A Grandpa for Christmas

This is one of the best Christmas movies I have ever seen. Of course, Earnest Borgnine and Jamie Farr are two of my very favorite actors. I can hardly wait until this comes out on DVD for home purchase!!! The story line of this movie is excellent. A man who "lost" his daughter to very difficult circumstances and was made to look as a "bad" person by his x-wife who actually ran away from him but who took care of his daughter without any credit all her life. Thankfully a friend told her and they were able to make up their differences and become a family. Borgnine may be 90 years old but it doesn't show one bit. He is excellent in every scene and carries a wonderful story to an excellent conclusion.

At the age of 90, Ernest Borgnine turns in a wonderful performance as a grandfather discovering that he has a granddaughter. Problem is that he has been estranged from his daughter for many years. The daughter sided with her mother in a messy breakup between her parents. It is only after the daughter becomes injured in an accident that the grandfather takes temporary custody of his grandchild.

Even the granddaughter has been brainwashed into thinking that grandpa is an ogre. That all changes when Borgnine shows tender loving care and takes charge in her life.

It's a wonderful story again emphasizing strong family traditions. It is most appropriate for the holiday season.

Becca, the granddaughter of Bert enters suddenly in the life of Bert: her mother had a car accident and is in the hospital: the social worker asks then Bert to take care for Becca. The first moments of the living together are difficult, but one night Bert sings a lullaby for her and she feels well. On the next appears Roxy Famosa and Becca sings "Jingle Bells" , Roxy encourages her to participate in the Christmas spectable. Besides Bert is astonished by so many questions of Becca about his personal life (why there is not Christmas tree in the house for exmple).

A pleasant comedy about the father-daughter relationship, about the importance of the friendship (Roxy, Carl and Adam, Christine the new friend in the school) and about the joy of singing and dancing.

I enjoyed the performances of Ernest Borgnine, Katherine Helmond , Juliette Goglia-the cute Becca-, Richard Libertiny, Tracy Nelson and Jamie Farr.

I didn't know exactly what to expect when I sat down to watch this, and I was pleasantly surprised. While this does not hold an awful lot of surprises, it not only has its heart in the right place, but it respects that delicate balance, and remains sweet, never growing sappy. This is one of the precious few films that are entirely inoffensive without going too far in the other direction and becoming irritating. The plot is interesting enough, and it doesn't lose your interest. This is well-paced. The characters are nicely developed, and there aren't any that only have negative sides(with one possible exception). Production isn't half bad. Without being a tragic tale, this does stay close to reality, and really comes across largely genuine(albeit one or two occurrences strain credulity somewhat). The acting is decent enough. Borgnine is great, and the kid is fine. This should get laughs out of most viewers, with its solid mix of silly jokes and a dry wit. The singing is quite enjoyable. This promotes wholesome morals without seeming preachy. I recommend it to everyone who watches Christmas movies. 7/10

This Christmas time movie is one of the BEST! Out of the over 80 holiday movies I've seen, this is in my top 4. I am so glad to see other viewer's comments on this 2007 released movie. Kudos to this entire cast. I've now seen it twice and each time I like it even more and shed a few more tears. Ernest Borgnine, I didn't know how old he was. It doesn't matter. You are just in love with his character and the beauty and warmth of such an individual. What a beautiful spirit and a life lesson. Even though he didn't have his daughter or granddaughter in his life, he was still a joyous, positive, loving person. He did the best he could with his life and his friends speak volumes for his character. And in the end it pays off. But I love the theme of "no regrets". He lives beyond the hurt, beyond the loss. This is probably my favorite Christmas time movie. And, again, the casting was PERFECT!!!