Home for the Holidays

This film, when stripped of all its humour, cover-ups and bravado, is one of the saddest stories put to film in recent years. The line that strikes me the most is nearing the end, when Claudia and Leo go to Joanne's to return her Tupperware. The dialogue goes as such:

Claudia: You don't know the first thing about me, Joanne. Nothing.

Joanne: Likewise, I'm sure. [pause] If I just met you on the street, if you gave me your phone number, I'd throw it away.

Ouch. If either of my sisters said that to me I'd have to hurt them. This is a touching, heartfelt film, and I adore it.

Review Date 6/27/2019

I have Reviewed OVER 500 "Christmas Films and Specials". Please BEWARE Of films and specials with just one review! For instance When "It's a POSITIVE" chances are that the reviewer was involved with the production. "If its Negative" then they may have a grudge against the film for whatever reason. I am fare about these films.

All families go through transitions. Parents are getting older. Siblings resentment and how we all kind go through the motions of life without realizing seeing what is front of our own eyes.

In this film every year, Claudia (Holly Hunter) dreads her trip home for Thanksgiving. Between her parents (Charles Durning and Anne Bancroft), her sardonic brother (Robert Downey Jr.) and her overdramatic sister (Cynthia Stevenson), things are bad enough. But this year, Claudia has more reason for angst. She's lost her job and is dealing with her daughter's (Claire Danes) revelation about her sexual activities. Claudia's sister seems to think her brother and sister ran out of town leaving her stuck to take care of their aging parents.

Lots of laughs and a reality check for everyone.

"Nobody means what they say on Thanksgiving, Mom. That's what the holiday is all about. Torture." - Claudia

That is my favorite line in this, one of my favorite movies. This is a holiday at anyone's home: a congregation of people you love beyond comprehension and hate beyond belief but are bound to by blood. There are so many wonderful and true moments in this film both funny and dramatic, that I cannot possibly name them all except to say that these moments, even the one between the sisters near the end, are what we give thanks for even if they are painful. Yes family gatherings are dreaded, but once they are over we are happy to have attended, because somewhere amidst the chaos we remember why we love these people, where we came from, who we are, and what is truly important in this life. coming to realizations such as this inevitably involves torture. we would much rather not think about it... this movie forces us to. Great movie.

What I like most about this movie is the atmosphere it creates: the anticipation of returning home during the dreariness of the season's weather, the hustle and bustle of the holiday, the conflict between the loneliness and yet the quiet peace of waking to the first moonlit dusting of snow. There's always such a buildup to that big day, and then it's over, and, as one titled scene suggests, "now what?"

But what touches me about this movie is what it has to say about love. "The very thought of you" is more than a song at the movie's end, it's a theme that permeates the movie: such as when the father watches the home movie of his children, illuminating one of the pivital moments of his life that was only seconds in length, but brings his life such joy and meaning. The movie reminds us that it is "the very thought of you" that brings joy to us all.

People either love or hate this film. It seems to me that, for those who hate it, there is too much going on in the scenes. The dialogue is often open ended, and the action is at times frenetic so that the viewer isn't sure where he/she should be focusing attention. That, I submit, is the true beauty of this unusual movie. It has an over the top realism that makes it a rewarding film to watch multiple times. There are so many layers in the dialogue and the acting, so many subtleties between characters, that you can watch it many times and still be noticing something new. This may be billed a comedy, but it is filled with heartbreak and tragedy, betrayal and disappointments. This is not a run of the mill feel good holiday movie. I think those who rate this movie poorly, in some way, miss that. I hope Jodie Foster directs again. She's immensely gifted.