Category: movies

Comfy Cozy Christmas: Navigating Christmas Movie Review

On By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn comfy cozy christmas, movies18 Comments

Hello all! Welcome to the corner of the internet where we are going all out for the holidays this year! Today I want to talk about the delightful Hallmark movie Navigating Christmas.

So I know that a lot of people are not into Hallmark movies or shows, considering them too cheesy or corny or whatever. However, I am a huge fan. They are all just so happy and cheery and sometimes I need that. I don’t want a lot of drama; I want feel good. And this movie was a feel good film all the way!

From the Hallmark description:

Recently divorced Melanie and her son Jason visit a remote island for Christmas, only to find themselves running a real working lighthouse where she connects with the curt but cute owner.

Short but to the point!

This movie had a lot of elements that I loved and made me want to watch – a lighthouse vacation at CHRISTMAS (how awesome!!), an island named St. Nicholas Island, and of course, romance.

I was so excited to watch this. My husband thought it was hilarious that I was so geeked out over it, but he is a good sport and watched along.

This movie stars Chelsea Hobbs, a Canadian actress I was unfamiliar with until this movie. I looked over her film and television credits though and she stars in a series of Hallmark movies called The Martha Vineyard’s Mysteries and those are totally going on my to-watch list. It also stars Stephen Huszar, another new to me actor, but I really enjoyed his er…acting. Ok, I really did enjoy his acting, but also he was pretty easy on the eyes as well. He also seems to be in a mystery series, called the Ruby Herring Mysteries, so adding that as well!

So this movie has Melanie scrambling to find a fun way to celebrate the holidays after her ex-husband has to cancel his Christmas plans with their son Jason. She finds this lighthouse and think it looks perfect until she gets there, and learns that not only does she have to decorate the entire place for the holidays, she also has to run it! Thankfully, it is not an active lighthouse in the sense that she has to run the actual lifesaving aspects of it, so there is that. She is pretty peeved at first, then as she connects with the community and their Christmas spirit, she gets into it. Her son is still reluctant until he meets the mayor’s daughter, who totally has mermaid hair and no one mentions this at all, even though she lives on an island and could possibly be a mermaid. (spoiler: she is not) There is also one of those comfy cozy little diners that are full of joie de vivre, and this one seems to serve up some amazing looking pancakes. Like, I wanted pancakes while watching even though it was like 9 pm.

The island is full of Christmas traditions and I would 100% love to visit there, if it were a real place. I don’t want to share them because you will just have to watch and see!

I am a sucker for a good setting, and I think after watching Fisherman’s Friends the other day, I am in the mood for fisherman and boats and the sea. The setting was perfect for this. I feel like I see so many Christmas movies set in a snowy cabin in the woods or the mountains – which I also love – but I loved how this one was a bit different. The lighthouse was beautiful, and was exactly how I would like a vacation lighthouse to look. I had to do a little googling because I wanted to know where this lighthouse is located. What can I say, I am a Michigander and we love our water and lighthouses here. Even my little 8 year old is a fan.

Anyway, the lighthouse used in filming is a real lighthouse, located in Colwood, British Colombia, Canada, according to the website Atlas of Wonders. It is named the Fisgard Lighthouse, and shone its first light on November 16 (my birthday!!), 1860. You can tour the innkeeper’s house part of the lighthouse, which I will do if I ever make it over to that side of the world.

In true Hallmark Christmas movie fashion, this movie is low stakes, with a low level of drama but a high level of joy. I always say there is nothing happier than holiday romance, and this movie left me feeling cozy and cheery.

If you are looking for a Hallmark Christmas movie to watch this year, I highly recommend this one!

Comfy Cozy Cinema: Fantastic Mr. Fox

On By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn Comfy Cozy Cinema, movies9 Comments

I am so excited for the fall edition of the buddy movie watching I do with my friend and fellow blogger, Lisa, over at Boondock Ramblings! We wanted to watch some fall movies together and really couldn’t pick one lane. Or maybe I couldn’t, because that sounds like me. So we have a list that we compiled that moves from feeling all cozy autumn that moves into sort of creepy, then boop! Back to cozy again! We wanted movies that made us feel all snuggly, that made us want to get under blankets and drink tea, and then we wanted a little extra thrill for around Halloween. And I think we were successful in our list making! Feel free to watch along with us!

