Holiday Favorites

Holiday Favorites 2013: Lars Nilsen Has a Few

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Lee Marvin and John Wayne in Donovan's Reef

Welcome to Holiday Favorites, a series in which Slackerwood contributors and our friends talk about the movies we watch during the holiday season, holiday-related or otherwise.

Lars Nilsen (@thelarsnilsen), programmer for the Austin Film Society, can't pick just one holiday film:

I have to admit I'm not a giant Christmas fan. I've never been religious, so that whole side of the holiday escaped me and I grew up poor and poor kids have a much different experience of Christmas than well-off kids. I've never much cared for Christmas movies, music or anything. HOWEVER -- there are a few Christmas movies I really like a lot.

It's a Wonderful Life (1946) is of course one of the most popular holiday movies but I have never been able to suppress a thought that most people are watching it wrong, and that some of the people who would enjoy it most avoid it because they think it's some kind of saccharine Hallmark card. It's a work of art, filled with darkness, made by WWII veterans who had just looked down the cold, dark well of death and were in search of a reason to go on.

James Stewart, just back from Europe, was a highly decorated Colonel in the Army Air Corps and had flown scores of bombing missions. He was sick of the killing and the inhumanity and when he came back to Hollywood he planned to quit making movies. He didn't consider it a proper profession in light of everything he'd seen. Frank Capra convinced him otherwise and this movie is an exorcism of that bile and sorrow. It's not a film full of sunshine and light. People will often mention Capra and this movie and particular as the very picture of sentimentalism. That's exactly what it isn't. It is a movie that is full of rich emotions, but it's all deserved. It has been paid for.

Donovan's Reef (1963) (pictured at right) is a thousand miles away from It's a Wonderful Life, but it is also the work of a master (in this case John Ford) and it's a terrific Christmas movie. Except for a brief interval in snowy Boston it takes place in the South Pacific. John Wayne plays Donovan, who passes his time in his bamboo bar-room with his old war buddies who also decided not to go back to the mainland after the war.

Holiday Favorites 2013: 'It's a Wonderful Life' for Samantha Rae Lopez

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Henry Travers and Jimmy Stewart in It's a Wonderful Life

Here's the first of our 2013 Holiday Favorites (see 2011 and 2012), a series in which Slackerwood contributors and our friends talk about the movies we watch during the holiday season, holiday-related or otherwise.

We're starting off with this selection from Samantha Rae Lopez (@sraelopez), producer of short film The Book of Joe and program coordinator at Latinitas, a local organization working to empower young Latinas through usage of tech and media. Here are her thoughts on a Christmas favorite:

If you are a frequent Slackerwood reader, chances are you have some familiarity with Frank Capra's 1946 film It's a Wonderful Life. If you haven't seen this film, stop what you're doing and find it on DVD, iTunes or Amazon streaming. Despite the fact that many would argue that this movie is an "American Christmas Classic," in reality the holiday itself is merely referenced and not crucial to the plot progression. Much like films such as Lethal Weapon, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (Shane Black seems to love Christmas) and Trading Places, It's a Wonderful Life can also -- arguably -- fall into the "anti-Christmas movie" sub-genre.

George Bailey, played by a post-war James Stewart, is a small town business man with a strong stake in the town of Bedford Falls. When his business is held captive by the greedy Henry F. Potter (Lionel Barrymore), Bailey has suicidal thoughts which reach his guardian angel, Clarence (Henry Travers). Bailey is granted a rare glimpse at what the community would be like without him and gets a new found appreciation for everything he has worked for; his friends and family.

All Our 2012 Holiday Favorites

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Updated December 28, 2012.

We've really enjoyed writing and publishing guest Holiday Favorites this year. If you're looking for something different to watch during the holiday season (or any time), here are our (and their) suggestions.

Holiday Favorites 2012: Nathan Christ, 'Twin Peaks'

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Welcome to Holiday Favorites, a series in which Slackerwood contributors and our friends talk about the movies we watch during the holiday season, holiday-related or otherwise.

This installment comes from Nathan Christ, director of the Austin music documentary Echotone. Here's his pick:

This holiday season, I'm re-watching Twin Peaks.

It's not a film per se, but a series of one-hour films, and it's pure cinema. It speaks about society in a magical and mysterious way. It's the story of a community and is bursting with melancholy romance, spirituality, and battling archetypes. Most of its characters seek to be good but are frequently disrupted by shocking bursts of evil and violence, which takes on a visceral and chilling significance for me in our recent times.

Holiday Favorites 2012: Kim LeBlanc, 'The Thin Man'

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Myrna Loy and William Powell in The Thin Man

Welcome to Holiday Favorites, a series in which Slackerwood contributors and our friends talk about the movies we watch during the holiday season, holiday-related or otherwise.

Kim LeBlanc, location scout for the Texas Film Commission and recent newlywed, tells us about her pick:

Don't get me wrong, I could watch George Bailey run up and down the idyllically snow-covered streets of Bedford Falls joyfully shouting "Merry Christmas, movie house! Merry Christmas, emporium! Merry Christmas, you wonderful old building and loan!" until the cows come home. There's a reason why the classics are the classics. And no matter how many times I've seen it and no matter how hard I try, every time a bell rings, not only does an angel get its wings but invariably, a Kim also has to finish off a box of Kleenex. That's just the way it is.

