The Apartment (1960)

Though just a cog at his company, C.C. Baxter has stumbled onto a shortcut to the top: allowing executives to use his nearby apartment for extramarital entertaining. The problem is that it's become less of an "allow" situation and more of a "can't refuse" one, making it very difficult for him to get a full night's sleep. The arrangement gets even more inconvenient when Baxter finds one of the women passed out on his bed.

Despite the tawdry set-up, there's a real hopefulness to this. TCM's Mank had a quote from Lemmon saying that Billy Wilder grew a rose in a garbage pail with this one. I couldn't have said it better myself.

A-

Remember the Night (1939)

I've seen this a few times but had never before watched it with Gary and, somehow, seeing it with him deepened the story for me. Though Stanwyck's character is a shoplifter, it's clear that she made the same mistake that MacMurray's character did in his youth: stealing from mom. The difference is that his mother used it as a teachable moment, instilling in him honesty and justice, while hers publicly shamed and rejected her, teaching her nothing other than "better not get caught." When she's able to spend a week with his family, their welcoming spirit of kindness goes to work on her and makes her want to be better.

I was wrong in my original review when I said that there's only one surprise in this movie -- it zigs when we expect zags. It both fills the heart and makes me want to extend forgiveness rather than to dispense judgment.

A-

Meet Me in St. Louis (1944)

I'm gonna sound like an awful grump here, but I really don't get the hype. Sure, there are a few songs in here that everyone (including me) knows and loves -- The Trolley Song, Meet Me in St. Louis, Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas -- but the movie that introduced them to the world is an empty (but pretty) affair.

The two elder Smith daughters are hormonal and looking for romance, the youngest is a tomboy, and the other one is just kind of around. There's also a brother and a grandpa. Mom is longsuffering and Dad is a sourpuss that the rest of the household has to tiptoe around to get what they want. But they live in St. Louis! And the World's Fair is coming to St. Louis! Yay!

Basically, I think this movie was wildly popular in 1944 because a colorful bit of escapism was welcome during World War II and it's been coasting on nostalgia ever since.

C+ 

Happy Christmas (2014)

After a break-up, Jenny moves in with her brother and his family until she can figure out what to do next. She almost seems like more trouble than she's worth: she embarrasses a friend by getting black-out drunk at a party, sleeps through a commitment to watch her nephew, and fills the house with smoke in the middle of the night when she forgets about the pizza she put in the oven. But she's also the catalyst to remind sister-in-law Kelly that she doesn't have to put her happiness on the back burner just because she's a mother now.

The story's not bad, but the mumblecore of it all makes it feel super thin, especially because neither Anna Kendrick nor Lena Dunham is any good at improvisation. The best actor in the whole dang thing is the toddler son -- but that's probably due to the cheat that his actual father is playing his fictional father.

D+

A Very Jonas Christmas Movie (2025)

Though I don't care about their music at all and tend toward dislike for Joe Jonas (based on internet gossip), I was almost immediately on board with this silly and self-aware romp. The songs are truly fun and the script was full of both magic and nonsense -- perfect for the whole family.

In other words: oh, what fun!

B+

That Christmas (2024)

There's way too much going on here. We've got a lonely kid dealing with a fresh divorce and his sad/overworked mom who isn't shy about making sure her son is aware that his dad ran away with a 25-year old. There's a guy getting married on Christmas eve to a woman with a bunch of kids (I think? Maybe they weren't all hers), but anyway the kids aren't invited to the wedding for some reason. We've also got twins, one of whom is an anxiety-ridden goody-goody and the other who's a troublemaking "look at me"-type. And the lighthouse-keeper's mom is dying in a nursing home and the mean teacher is secretly grieving. Meanwhile, Santa's figuring out the best gifts for them all while his single reindeer complains.

My son recommended this to us as "good for a sweet cry," but the only thing I could find worth crying about here was the wasted time and movies that didn't get made because talented artists were busy making this crappy jumble. If the focus had simply been tightened to be on the twins and giving the revelations there a chance to breathe, this could've been something worthy of my tears.

D

Our Little Secret (2024)

Avery (Lindsay Lohan) dumps her long-term boyfriend after he proposes in an ill-conceived, public, and drunken attempt to get her to stay with him instead of moving to London for her career. Years later, they discover that they're dating a brother and sister and are both spending Christmas at the siblings' parents' home. They agree to keep their history on the down-low during the holidays while he helps her get into the matriarch's (Kristin Chenoweth) good graces and she helps him with a proposal for his work.

There's a very fun scene in which Avery -- after accidentally downing a bag of THC-infused edibles -- has to give a reading during Christmas mass. Other than that, there are no surprises and almost every story beat can be predicted. But that's honestly fine: it's a bit of holiday fluff that's great to have on while wrapping presents or decorating the tree.

C+

Hot Frosty (2024)

Snow sculpture comes to life after a widow drapes a scarf around its neck. It's so dumb. And I'm not just talking about the movie itself, in which the town doctor invokes "magic" as an explanation more than once. I'm talking about Jack (aka Hot Frosty) who is played less as "born yesterday" and more "held back four or five grades."

Lacks charm and, ironically, magic.

D-

From Time to Time (2009)

At the end of World War II, Tolly is sent to his paternal grandmother's estate so that his mother can focus on finding his father who is missing in action. It's just Tolly and three older folks (his grandmother, the cook and the gardener), but his world soon expands as he's visited by residents of the estate from times long past. As he digs into the history of the house, he finds out that he's not the only one who's seen them, but he seems to be the only one with whom they can actually interact.

It's definitely not a quality story or production, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. It put me in mind of the types of "spooky" movies we used to watch at church lock-ins: family friendly with just a touch of the supernatural.