This week we are not just doing one movie, but two, and it has me all kinds of happy. I happily settled down Saturday night in my super comfy pajama pants, a cup of mint tea with honey, and my honey, Billy to watch the first up, Fantastic Mr. Fox, and from the moment it began I was glued to the screen. (sorry for the cheesy joke…)

This movie is a visual treat, and perfect for autumn with all of its super warm tones of yellow and orange. I have said time and again in this space that I am a sucker for a beautiful movie, and that even includes stop action animation. Also, Wes Anderson! I love Wes Anderson! He managed to capture the spirit of the book and blend it with his own style and aesthetic in the most perfect way. Or should I say, fantastic way?

This movie sticks to the core of the book, with Mr. Fox being a clever little fox vs. the villainous farmers, Boggis, Bunce, and Bean (one fat, one short, one mean..) The movie added a bit more to the plot to fluff it out a bit more, with the addition of nephew Kristofferson, Ash and his foibles, school, etc, and fleshed out the life of the animals more. In this version, Foxy is a former thief, and a very good one at that. However, he promises his wife Felicity (voiced by Meryl Streep!) that he will give us his thieving ways and get a safer job. So, he does, and becomes a newspaper man. He is suave, he is sophisticated, he is clever, but lives in a den underground, like foxes usually do. Foxy though, has higher aspirations and ambitions, and moves his family to a beech tree, right in the middle of a highly dangerous neighborhood, one occupied by none other than the farmers Boggis, Bunce, and Bean. And here the madness begins.

Oh Foxy. He causes So. Much. Trouble! Not just for his family, but for all the animals in the area, who are none too happy with him. And neither is his wife, Felicity. One of my favorite scenes is one where Felicity is giving him a piece of her mind, and she asks why he didn’t keep his promise to her, and he says, “Because I’m a wild animal”. And I thought what a great line, what a great moment. Because despite everything, he is who and what he is. A wild animal. They may be little animal versions of newspaper reporters, artists, lawyers, doctors, but they are all wild animals first and foremost. This actually becomes a much deeper theme later in the movie, that is expanded upon in a wonderfully fantastic way.

There is another scene that I loved just as much. Foxy and his gang are out on a mission, when in the distance, they spot the most wild animal of all, the wolf. There is this pause, a weighty pause full of emotion, more than you would expect from a movie like this, as the characters take in the majesty of what they are seeing.

It gave me goosebumps.

The voice actors all did a fantastic job (yes I am going to keep using that adjective) – George Clooney, Jason Schwartzman, Bill Murray, Meryl Streep, and Michael Gambon who managed to be 100% Gambon-ish even in the role he was voicing. And I loved how instead of swearing in this movie, the used the word “cuss”, where there would be a cuss word. So very very clever.

So, does Foxy beat the farmers? Are his family and friends saved? Well, you will just have to watch and find out!

You can find Lisa’s thoughts here!

Next up is The Secret World of Arrietty, another movie based on a children’s book. Arrietty is based on the classic The Borrowers, and oh do I love it so much. I want my whole house to look like their house. Anyway, that is for another day – Thursday, in fact.

This is our list of movies by the way. We do have some break weeks built in, so stay tuned for which weeks are break weeks!

Summer Shark Watch: Jaws!

On By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn movies, summer shark watch9 Comments

I can’t help it. I love cheesy campy stuff, and in the summer I really like to indulge that part of myself. This summer, we decided that we are doing a whole shark month, not just a shark week. I started watching shark week with my brother every summer when we were kids, and I guess I still like it! Although, instead of watching the super informational shows about sharks, Billy and I are going to watch shark movies instead.

We of course had to kick it off with the best fourth of July movie ever- Jaws. Which of course we watched on the fourth of July. So with our entire neighborhood shooting off fireworks into the wee hours, Billy and I instead watched Jaws, complete with our gummi sharks as a snack. Because that is how we roll here.

For being a classically aged horror movie (I am not going to say old, it is the same age as me!), it still can scare you right out of the water. Not overly gory, but has some pretty disturbing, gory scenes, but it’s not a total slasher fest like some horror movies.

This movie stars Roy Scheider as Chief Martin Brody, new to the island – he is from the big city of New York City, which he left due to the amount of crime and violence. He is a bit of an oddball to the islanders – he lives on an island but is afraid of the water, an outsider in more ways than one.

