A Very Murray Christmas

Anyone looking at a Christmas special written by/for Bill Murray and expecting a plot and story line is either too young or too dumb to just enjoy it. It is Bill at his best. Calm, collected and one hell of a showman. It's dark and bright in the best of ways. Great sound quality, good people being people.

The progression of the movie was very well done. I was content with it initially; but as it went on I loved it more and more. I watched the musical scenes twice (Silent Night maybe more) in one sitting.

In 10 years everyone will be calling this a Christmas must watch. If you know Bill Murray and enjoy him, you can't lose.

In the USA, where Consumerism is the true national religion, the mass media represent a cruel myth that life is like a Hallmark greeting card or a Joel Osteen fantasy, which inevitably leads most of us to feel something like Charlie Brown or George Bailey.

Paradoxically, the Charlie Browns and George Baileys of the world might like to spend an hour sitting on the sofa, listening to Xmas music, imagining a warm fireplace and snow outside the window, maybe tossing back a couple drinks or taking a little toke. Perhaps to indulge in a little nostalgia, or perhaps to pause and be grateful for food in the belly, a warm place to stay, and whatever friends or companions one actually has in this complex and difficult world.

Before the merchants and the religious fanatics seized upon it, the Winter Soltice was the pagan season of Yule, a time of song, feasting, alcohol and socializing. (Look it up if you don't believe me!)

This is a show of song, and of actors pretending to eat, drink and performing lightly comedic dialogue so as to simulate socializing. Additionally, this show takes pains to acknowledge the fact that real life is nothing like the saccharine shopping-mall mega-church fantasies which propel most Xmas season programming.

The banter and music are mostly amusing, sometimes even quite good, and there is even a hint of genuine sentiment at one point, but thankfully not overdone.

Sometimes you want a TV show that is not heavy or demanding, a kind of electronic fireplace to keep you (and hopefully a companion) company for the better part of an hour, and sometimes you need a little help getting through the holiday season. Some people find the videotronic images of Bill Murray and Paul Shaffer to be an amiable presence. If you are such a person and have a nominal appreciation for irony, this is a good show to watch.

This is the subversive Christmas special you'd expect from Bill Murray. It's not a FILM, with a PLOT, like so many (millenials?) are complaining about. Maybe they're too young to remember what an old-timey Christmas special was. It was some super-annuated celebrity picking up a cheque filming a Christmas special in mid-summer with the help of some Hollywood pals. But there are also a bunch of alleged Bill Murray fans complaining they wanted to see him in Ghostbusters or Groundhog Day character. What's the matter with you people? If you want to see Murray in those characters, rent those movies. The hint is right in the title - a Very Murray Christmas. Right? Bill Murray takes the Christmas special template, drains out the saccharine and injects his B-flat take on Christmas. Some pals come along for the ride but nobody is really who they seem to be. Is that Amy Poehler noted comedian or is she a character. Wiffled-spined Michael Cera is actually a wanna-be super agent. The waiters are a music group. The waitress is stunning and talented Jenny Lewis. And Miley Cyrus, who I wouldn't jump in to save if she was drowning in my bathtub, delivers a rendition of Silent Night that will have you re-evaluating all you thought you knew, loved and hated about that song. This is a Chistmas special for people who love Christmas once, probably hate it now but wished they still loved it, are driven to madness by shtty mall Christmas music, and maybe wouldn't mind being snowed in at a NY hotel bar with a guy like Paul Shaffer playing the piano while randoms join in and cheer each other by singing. As a guy who thinks the original Grinch cartoon is the greatest Christmas special ever shown on TV, and who thinks It's a Wonderful Life is Hollywood at its most crass, I will watch A Very Murray Christmas every December from now on, assuming I'm willing to cough up for Netflix.

A BIG thank you to Bill Murray, Chris Rock, George Clooney, Miley Cyrus, et al. for making me laugh (and cry...Miley Cyrus's rendition of Silent Night brought tears to my eyes.) when I needed it most. Bravo to those who bravely took the mike while they obviously cannot carry a tune,(eh Chris and George?) Have been watching Bill Murray since his debut on SNL. And who would ever guessed that Clooney would be where he is today after watching him on Roseann?! Despite the negative reviews here, this little gem created some much needed Christmas cheer. I hope to see another Murray Christmas next year! And for all of you who were disappointed...bah humbug!

A Very Murray Christmas (2015)

** (out of 4)

This Christmas special was made for Netflix and when you've got a talented director like Sofia Coppola and a talented actor like Bill Murray you expect much better. The story has Murray set to perform a live Christmas show but NYC has been hit by a major snowstorm so he's worried none of the stars will show up. Not only do we get Murray but we also have Paul Shaffer, Michael Cera, David Johansen, Amy Poehler, Chris Rock, Jason Schwartzman, Miley Cyrus and George Clooney.

There are many problems with this 56 minute special but the biggest is the fact that it's simply not funny. While watching the film I couldn't help but wonder what they were even trying to do. Show off a great cast? Perhaps because that's really the only thing that the movie accomplishes. Murray is always fun to watch but he really isn't given much to do here outside of singing some songs, which he adds a nice spin on. Clooney shows up towards the end and while it's fun seeing him in something like this he really isn't given too much to do. The scene-stealer is Cyrus who sings three songs but takes the movie with a wonderful version of Silent Night.