Personally, I’m not one for holiday movies. I find most of them completely cheesy and predictable. Call me Scrooge. The only Christmas movie I am fond of is How the Grinch Stole Christmas both the animated and Jim Carrey versions. Seriously, who doesn’t love that movie? So, since we are embracing the Christmas spirit in this issue, I decided I needed to find a Christmas movie I could enjoy, one that might appeal to the readers also. I found three that not only feature all-star ensemble casts, but that deal with more real-life holiday scenarios.
I stumbled across The Family Stone, a movie I had seen a couple of years back. Ah-ha! This is a Christmas movie that I completely enjoyed. The Family Stone is not your ordinary, cliched Christmas tale that holiday-related movies are generally. Instead, this movie shows realistic situations that regular family encounters.
The ensemble cast includes Rachel McAdams, Diane Keaton, Sarah Jessica Parker, Luke Wilson and Craig T. Nelson and others. I think the reason I loved this movie is because the cast is so diverse and unique. Ensemble cast movies provide variety that one-or-two-main-character shows don’t. My attention was not directed to solely one character, instead it was constantly changing. I felt as though I could embark on every character’s journey.
The Family Stone starts out with Sarah Jessica Parker, who plays an uptight, business-oriented woman, expressing nervous energy as she awaits the meeting of her boyfriend’s (Dermot Mulroney) family. Immediately, there is tension when Parker and Mulroney enter the household. Mulroney’s sister had previously met Parker and had taken a disliking to her. Everyone else in the family dislikes her instantly as well. Holiday hijinks ensue.
If you like ensemble casts, you might also like Love Actually featuring Keira Knightly, Alan Rickman, Hugh Grant, Liam Neeson, Emma Thompson and Colin Firth. Home for the Holidays might also satisfy your holiday movie craving. Its cast features a cast of Holly Hunter, Robert Downey Jr., Dylan McDermott and Anne Bancroft.
Even if you’re like me and don’t like cheesy holiday movies, you will enjoy these. They bring diversity and insight inside the world of families. These movies show that even though families may be dysfunctional, the holiday season can bring out the best in them.