Holiday Recommendations 2020

 Since we are pretty much all in the slammer this year in solitary confinement, spending the holidays with a few holiday films and specials might be in order. There are in no particular order and as always with recommendations, your milage may vary. 

A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965)

The ultimate outsider, Charlie Brown's famous Christmas special. The deformed little tree, the weird dancing... there is a lot to like in this 55 year TV special. It will certianly bring back childhood memories for some of us but even younger inmates will get a kick form the story and Charles M. Schulz Peanuts characters.

Babine

Not technically a holiday story but such of it does take place in winter and, to me at least, it has that seasonal feel to it. The fantastical adventures of a young man born to a witch and the odd villagers of a small northern Quebec village. It's both comforting and touching and you can find a version with subtitles if you don't speak French. 

Pee-wee's Playhouse Christmas Special

Maybe the gayest thing ever on television. I mean it Has K D Lang, Zsa Zsa Gabor, Charo, Joan Rivers, Little RichardGrace Jones singing little Drummer Boy!  And a million more! Pee-wee discovers the meaning of of the season as only he can and in the end, shirtless construction muscle thinks build him a playhouse addition of fruit cakes. 

Muppet Christmas Carol

I am not a fan of the Dickens story or it's film adaptions. I don't hate them but I will avoid it during the holidays... unless it's this Muppets version which is BEST adaption EVER MADE. I'll fight those who disagree, It really is an amazing, fun and heart warming version of the often over done classic. Michael Cain is a wonderful Scrooge and the muppets are all super in their roles. It's visually beautiful and despite the fact 90% of the actors are puppets they all read as real people and it draws you in like nothing else can. 

Klaus (2019) Directed by Sergio Pablos

This Christmas story produced for Netflix and featuring a leap forward in 2D animation might just be the thing that gets studios back into 2D animated movies. Disney's last attempt was "The Princess and the Frog" and while that film was AMAZING, it just couldn't push the ball to the top of the hill and beat the slew of 3D animated films that were taking over animation everywhere. Well, not quite everywhere. TV and independent filmmakers still were and are harnessing the magic that hand drawn animation can bring to a movie and I think while not wildly promoted like Pixar and Disney films, they lurked in the background reminding us that animation is more than one thing.

In comes Klaus, a sort of re-imagining of the Santa Claus legend with stupendous visuals and a story that really walks the line between light and dark in a way I haven't seen in a "children's" film before. It even give the late Jim Henson a run for his money in that regard. the story of never-do-well rich kid who is shipped the worst place on earth to teach him a lesson is fairly standard the stuff. It's the details that make this story stand out.

This project first released a teaser trailer in April 2015, 4 year's before it's release and all those years of work show in the final product. the backgrounds are beautiful and the characters have a depth to them not seen in even the most famous of Disney productions. Things changed from the teaser and previews, including the lead character's voice and the cutting of a series of gags where the postman keeps getting snow dumped on him while trying to make his rounds to the less than friendly population. Those cuts were a shame because they were fully animated and quite funny but I won't second guess the writer/director's choices in the final edit because the finished movie works so damn well.

This is one of the best and innovative animated films to be released in a long time. For an animator like myself, it's inspiring.

Hey, Dudley!

Christmas with The Addams Family

If only ...

Grandmama looks more like Santa than the rest of 'em!

Have Yourself a Lynchy Little Xmas!

Okay, so David Lynch didn't create this, but it sure feels like it.



Speaking of DL--the other one!--here he is finally discussing the much-rumored job interview with George Lucas regarding "Return of the Jedi":

1, 2, 3, What Are We Grooving For?

Wartusi with Joey

What Is It Good For?

Deleted scene from 'Female Trouble'

Deleted scene from Female Trouble. (Not really needed at all and takes away from comic impact of the Xmas morning scene - smart choice to edit this out)

Dawn arrives home from school on Christmas Eve day.


Mother: "You're gonna put me in the hospital for nerve collapse."

Jesús, el niño Dios

Not quite as good as Santa Claus, this little Mexican gem from 1971 has its moments of hilarity.

Elvis: Mama liked the Roses

This song "Mama Liked the Roses" was on Elvis Presley's Christmas LP that my own MOM played every year from 60s to 80s.
She loved her Elvis -- he was her KING of KINGS - and since mom graduated highschool in 1955 - he meant a lot to her generation.

This song doesn't have much to do with Christmas - but Elvis sure can sell a melancholy melody to his beloved mama Gladys aka "Sat'nin" .

enjoy this fan-made video courtesy of You Tube

Christmas Cheer

If you head over to Classic Television Showbiz, you can get your fill of Holiday special clips, like the Bob Hope Xmas Special with Mark Hamill, or Bing Crosby's with the Hogan's Heroes cast. For big screen fun, check out one of my favorite Holiday movies, 1974's Black Christmas (sadly, not a blaxploitation holiday flick, but still, John Saxon's in it!):

Season's Greetings From Black Dynamite.

Black Dynamite sends you a special holiday message.

Peace, Love and everything else!

This is a cute one from the pre-fab four--The Monkees! Here they are singing a Spanish carol, Riu Chiu for their crew. When you're working on a TV show or movie, the big lugs and little punks that you see everyday for hours on end, in all kinds of weird and wacky situations, become your family. You can tell these guys had a lot of fun working together!

A Divine Christmas !

We all know and love this one! I don't see it here, so I think I'll slam it up:



John Waters said this house was shot in "as is"---the American Colonial decor was au natural! This is my all-time favorite Christmas clip. I still don't have any cha-cha heels though! Maybe I am a nice girl after all. HAHAHA!