Saint - 2010 - Netherlands

Saint - 2010 - 6/10  
AKA - Sint

 
Every time December 5th occurs during a full moon, Saint Nicholas reemerges.
Not the jovial bearer of gifts, but the malevolent plunderer.  Of children and adults.
Even though this is Amsterdam, snow laden streets and quays seem deserted.
Expect brutal dismemberments, along with splittings, yet little blood.
Scare factor is quite low, as is the humor.
Entertaining while watching, but little more.
Another lump of coal for your Holiday Horror mix.

Your Christmas Or Mine - 2022 - UK

Your Christmas Or Mine - 2022 - 6/10

 
“There's lots of things you don't know about me, James Hughes.”
So says Haylay inside Marylebone Station as she and James head off to their respective family homes.
Then, in an O. Henry twist, they board the wrong trains and wind up at the other’s home.
Whereupon they swiftly discover they did not “know” that person they were in love with, at all,
Feel-good holiday romcom leans on a formula, but it is energetic and good natured.
As far as the “new ones” go, you could do a lot worse.  Enjoyable, if slight.

Holiday Affair - 1949 - USA

Holiday Affair - 1949 - 6/10

 
WWII vet Steve works at a big department store.
Connie is an early “industrial spy”, meaning she buys goods, gets the price and returns items.
(Why she can’t just look at shelf tags or prices on the box is beyond me.)
Anyway, he tags her, then cuts some slack which gets him fired.
What should he do?  How about, let’s go on a date?
Forced RomCom, guilty pleasure for many (me included) have major limitations.
Janet Leigh and Robert Mitchum display no chemistry (Mitchum has more with child actor Gordon Gebert).
Leigh is, as ever, comes across as brittle, on edge, never relaxed.  Simmering anxiety.  Mind you, this film came after Mitchum’s notorious reefer bust, and most actors were afraid to be seen with him.
Mitchum fans, yeah, he’s coasting.  OK Christmas fare when you want an alternative.

A Christmas Carol - 1941 - USA

A Christmas Carol - 1941 - 6/10

 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A radio perennial that aired regularly for decades before fading away.
Ronald Colman makes a crisp Ebenezer Scrooge, bolstered with assorted supporting actors and musical accompaniment.
What is surprising is how much of the Dickens tale is distilled into a half hour.
My ancient vinyl is paired with the Christmas section of “The Pickwick Papers” read by Charles Laughton.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-RmnelkRvfk

A Christmas Carol: A Ghost Story - 2022 - UK

A Christmas Carol: A Ghost Story - 2022 - 7/10

 
Outstanding theatrical performance of Dickens.
As always, light predominates the mid-section, waning as Christmas lasts but a day.
Mark Gatiss has sprinkled a few embellishments here and there that enhance the proceedings (check the bookend twists).
Ebullient dances, brief singing, some sharp repartee.
This play also contains humorous moments, relieving the grim sets and grimy apparel.
Nonetheless, this is faithful to the story and makes one long to have been in the audience for this one.

The Great Race - 1965 - USA

The Great Race - 1965 - 5/10

 
Excessive film still shows up on whatever marathon channels there are.
Circa 1908, the motorcar race goes from New York to Paris, the long way round.
Main contenders are the Great Leslie and Professor Fate, along with other teams, including one with a feisty suffragette.
Everything in this harks back to Silent melodrama, perhaps vaudeville or music hall.
Broad comedy attempts Keystone Kops slapstick, but always feels forced and phony.
I saw this when it came out, I was bored.  Rewatched now and then on TV, yawn.
So, when relatives loaded this dud, I started drinking more Cabernet.  Not enough.

Christmas Eve On Sesame Street - 1978 - USA

Christmas Eve On Sesame Street - 1978 - 8/10

 
Oscar the Grouch rattles Big Bird to the core when he asks how dump truck sized Santa gets down tiny chimneys.
Bert & Ernie become the “Gift Of The Magi”.  Skating mishaps.  Self destructive appetites.
Along with songs.  Standards, as well as three new numbers.
This features early cast members, which is probably why PBS ceased airing this instead of allowing this to become a holiday classic.
Funny, tuneful, with an enormous heart.  At an hour, it never outstays its welcome.

The Vote - 2015 - UK

The Vote - 2015 - 7/10

 
Adventures of precinct workers at the local polling station.
The election is a close one, and every vote counts.
One volunteer recalled a previous contest, where the winner won by four votes.
And the constituents stroll in.
Confused, inebriated, argumentative, foreign language speakers, lonely.
A veritable cross section, more or less.
This is a comedy and grows progressively rambunctious.
Mark Gatiss as the local head is a study of bottled emotions, about to explode.
For British film and theatre buffs, this is studded with cameos.
Subtitles = https://subscene.com/subtitles/the-vote/english/3222685

Hapkido - 1972 - Hong Kong

Hapkido - 1972 - 6/10 

AKA - Lady Kung Fu // 合氣道

 
After five years of learning, three students say farewell to their Korean teacher.
They return to China, now threatened by militaristic Japan, and open their own Hapkido school.
(Hapkido is a martial arts style focusing on joint holds, throws, kicks.)
The Black Bear school, Japanese, bullies townfolk and intimidates the other schools.
Headstrong and impulsive Fan Wei (Sammo Hung) attacks and thereby provokes a war.
This is Angela Mao’s vehicle, however, and she is a master of the slow boil.
Also, a hapkido artist.  For the knowledgeable (I am not) this is a great film to analyze different styles and techniques.
Melodrama and overblown villains scream chopsocky, but the choreography dominates.