whenever you look like you're not up to anything - you're up to something

Christmas movies are like old friends, except the ones that are like the crazy cousins you see once a year and then recall why you don't see them more often.

The Man Who Invented Christmas (2017) - "In 1843, celebrated British novelist Charles Dickens is at a low point in his career with three flops behind him and expenses piling up at home. Determined to recover, Dickens decides to write a Christmas story and self-publish it in less than two months. As Dickens labors writing on such short notice, his estranged father and mother come to bunk with him. Still haunted by painful memories of his father ruining his childhood by his financial irresponsibility, Dickens develops seemingly-unsolvable writer's block. Dickens must face his personal demons epitomized through his characters, especially in his imagined conversations with Ebenezer Scrooge. With a looming deadline, Dickens struggles for inspiration against his frustrations and his characters' opinions in a literary challenge creating a classic tale that would define the essential soul of modern Christmas. "
source: Prime
IMDB: 7.0/10  -  Rotten Tomatoes: Tomatometer: 79% Audience: 78%
my IMDB: 8/10 🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄

notable quote: "Procrastination is the thief of time, eh?"

MPAA rating: PG

directed by: Bharat Nalluri

my notes: OMG, his office! The curving staircase! The books! Swoon.

Loved it. There is real character growth here. It's funny, and made me tearful.

Star Power: Christopher Plummer
overall:  highly recommended

The Christmas Retreat (2022) - "When Kim's boyfriend breaks up with her instead of proposing, Kim's mom takes her away to a Christmas Retreat to reconnect with the spirit of the holiday. There she meets newly unemployed Mark."

source: Tubi, maybe?
IMDB: 6.1/10  -  Rotten Tomatoes: Tomatometer: N/A% Audience: 83%
my IMDB: 2/10 🤶🏻🤶🏻👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻

notable quote: "'You don't understand. I'm literally getting engaged tonight and I'm running late.'

    'I don't see how's that my fault.'"

MPAA rating: NR

directed by: Jason Bourque

my notes: awful! Self-absorbed, foolish woman meets self-sacrificing but wooden man, and the rest is the magic of Hallmark, or Lifetime, or whatever created this crap.

Star power: none

overall: not  recommended

Love Affair (1939) - "A French playboy and an American former nightclub singer fall in love aboard a ship. They arrange to reunite six months later, after he has had a chance to earn a decent living. "
source: Pluto
I watched it because: it's the basis of An Affair to Remember (1957), which I liked
IMDB: 7.3/10  -  Rotten Tomatoes: Tomatometer: 92% Audience: 70%
my IMDB: 7/10

notable quote: "If you don't mind, I think I'll take my pride for a walk."

MPAA rating: approved

directed by: Leo McCarey

my notes: it's a charming, sad, beautiful story

Academy Award nominee:
• Best Picture

• Best Actress—Irene Dunne

• Best Supporting Actress—Maria Ouspenskaya

• Best Writing, Original Story—Mildred Cram, Leo McCarey

• Best Art Direction—Van Nest Polglase, Alfred Herman

• Best Music, Original Song—Buddy G. DeSylva, for "Wishing"
overall:  recommended

Nestor, the Long-Eared Donkey (1977) - "Back in the days of the Roman Empire, a small donkey is born with VERY long ears, that keep getting him into trouble. When his owner throws him out of the stable in disgust, his mother sacrifices her life to save him from a blizzard. And, guided only by his guardian cherub (Tilly), he has to find his rightful place and destiny, somewhere on the road to Bethlehem. "

source: DVD
I watched it because: it's in a DVD set that I was thinking of offering for sale, so I thought it was about time to see it
IMDB: 6.9/10  -  Rotten Tomatoes: Tomatometer: 56% Audience: 58%
my IMDB: 1/10 🤶🏻👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻

notable quote: "What? You never knew Santa had a donkey?"

MPAA rating: TV-G

directed by: Jules Bass, Arthur Rankin, Jr.

my notes: creepy and depressing! It's claymation (?) about death and animal cruelty. Merry freakin' Christmas!

overall: not  recommended

Rudolph's Shiny New Year (1976) - "Father Time sends Santa a message telling him that the baby new year, Happy, is missing. And without the baby new year, it'll remain the old year forever. But it's foggy and snowing, so Rudolph's the only reindeer for the job. Rudolph learns that Eon (ugly buzzard) is also searching for Happy, so that Eon's life will never end. With the help of 1 Million B.C. and Sir 1023, and 1776, Rudolph searches through the islands of the Archipelago of Last Year and races against Eon to ensure a Happy New Year."
source: DVD
I watched it because: it was also in that set with Nestor
IMDB: 6.6/10  -  Rotten Tomatoes: Tomatometer: 50% Audience: 51%
my IMDB: 4/10 🤶🏻🤶🏻🤶🏻🤶🏻👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻👎🏻

notable quote: "Stop with the 'don't' thoughts. Start with the 'do' thoughts."

MPAA rating: TV-G

directed by: Jules Bass, Arthur Rankin, Jr.

my notes: creepy! It's centered on bullying and abuse of a baby with big ears. That's so weird!

overall: not  recommended

The Year Without a Santa Claus (1974) - "Mrs. Claus tells us about the time Santa had a bad cold and decided to take a vacation from Christmas. Two of his elves, Jingle and Jangle Bells, decided to go out with Vixen to find children to convince Santa that the Christmas spirit is still important to everybody else. But they must get past Heat Miser and Snow Miser before they land in Southtown, USA, where it never snows for Christmas. Heat and Snow can't agree to let this change, but Mrs. Claus knows their mother, Mother Nature."

source: DVD
I watched it because: y'know, DVD set
IMDB: 7.7/10  -  Rotten Tomatoes: Tomatometer: 90% Audience: 83%
my IMDB: 8/10 🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄

notable quote: "Well, if I can't have any fun I might as well leave."

MPAA rating: TV-G

directed by: Jules Bass, Arthur Rankin, Jr.

my notes: wild, uproarious, fun. Part of good childhood memories.

overall:  recommended

 

[the title quotation is from The Year Without a Santa Claus]