It all starts with poor Chrissie – the unfortunate girl who gets attacked at night in the water, naked. My husband doesn’t think she gets enough credit for this scene, which he felt was very believable, plus she had to feel very vulnerable, at night in the water, naked, and pretending to be attacked by a gigantic shark all alone. Brody wants to shut down the beaches immediately, but the mayor makes him keep them open. Not good for business, shutting down the beaches, and Amity needs that tourist money. That decision proves to be not a good one, as the worst scene in the movie, in my opinion, happens next – little Alex Kintner is killed one crowded afternoon on the beach, right there, in front of everyone. One minute he is on his yellow float, the next he is dead. There is thrashing and blood, and panic of course ensues. People are running into the ocean, running out of the ocean, grabbing their kids – and at the end poor Mrs. Kintner is yelling for her son, who is nowhere to be found. I almost can’t watch that scene and just thinking about it still makes me sick to my stomach.

Mrs. Kintner advertises a bounty for the shark, drawing every fisherman from the surrounding areas to the little island to catch the killer. A small tiger shark is eventually caught and killed, but new man on the scene, Matt Hooper from the Oceanographic Society, KNOWS that this is not the shark. And an after-hours necropsy(?) proves it. However, this information is still not enough for the mayor to close down the beaches. The fourth is coming after all, and that will be a huge day for tourists! Can’t have them scared! Hooper and Brody have also discovered the boat of a fisherman floating aimlessly in the ocean, with a dead fisherman inside, floating around as well. Hooper finds a tooth attached to the boat, that belongs to a Great White. Unfortunately he drops the tooth, and there goes his proof. The mayor concedes to more precautions, but the beach will be open.

The fourth arrives and the ferry dumps a ton of tourists on the island who fill the beaches but maybe not the water. The mayor urges people into the water, there is a joke with a two kids and a fake fin, which pulls all attention from the pond as they call it – where Brody’s own son is boating with friends. But the shark is there instead this time and kills again. Not Brody’s son Michael, but an unfortunate boater in the tiniest boat I have ever seen.

This time, this incident, finally gets the mayor’s – and everyone else’s – attention.

The implied fear in this movie, the undercurrent of danger, is so much worse than the actual jump scares. The music adds the drama, the anticipation, the building of fear. You never know when or where the shark will attack, just like in real life.

After this incident, the mayor is finally ready to take some real action. So Brody hires Quint, a salty sea fellow, rough and gruff and whose boathouse is filled with the jaws of deceased sharks. You feel confident that he can do this job. He is not too keen on Hooper with all his scientific equipment and geegaws being aboard, as he believes in tradition and not all this newfangled nonsense, and this play between the two worlds, with Brody still being the outsider, is iconic. These three are the least likely to get on a boat together, but here they are, getting on a boat and heading out to sea to hunt a monster. Keep in mind, Brody is a city guy who doesn’t like the water on top of it all.

Anyway, once they are on the boat some of the very best scenes happen. Quint and Brody and Hooper all play their parts perfectly, which is funny because I read that the actors Scheider and Shaw, who played Quint, did not like Richard Dreyfuss too much. Which I guess worked for Shaw, since Quint didn’t really seem to like Hooper too much either, although they did end up with some mutual respect after a night at sea.

The three are out, using all the tricks that Quint knows or Hooper knows to try and draw this monster killer shark to them, so they can kill it – hopefully before it kills them.

They share drunken stories, and then Quint delivers a speech that brings Hooper and Brody to a quiet silence, the kind when you know you are hearing something big. I know that this scene always makes me sit up and take attention, even more so than the shark scares. Shaw just delivers it so powerfully, you have to listen.

He actually did this scene twice, because the first time he was blackout drunk. But for this take, the second take, he was stone cold sober, and sobering.

He talks about how the sharks have black eyes, dead eyes, doll’s eyes. And it did make me giggle because a few days again when we were painting, Wyatt was using black paint, and he said “Black, like daddy’s eyes!” Billy apparently has shark eyes…

The next scene that gets me, and always makes me jump, no matter what, is one performed by Brody. He is out doing his chores, like throwing chum in the water, when he gets a good look at what they are after, finally.

How he rears back, the expression on his face, and his famous (ad-libbed) line – utterly convincing. I would probably be stunned into that reaction as well, followed by the screaming. I would never want to be on board a boat, and turn to see that face rearing up at me – even in a movie!

From here it’s on – the hunt becomes real and serious, with some serious consequences as well. In the end it is everyman outsider Brody who saves the day and destroys the monster, and becomes the hero.

Overall, this movie is excellent. It might be older and behind the times technologically, it still is a very scary movie with some superbly acted scenes.

