Yay or Nay?: The Holiday?

I goddamn found it. I found the cheesiest movie I’ve seen in so long and it’s not even funny. I mean it’s cute and I liked it but damnnnn, if it weren’t enjoyable and had an awesome Jack Black character, I would be turning it off ASAP. That said, this is The Holiday.

Also kinda wondering if it was a Christmas movie. It didn’t have that Christmas movie feel but it still took place around that time.

The Story

Depressed Iris Rose unexpectedly finds herself in a slump, trading houses with a California movie-trailer maker, Amanda, who is also in a slump after her husband cheats on her. Now in America, Iris must navigate through an enormous mansion in Los Angeles, while Amanda braves the streets of a small and quiet English village.

My Thoughts

This isn’t the most inspiring movie I’ve ever seen, but it’s not the worst one either. It’s a good Friday night “what do I watch” type of flick. My only issue was with the cheese. It’s 2006 cheese, which I guess was okay. Jack Black steals the show though. The best parts are anything with him and Kate Winslet in it. They’re adorable, cute, and their relationship story is actually based on a mutual common friendship. Not just pulled out of thin air for the sake of the story.

Jack Black should get more rom-com gigs, because he's absolutely brilliant at them! 

Now Cameron Diaz’s (Amanda’s) story was a little off-kilter. It’s definitely the one story that the directors wanted you to like, as they got the most screen time, but it’s not the one I was as enthralled about. Whenever I watch something with Cameron Diaz in it, (aside from Shrek, where SHE KICKED ASS) I only see Cameron Diaz. Personal opinion, but she’s not my favourite actress. She’s not horrible, I just can’t see any new characters when she acts. And her story is clearly the one that everyone should root for. But I can’t. It’s the same thing, she’s the “I’ve got it all. The house. The money. The job. I just don’t have the man (insert sass here)”. And she meets “the guy”, who’s steamy, hunky, and happens to wander into her cottage one night (there’s a reason why but at first I was like wut?). And the guy, played by a young Jude Law, named Graham is also the “I got it all” type, except for a little thing you find out later.

And they’re...alright as a couple I guess. For the most part, they start out as two complete strangers who just have a drunken one-night stand together that turns into something more. But I couldn’t really get into their relationship as much as Iris’ (Emma Thompson), and I felt that this was a huge problem of the film. For your leading couple to be that “idealized” couple, but also turn out to be bland and just “meh” overall, isn’t a good footing to be on. For me, that just made the movie “meh” although I much preferred the Jack Black/ Cate Blanchett chemistry. It was a mix of funny, hilarity, and sadness. You’ll see why if you watch it, but I was able to relate to them more than Amanda (Cameron Diaz) and Graham.

Definitely loved Cate Blanchett's story more than anything. It was also funny that she was paired up with Jack Black. She can never "let go" of Jack. Okay that was a bad pun haha, but I couldn't resist. 

My Rating

So, give it a watch if you’ve got Netflix or something like that. I wouldn’t recommend a purchase (if you still buy DVDs) but it’s worth a watch or stream somewhere.

My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐1/2 (3.5 stars)

~Meghan