Yet aside from the more obvious holiday fare out there -- i.e. It's a Wonderful Life and White Christmas (oh those fabulously festive dance numbers!) -- as of late I have to say my favorite flick to watch during the holidays is quickly becoming The Thin Man (1934).

Holiday Favorites 2012: Brandon Dickerson, 'Millions'

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Welcome to Holiday Favorites, a series in which Slackerwood contributors and our friends talk about the movies we watch during the holiday season, holiday-related or otherwise. 

This installment comes from Brandon Dickerson, director and co-writer of Sironia.

Seeing a film on Christmas Day has been a tradition since I was a kid and one we've continued with our own family the past few years. We started early with special Alamo Drafthouse screenings of Gremlins and It's a Wonderful Life with our kids and I'm certain that Elf and Love Actually will be enjoyed at home in the few days leading up to Christmas celebrations.

Whereas all of those films would make my "Holiday Favorite" list, along with A Christmas Story, my absolute favorite movie to enjoy during the winter holidays is Millions. Danny Boyle's playfully directed story of a seven-year-old boy who discovers a bag of English pounds just days before the currency is switched to euros, grabs me every time I see it. It's also at the top of my "man-I-wish-I-somehow-directed-that-film" list.

Holiday Favorites 2012: Bob Byington, 'Bad Santa'

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Bad Santa

Welcome to Holiday Favorites, a series in which Slackerwood contributors and our friends talk about the movies we watch during the holiday season, holiday-related or otherwise.

Austin filmmaker Bob Byington brings us today's Holiday Favorites. Byington's unique comedies include Harmony and Me and [RSO] Registered Sex Offender. His most recent film, Somebody Up There Likes Me, premiered at SXSW 2012 (Don's review), will be released in theaters in February 2013 ... we hear it will open in Austin on February 22 at Violet Crown, and will keep you posted. Here's what Byington has to say about his favorite movie at this time of year:

The first time I saw Bad Santa it didn't play for me, and like some of my other favorite movies, the second viewing went really well.

The chemistry between the kid (Brett Kelly) and Billy Bob Thornton is great. And the scene where Billy Bob talks about how hitting a kid gave him the strength to go on living -- there's nothing like that.

Holiday Favorites 2012: Andrew Disney's 'Clause'

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The Santa Clause

Welcome to Holiday Favorites, a series in which Slackerwood contributors and our friends talk about the movies we watch during the holiday season, holiday-related or otherwise. 

This installment comes from Andrew Disney, writer/director of Searching for Sonny, the Fort Worth-shot detective-movie spoof that screened at Austin Film Festival in 2011 (Mike's review). Here's his pick:

I started writing with the intention to impress everyone. First I thought Gremlins, but it was already taken. Then I thought Kiss Kiss Bang Bang because I do love films set during Christmas that have little to do with the holiday. But deep down inside I knew it would all be false. There's one Christmas movie I've watched every Christmas Eve since I was nine. Of course, I'm talking about the 1994 hit movie starring Tim Allen ... The Santa Clause (with special emphasis on the "e").

I distinctly remember sitting in the theater listening to my dad try to explain the legal definition of "clause" to me and my younger sister. The entire movie hinges on this pun, and I don't think I quite got it as a kid. As a nine-year-old, where would I ever encounter a "clause"? But now that I'm older and I'm looking back, I love how wonderfully bizarre this movie is.

Holiday Favorites 2012: Stephanie Puts a Little 'Scrooged' Love in Her Heart

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Scrooged
Welcome to Holiday Favorites, a series in which Slackerwood contributors and our friends talk about the movies we watch during the holiday season, holiday-related or otherwise.

I've watched Bill Murray in the 1988 classic Scrooged every year since its release. Directed by Richard Donner (known for a few other favorites of mine: The Toy, The Goonies, Ladyhawke and Radio Flyer), Scrooged holds a special place in my heart for many reasons.

For one, the movie has quintessential late 80s New York City charm. I had never visited NYC before moving there from small-town West Texas, and I lived there for 12 years. When I arrived off the turnip truck, the only images I had in my head were from childhood movies and TV shows. Scrooged was one of them, along with Sesame Street, Baby Boom, When Harry Met Sally, Wall Street, etc. It turns out Scrooged was closer to the truth, but in a good way.

Holiday Favorites 2012: David Gil, 'Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas'

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Emmet Otter’s Jug-Band Christmas

Welcome to Holiday Favorites, a series in which Slackerwood contributors and our friends talk about the movies we watch during the holiday season, holiday-related or otherwise.

This installment comes from David Gil, Marketing Manager for the Violet Crown Cinema:

There are a number of films that I enjoy re-watching when the holiday season rolls around. I never really thought about which ones were my favorite until I was asked to pick one to write about. Immediately I thought of films like Die Hard and Lethal Weapon, which may top the list though Love Actually (I’m not ashamed to admit it) is gaining momentum with each passing year. Yet, as I sit down to write this, there seems to be one title that I keep going back to: Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas.

Jim Henson adapted the Russell [and Lillian --ed.] Hoban book into a television special the year I was born, which may explain in part my connection to it. The story is about Emmet Otter and his Ma, who, despite having no money, dream of buying each other the perfect Christmas gift. Think O. Henry’s "The Gift of the Magi" but with a twist… and the wonderful music of Paul Williams. This film was a staple on early HBO during the holidays and I would watch it every chance I got because once Christmas was over, I wouldn’t see it again for another year. The sets, the songs, the puppetry were all classic Henson on par with the creativity and originality of the first three Muppet films.

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