One little fun trivia fact: The actor, Jeffrey Voorhees, who played young doomed Alex Kintner, still lives on the island where they filmed the movie. He runs a bar/restaurant there, and serves a burger named for his character. So if you go to Martha’s Vineyard, check out the Wharf Pub in Edgartown.

Anyway, if you are someone who can watch scary movies and you haven’t seen Jaws yet, I say do it!

Next up we watch Deep Blue Sea, which scared me the first time around and I am anticipating that it will again!

The Spring of Cary Grant: Holiday

On By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn movies, the spring of cary grant7 Comments

So when Lisa at Boondock Ramblings told me she was going to do a Spring of Cary Grant, I knew I wanted in on it. She introduced me to the legend that is Grant last fall, and I am woefully behind on his films. So I am tagging along on her journey, posting along with her as well.

I got behind though, and Lisa was gracious enough to allow me the time to catch up! We started Holiday last week, then didn’t finish it before our trip, then when we got home things were crazy busy, so we finally finished it last night (and just ended up watching the whole thing again because I can’t just go back to the middle of a movie and start watching again). So this post was supposed to be up last Thursday! But better late than never!

This one was a hit in our house! Billy declared it his favorite, while I am still deciding if I like it better than To Catch a Thief. But it makes sense that Billy loved this one, because Billy is a bit like Cary Grant’s character, Johnny Case. A bit silly, a bit of a free spirit, a guy who likes a good time. And Johnny is a good time guy, no doubt.

The movie begins and Johnny is wildly in love with a woman named Julia, and is head over heels for her dimples. They met on a trip and fell madly in love and decided to get married. But Johnny still needs to talk with Julia’s family and when he shows up to their house, is knocked off his feet in a different way by their wealth and enormous museum of a house, impressed but also..not impressed if that makes sense. He meets Julia’s sister Linda first, played by Katherine Hepburn, and the two instantly hit it off. There is a bunch of coming and going with Johnny and where he is and he ends up in the room designated the playroom with Linda. The playroom is an ordinary room, an oasis of normalcy in the palatial fancy mansion. And it is so cozy and just normal, with a blazing fireplace and comfortable couches, as well as musical instruments and yes, leftover childhood toys. Linda explains that her late mother wanted a room that was a room that could be comfortable and a retreat, and it is evident that the playroom is Linda’s favorite room in the whole gigundo house.

Linda and Johnny get to spend some time in the room getting to know each other while waiting for Julia to talk her father about her intention to marry Johnny. The difference in financial status might get messy though, and Linda and Julia know it. However, Johnny is good at his job, and so Julia has high hopes that her father will see his potential and give him a job. Then they can settle down and live a nice, upperclass, privileged life together just as she wants. However, is that what Johnny wants?

Linda knows Johnny’s heart way better than Julia does. She knows that the life Julia has in mind is not the same as Johnny’s plan for life. He wants to be a free spirit, he wants to explore and wander and have fun, and make only the money he needs. He is not a slave to the almighty dollar with aspirations of wealth. It is quite evident to the audience and most of the other characters that Linda is in love with Johnny, and that the two are way more well suited than Johnny and Julia. Linda is the black sheep of the family, and we see that Julia and her dad dismiss her as silly most of the time, behind her back.

Linda loves her sister though, and after their dad approves the marriage, requests that she throw the engagement party, just something small and intimate, not a big to-do. She tells Julia that if she is not allowed to do this, then she won’t attend the big party. Well, Julia and her dad sort of poo-poo this idea of Linda’s, and plan to have a big party anyway. And true to her word, Linda doesn’t attend, despite it embarrassing Julia. Linda instead hides out in the playroom with Johnny’s good friends the Nick and Susan Potter, Linda and Julia’s brother drunk brother Ned, and finally Johnny as well.

Anyway, long story short. Julia wants Johnny to give up his life. Johnny wants Julia to give up hers. Neither want to, and the two break up and Johnny leaves on a cruise (that he tried to get Julia to go on). Linda realizes that Julia doesn’t love Johnny at all, and knows this is her chance to escape her gilded prison and see the world with the man she loves. So she runs out to chase down her man. It was pretty clear that Johnny had been feeling the same confused feelings and in the end, the right two characters end up together.

I feel like Julia’s hat here should have tipped us off right from the beginning about her true nature.

Katharine Hepburn is fantastic in this movie. She is simply insanely gorgeous too. Damn. Cary Grant was so saucy in this movie as well – so much physical humor and fooling around and carefree. I loved it. He has such a range, doesn’t he? And apparently so does Hepburn, because I didn’t know she was so funny!