C+

The Man Who Invented Christmas (2017)

Despite the popularity of Charles Dickens in 1843, after a few flops he desperately needs a hit and fast. Like before Christmas fast -- but it's already October. His debts are piling up, his parents come to stay with him, and his wife is pregnant again. He cannot screw this up. Spoiler alert: he gets it done. 

Obviously, I have no idea whether the writing process depicted here is anywhere near to what Dickens's actual process was, but it's a delight. As he begins to create his characters, they come to full life and chat with him -- basically turning Dickens into a transcriber. 

The entire household is affected as he rants at the characters and destroys his study in literary fits. There's also a pall over the proceedings stemming from Dickens's bleak childhood, for which he (rightfully, it appears) blames his father. But mostly it's a lot of fun and Dan Stevens proves once again that he's quite a talent.

B

EXmas (2023)

Despite their breakup 6 months ago, Graham's parents invite his ex-fiancee Ali for Christmas after he tells them he can't make it home. When he decides to surprise them at the last minute, things get awkward. The thing is, they don't get awkward enough. The shenanigans are all half-baked, e.g. the running gag of the outdoor nativity scene's Baby Jesus being stolen. 

If I hadn't been watching this with Gary who was (surprisingly) enjoying it, I probably wouldn't have finished it.

C

Falling for Christmas (2022)

A rich and sheltered woman gets knocked on the head and can't remember who she is. The widower who finds her decides to put her up in his small ski lodge for the holidays, where she somehow fits right in despite her initial ignorance about any domestic duties. It's basically a Christmas update of Overboard with all bawdiness and sharp edges removed, and that's OK! 

Holiday movies get graded on a curve, so -- while this isn't going to make it into our Christmas movie rotation -- it was sweet and Lindsay Lohan was charming.

C+

The Long Kiss Goodnight (1996)

A woman who has been a victim of amnesia for 8 years experiences memory flashes after a car accident. Though she'd been living in a small town, working as a teacher and raising her daughter with a nice guy, her life now is nothing like the life she's beginning to recall. With the help of a low-rent P.I. she's on a mission to uncover everything she can about who she is.

It's a lot of fun, as long as you don't try too hard to pick it apart. Samuel L. Jackson and Geena Davis make a winning team.

B-

The Ref (1994)

Burglar trips an alarm at a house in a small community, which scares his getaway driver into taking off. To get off the streets quickly, the burglar forces a couple to drive him to their house until he can sort out what to do. Problem is, the couple is so dysfunctional that they even bicker through their abduction.

I'd seen this more than 25 years ago and rated it low, but have since read enough praise for it that I thought it was worth another watch. What I found out is that I can trust my old reviews! This isn't funny, it's just annoying.

C

Genie (2023)

The basic story is solid: husband prioritizes work over family so wife leaves him during the holiday season but then the husband acquires a genie who is committed to helping him win back his family. Casting Melissa McCarthy as the unfamiliar-with-the-modern-world genie should've made for a slam dunk. But, somehow, it just isn't.

I know I bang on a lot about being confused about the "when" of things in movies, but it was a particular problem here. What seemed like a couple of days of happenings was referred to as "a few weeks" at one point. Also, I wasn't clear that the wife was LEAVING leaving -- it seemed like she just needed a couple of days to clear her head. Too much murkiness and, probably, crucial connecting bits left on the cutting room floor. 

Basically, it's fun but also felt like student work or a TV movie. 

C+

The Apology (2022)

Darlene's teen daughter went missing a couple of decades back. Darlene's now sober, has become a well-known crusader for missing children, and is preparing to host her first Christmas since that time. As a winter storm rolls in, her ex brother-in-law shows up at her door and wants to have a chat.

This is not a great movie, but it's quick enough to avoid feeling like a waste of time. The biggest issue for me was Linus Roache's American accent; just let him be British, you know?

C+

Delivery by Christmas (2022)

A delivery driver rejects the advances of a co-worker and he retaliates by switching the labels of her 4 Christmas eve deliveries. This confuses recipients and forces her to work late -- with a son waiting at home -- to get the packages to their rightful owners. Along for the ride is a pushy young man who'd expected to receive an engagement ring with which he's planning to propose.

Though I generally dislike American remakes of foreign movies, this one is ripe for Americanization. Everything should be bigger than it is in this Polish film. Push the ridiculousness up to "10" and this could be a truly fun story. As it is, it's just kind of fine. Kind of nice. Mostly boring.

C

Adult Swim Yule Log (2022)

A peaceful fire... for a few minutes. But then there's a cleaning woman and a home invasion. And then a couple arrive at an AirBnB only to have a sheriff knock on their door and tell them there's been a murder. Oh, and also? That log in their fire is cursed so they should stop burning it. And it only gets weirder from there.

This movie seemed to encompass all the genres. But it was mostly weird. Even when scary things were happening, the overriding thought was "this is the weirdest." I'm not sure I'd have liked it at all if I'd known anything about it going in -- I'm not sure it could even work if you have expectations.

C+

A Christmas Prince: The Royal Wedding (2018)

The commoner and the prince are getting married, but there are obstacles! He's super busy because, despite a revitalization program, people are struggling to make ends meet and that means they're pissed at him. Meanwhile, Amber is is also having a hard time because she doesn't have much say in how her wedding's gonna go. 

It's not good. Not good at all.

D

While You Were Sleeping (1995)

When Lucy's crush falls on train tracks, she jumps down and rescues him and then is mistaken for his fiancee by his family. While he lies in a coma, she grows to love his family and they accept her with open arms. 

It's incredibly heartwarming and romantic while managing to be more than a little ridiculous. But I will always grade movies that are either for Christmas or children more generously than others. Not that this needs a whole lot of nudging -- it'd be a thumbs-up even if it were set in summer.

B+