and my all time favorite, The Muppets Christmas Carol.
Didn’t watch much Christmas movies this year but my favorite is Elf. I could watch that over and over and over and never tire from it. I have yet to see the Blind Side but really want to. My favorite “cartoon” christmas movie I watched with my Mom this year. I cannot remember the name but it is the story of Kris Kringle and it has the Winter Warlock and Burger Meister Meister Burger. Love that one!!!