So what would you do? If you had a chance to live a life of wealth and privilege but had to give up your dreams to do so, would you? In my twenties I was totally Johnny. Forget about settling down and wanting stability, enjoy youth while we can, that was Billy and I in our twenties, so we would probably have 100% turned down any offer that did not align with our world view. In our 40s? Hmmm. That would take a little more consideration…. lol.

We loved this one, and we are looking forward to the next in the line-up, Petticoat Junction!

Lisa’s post is here! I am grateful she allowed me time to catch up since I am enjoying these posts and I didn’t want to be too behind! Katja from Breath of Hallelujah is also joining in, and her post can be found here!

My 14 Favorite “Romantical” Movies

On By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn movies22 Comments

I never used to really like Valentine’s Day – now though, I am so excited when February and Valentine’s Day roll around. Maybe it is because it is a cheerful break from the humdrum of winter blahs. So pink and happy. In honor of this holiday, I thought it would be fun to share my 14 favorite romantic movies. Some are romantic comedies, others sort of quirky, and some of these are just straight up some of my favorite movies ever, no matter the genre.

Amelie, definitely one of my favorite movies of all time. I love her little quirks, her quiet, shy nature, her sense of justice and her desire to help those around her find happiness. Along the way, she finds herself becoming enamored with someone as well. Just an FYI if you have not seen it, it is subtitled as the movie is in French.

I was OBSESSED with this movie when it came out. Sigh. Joseph Fiennes tortured looks as he wrote with his big brown puppy dog eyes…

Also, maybe we should start a count here with how many movies on this list will end up with Colin Firth in them.

Don’t ask Billy how many times I have made him watch this movie with me in the past. I love the whole story but Rupert Everett’s character is by far my favorite. The “I Say A Little Prayer” scene will forever make me smile no matter how many times I see it.

Confession time: I have never read a Nicholas Sparks book. And this is the only Nicholas Sparks movie that I have watched – but, I have watched it many, many times. It always makes me cry!

Oh my gosh do I love this movie! Hugh Grant is such a good “bad guy” in it, plus, Colin Firth! The fight scene is one of the best ever fight scenes in a movie. I was rooting for Bridget the whole time as I often put my foot in awkwardly. I’ve been there girl! But it all works out in the end for our heroine.

Would any list of romantic movies be complete without The Princess Bride, one of the best movies ever made? I feel like I don’t even need to say anything at all about this, it is just perfection.

My first ever crush. LOL. I had to include the timeless love of Robin Hood and Maid Marion!

When Harry Met Sally is such a classic. Another movie Billy has watched countless times with me.

Another movie that makes me smile constantly while I watch it. I love this movie about love. If you haven’t seen it, Janeane Garafalo plays the political assistant of an American Senator running for re-election. To help his campaign, they dream up a stunt to have him “find his roots” in Ireland, sending Garafalo off to Ireland to do the research and find some long lost family to unite with. She lands in the middle of a matchmaking festival and all sorts of events transpire, including finding love herself.

Where are we at with the Firth count? This is still one of my faves forever.

I just watched this movie for the first time last year and immediately fell in love with it.

I can’t help it, I do love this movie. It makes me laugh and smile and it is just so darn fun. I saw the theater production with my mom and my aunt in Chicago before I got married and it was such a special occasion. I of course had to watch the movie too.

” A tale as old as time..” Belle will forever be my favorite Disney princess. I loved the cartoon version, and I loved the movie just as much.

I’m going to be honest – Macfadyen is not my favorite Mr. Darcy. Sorry! However, he was a fantastic runner up. I loved Kiera Knightley in this version, and all the dreamy landscapes and camerawork.

Let’s do an actor tally, shall we? I count four Firth movies, two Hugh Grant movies, two Kiera Knightley movies, and two Billy Crystal movies in this list. And if I had included the Firth Pride and Prejudice as a movie and not a mini-series he would be on here a fifth time. Lol.

Would any of these make your list of favorite romantic movies?

Our 2022 Movie Night Favorites

On By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn movies20 Comments

This year was a great year of movie watching. So much of us it revolved around themes which was different for us but not bad different. In fact, I watched a lot of movies I would never have otherwise watched! We watched so many old classic movies, horror movies, holiday movies, and movies by Studio Ghibli, with a few oddball new movies thrown in there too. However, all of these are movies that I was seeing for the first time. I was shocked at how many of my favorites this year are cartoons, but I really shouldn’t be. That fits perfectly with who I am.

Let’s work our way up to my very favorite, shall we? We will start near the bottom of my favorites list..

This one just squeaked into the top faves this year. I absolutely love Wes Anderson but this was not my favorite of his movies. I did however sit entranced because of the sheer beauty of it, the visual aspects. Anderson movies all have that quality, they are so stunning to just look at, and this one was no exception.

I loved all of the Studio Ghibli that we watched this year, but I did have a few standout favorites, and Howl’s Moving Castle was one of those. Be prepared to see a few more on this list! Love and whimsy and cute to boot, all qualities that pull me in. It is not all lighthearted though, there is a deeper meaning, themes of looking for a return to innocence, wisdom, self-acceptance are wrapped up in this magical story.

What a fantastic movie! Katherine Hepburn is like a sharp-edged beautiful weapon, gorgeous and regal, but at her core just wanted to be loved for herself. I also fell in love with James Stewart in this movie! (My Full Review)

Encanto!! This movie was just plain fun! Colors and music and the message of the importance of communication, good open honest dialogue with family and friends. There were many days and nights Wyatt and I bopped around to the soundtrack, especially “We Don’t Talk About Bruno”.

Sigh. I loved this sad movie. I am a sucker for..well, I just won’t say it. Spoilers and all you know. It was very nearly so close my favorite Ghibli.

This movie came out of left field for us, with how much we absolutely loved it. It was such a perfect movie, and Dan Stevens was at his best. We will definitely be watching this one every year now. (My Full Review)

Oh my gosh did I love this movie! No one is safe in this whodunit, whether from being murdered or accused of murder or even from the comedy that takes no prisoners. I actually can’t wait to watch it again.

Death on the Nile had to be right at the top of this list. As I said, I am a lover of beautiful cinematography, stunning costumes, visually appealing set design, and this had all three – plus Poirot!

This was my year of Cary Grant. I had never before understood the appeal of Grant – I am chalking that up to not ever having watched this movie. (My Full Review)

This movie is based on the book The Borrowers and I have always been enchanted by the idea of tiny little beings living among us – I was that kid who always looked for fairies (and maybe I still do). I would also love my house to look like Arrietty’s house, so cozy and cute and full of warmth. This was the movie I kept thinking about all year, and I could watch it every single day.

I would love to hear your favorite movie watches of the year!

‘Tis the Season Cinema: The Muppets Christmas Carol

On By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn movies, tis the season cinema13 Comments

“Come in, and know me better man!”

This month Lisa from Boondock Ramblings and I, along with newcomer Katja from Breath of Hallelujah who is joining in, are having fun watching the same Christmas movies and then posting our thoughts. This week we watched one of my very favorites, The Muppet Christmas Carol. It’s not my absolute favorite, that is and forever will be Emmett Otter, but it is high up there!

Wyatt hasn’t been a part of many of these Christmas movie nights but for this one, of course he was. He was very excited, and snuggled down between us in bed with a giant bowl of popcorn for us all to share. Miso was also part of the group, purring away at the end of the bed. However, both Wyatt and Miso were asleep within 30 minutes. So, Billy and I watched it just the two of us, with our little slumbering companions scattered around us.

This movie never ever fails to make me smile and put me in a warm and happy mood. I always feel so full of the Christmas spirit afterwards, it is just so full of love. It follows the Christmas Carol storyline we are all familiar with, but with 99% of the characters played by muppets and their puppeteers. Kermit is Bob Cratchit, Miss Piggy his wife, Fozzie Bear plays Scrooge’s first boss, and Statler and Waldorf play Marley and Marley. The esteemed Michael Caine plays Scrooge, and to this day and all of the versions I have watched of A Christmas Carol, Caine is still my favorite Scrooge. He is so believable in the beginning, cold and hardhearted, and by the end, you truly believe he has undergone a transformation into a loving, caring human, full of the Christmas spirit.

And the music in this movie! I love them all but the best in my opinion is It Feels Like Christmas, sung by the Ghost of Christmas Present (also my favorite ghost). This song perfectly sums up almost every feeling that I have about Christmas.

Billy told me that Michael Caine was in his fifties when he made this movie, and that he wanted to be in it because he had a 7 year old daughter at the time who hadn’t been able to watch him in anything. So he played Scrooge in this movie so that she could see him act. And Caine loved it. His joy is obvious. I also love that his singing is…average. I think it is appropriate to his character – I mean, I couldn’t see Scrooge busting out in perfect harmony. Apparently this was also the first movie he ever sang in (sung? why am I having a problem with this today?)

It also has this scene, which the phrase “It’s the British way” has made its way into the things Billy and I say to each often. We often refer to things as being done “the British way”. It never fails to amuse us.

This movie is just a fun, music filled, cozy, warm, lovey dovey, joyous version of a Christmas Carol, and one I highly recommend!

Check out Lisa’s post here!

Check out Katja’s post here!

If anyone else wants to join in, that would be fun! I will add your links to my posts every week as well. Next up is Holiday Inn and posts go up Thursdays.

‘Tis the Season Cinema: A Christmas Carol Goes Wrong

On By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn movies13 Comments

‘Tis the season to watch movies..fa la la la la, la la la la. Or something like that. I got lost with all those las. September and October were all about the spooky – November and December are all about the holiday season, heartwarming and cozy. Lisa from Boondock Ramblings and I have teamed up again to share our opinions on different movies and I am enjoying our foray into the holiday movie season! You can find Lisa’s impressions here.

Last week we watched The Man Who Invented Christmas – this week Lisa’s choice introduced me to the world of the Mischief Theatre Company and A Christmas Carol Goes Wrong.

I have to admit feeling a little lost at the beginning, because I missed the first few minutes due to my child, but basically it was just as the title states – A Christmas Carol Goes Wrong. Apparently an acting troop decides to hijack a television production, and replace all the professional actors with themselves. However, they have no idea what they are doing and things keep going very wrong for them. The actual actors who were supposed to be in the show keep popping back up (that is what was confusing me, I was like who are these people and why do they keep showing up), Bob Cratchit has to very obviously read all of his lines from any prop he can find, special effects keep going wrong.. the list goes on. The Bob Cratchit character was my favorite, and he made me laugh the most. Throughout the whole production, there is also a whole extra layer concerning the actual actors and their real lives. So for a short little show there is so much going on!

And quite frankly, I needed a laugh yesterday. The night before, Wyatt had woken up in the middle of the night with one of those quick random illnesses kids get, with a very slight fever (99) and throwing up. I was up all night, I talked to pediatric neurology at 1 am..it was just a long night. So yesterday morning we were all exhausted after our long night. And to boot, yesterday was my birthday! Needless to say, it was the most low key birthday I have ever had. By the time tv time rolled around for Billy and I, I was ready for something light and easy to watch. And A Christmas Carol Goes Wrong worked out very well for us!

It reminded Billy and I of the spoof type movies, with Leslie Nielsen, like Airplane and Naked Gun – just done in “the British way” (anyone watch Muppet Christmas Carol? It’s my favorite version of the Christmas Carol and it is on the list for later!) You can watch A Christmas Carol Goes Wrong free on YouTube, and it is a short little 50 minute production full of gags and pratfalls and silliness.

https://youtu.be/fLOi5H3ylBo

Up next for us is the classic White Christmas!

‘Tis the Season Cinema: The Man Who Invented Christmas

On By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn movies, tis the season cinema15 Comments

It’s the holiday season!! And after a September and October filled with ghosts and other scary things, I am so ready for heartwarming, hopeful, and cozy.- although this was a bit of a ghost story too.. Lucky for me, our first movie of the season checked all of those boxes!

Where should I begin? Last night was my very first viewing of this movie, although I had heard about it. My good friend Jill is a mega Dan Stevens fan and so his work is always on my radar through her. It also is exactly the type of movie I am drawn to, so it was weird that I didn’t see it when it first came out. However, maybe then it wouldn’t have held the same magic for us as it did last night. Because last night, Billy and I were enchanted. It’s been a rough few weeks around here, and this week Billy has worked late every night, which means long days for me as well. When we flopped into bed to watch this, we were both feeling a little worn out and worn down. The world has been too much with us, you know what I mean?

We settled in, and were totally wowed. We were reminded of the magic and love and hope in the world. That people can be kind, that we need to let the spirit of Christmas and generosity and peace be with us all year.

Dan Stevens plays Charles Dickens, who quite frankly I didn’t know much about other than being familiar with his work. The movie begins with Dickens in a bit of a financial pickle, after having written three unsuccessful books in a row (which was unbelievable to me too). He is up to his eyeballs in debt, with his large new home, his growing family, and in addition he supports his father and mother. He’s a bit stressed to say the least, and tries very hard to not let the stress change who he is at heart. But who is he?

We learn through flashbacks that his father went to debtors prison and he himself went to work long, 12 hour days at a shoeshine factory as a young boy of 11. This has long hung over him, and over his opinion of himself, his work, and his relationship with his father.

All of this is going on in the background of his life as he writes his new book, about what some characters in the movie referred to a minor holiday – Christmas. And oh, the scenes of him writing the book is so clever and brilliant. The characters bounding to life, hounding him, haunting him, taunting him, leading him as he writes their stories. At times he is frustrated with them as they won’t do what he wants, and Stevens portrayal of Dickens in his frustration and desperation made me feel frustrated as well, it was so well acted. The movie is so clever, as I said. The characters are with him, there but not there, real to him in his mind at all times as he goes about his days and nights. His wife accuses him of caring more about his characters than his flesh and blood family, and the viewer has to wonder a little bit how much truth is in that statement. We see a wild, whimsical, sometimes reckless Dickens struggle with the part of him that has a bit of darkness, the demons from childhood that hover around him like ghosts, the parts that make up bits and pieces of Scrooge. Stevens is able to convey all of these emotions and I believe that this was his best role ever. I would give him an Oscar for it even.

It’s a race against time for Dickens – will he finish the book by the deadline? Will it get printed? Can he overcome his demons to write a masterpiece? Will his family be ok? And will Tiny Tim live??

This movie was fantastic. Billy and I just looked at each other when it was over, me wiping tears from my eyes at the beauty and love of it all. I had goosebumps. It is an absolutely wonderful movie, and if you have not seen it yet, I 100% recommend it for your holiday movie watching this season.

For Lisa’s rundown, click here!

Spooky Season Cinema: The Nightmare Before Christmas

On By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn movies18 Comments

Oooo spooky…Lisa from Boondock Ramblings and I are are watching and posting about spooky cinema for the next two months, here and over on our Instagram accounts. We are starting fairly family friendly and working our way up to the scariest!! I love a thriller or chiller!

This week we watched one of my favorites – The Nightmare Before Christmas! I love the weirdness of Tim Burton, but this one is by far his very best. It came out when I was in college and I remember my friends and I went for my birthday. After the movie ended, we all walked out it and it had started snowing, the first snow of the season and it just felt so magical. I think about that moment every time I watch it.

This movie is so well done, with its stop action claymation, the music, the actors who voiced the characters – I mean, Catherine O’Hara? She is a queen y’all. And Danny Elfman from Oingo Boingo, a band I loved in my youth does all the singing for Jack Skellington and his voice is so amazing. I watched this movie this time around with Wyatt. It was his first introduction to it, and I knew he would love all the singing – and he did. I figured he wouldn’t pay too much attention to some of the actual happenings or what was being said and I was right – he was just there for the dancing. His favorite songs – What’s This? and the Oogie Boogie Song. Oogie Boogie is the Bogeyman but he has a cool song.

Anyway, in case you are unfamiliar, Jack Skellington is the Pumpkin King (say this very dramatically) and every year plans the scares and frights of Halloween. However, he has post-Halloween sadness and is bored and tired of doing all the same things over and over. Basically, Jack is in a rut and is depressed. He bumbles into Christmas Town and is overcome with all the joy of that season, and is literally swept up into the cheer of Christmas. So much, that he wants to be in charge of Christmas. He hypes it up to the town, gets them all involved, and has the creepy creatures who usually manufacture fear try to switch gears and make Christmas instead. Sounds like a great plan, right?

The only resident of Halloween Town who isn’t down with this plan is Sally, the ragdoll who is in love with Jack from afar. She knows that this is a very bad terrible idea. And eventually, almost too late, Jack realizes it as well. But, he sets things right – and realizes he loves Sally as well.

There is a lot of debate over whether this is a Christmas or Halloween movie…I always think Halloween but I know some people think Christmas. Billy likes to split the difference and says it is a Thanksgiving movie. And we did actually watch it one Thanksgiving with my cousins, so maybe he is right.

This post wouldn’t be complete without some Danny Elfman representation. So, I am sharing Wyatt’s favorite part of the movie. He was as swept up in the mood as Jack! It’s hard not to be though.

Next up for us is The Creature from the Black Lagoon. I have never actually watched that one before but I am excited. I have a feeling it is going to be super campy and fun! But we will see!

For Lisa’s review, click here!