Need a holiday film for the whole family? What do Cameron Diaz, Bruce Willis, Kate Winslet and Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer have in common?

  

Hi all, Happy Holidays! 

I’m excited because my new book “His Country Heart Book 2 of the Sierra Creek Series” was released this month. If Amy makes the wrong decision she could lose everything, including her heart.

BTW, Cameron Diaz, Bruce Willis, Kate Winslet and Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer have all been in a holiday movie.

I’ve loved movies since I was a kid. One of my fondest memories is staying up late to watch classic movies on TV with my mother. My dad went to bed early. His favorite saying: “Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise.”

Sometimes on a weekend night, Mom and I would make a big bowl of popcorn and turn on a movie channel, then switch off the lights so it felt as if we were in a theater. I stayed up until midnight watching movies on the small screen.

Now I have a large flat screen TV, but my family still enjoy films of all kinds. Black and white classics or new films, for me the story is the thing.

Here are several holiday films I’ve enjoyed. Please note I mentioned the writers involved in making the movies. Most of these films can be found on Amazon.

Please leave a comment with your best loved movie. Any film, it doesn't have to be a Christmas one.

Holiday movies:

The Holiday 2006 Cameron Diaz, Kate Winslet star with Jude Law and Jack Black. Screenplay Nancy Meyers. A woman from the UK and one from the US swap houses for the Christmas time holiday. They find romance, but know they must soon return to their own countries. If you are looking for fun and romance, this delivers. Not to be confused the movie Holiday with Kathryn Hepburn and Cary Grant.

 
Borrowed Hearts. 1997 Roma Downey and Eric McCormack.  A TV movie written by Pamela Wallace and Earl Wallace. This is a sweet holiday romance suitable for adults and kids. A young woman with a seven year old girl is trying to save money for a down payment on a home. A company executive has led an important business client to understand he has a family, he doesn't. The client is coming to visit over the holidays, so the executive agrees to pay the woman and child to pose as his family for Christmas, complications arrive.

Christmas in Connecticut 1945 Barbara Stanwick and Dennis Morgan. Written by Lionel Houser, Adele Comandini, Aileen Hamilton (story). It is a fun comedy romp from the 1940's. A career woman leads her boss to believe she is married and has a baby and that she's a gourmet cook and lives on a farm in Connecticut. None of which is true, but the fib keeps her employed as a popular magazine writer extolling the virtues of being a homemaker. Trouble ensues when the boss wants to visit the farm at  Christmas time.

The Angel and the Bad Man 1947 John Wayne and Gail Russel, if you haven’t seen her, she will be a pleasant surprise. Written by James Edward Grant. This isn’t a Christmas movie. It’s a wonderful romance about a wounded bad man and a Quaker woman who nurses him. Love this one 😊

Miracle on 34^th Street, 1947, John Payne and Maureen O’Hara. Written by Valentine Davies, a classic and beloved film. Edmund Gwenn plays Kris Kringle / Santa Claus and Natalie Wood plays the little girl he befriends. There’s a sweet love story between the girl’s single mother and a man she meets. This film was remade made in 1994, but I like older version best. Great for kids.

White Christmas 1954 is a flashy musical about two army buddies, Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye, trying to help their old commander, now retired and running a lodge in Vermont. Entertainers, the guys put on a musical show. Lots of silliness and fun for the whole family. Vera-Ellen, and  Rosemary Clooney, George Clooney’s aunt, round out the cast. Written by Norman Krasna, Melvin Frank, and Norman Panama.

A Christmas Carol 1951 British. Called Scrooge in the UK. Charles Dickens' famous tale, there are many remakes of the story, but this is my favorite. Alastair Sim's Scrooge is wonderfully creepy. Written by Noel Langley.

Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer (1944/1948) This is the classic cartoon and can be seen on Youtube. I like this for any child who might be teased and for the mockers in the hope they will see that everyone has value even if they are different. The song was written by Johnny Marks. 
 

Something completely different and not for young kids: 
Die Hard 1988 Bruce Willis, Bonnie Bedelia, and Alan Rickman. Christmas in L.A. and there’s an employee party on the 30th floor of a corporate building when it is taken over by ruthless terrorist. Everyone at the party is held and only NY cop Bruce Wills is there to save the day. There are several enjoyable sequels, but for me this is the best one. Action galore and snappy dialogue, written by Jeb Stuart and Steven E. de Souza.

 

If you’re looking for a holiday read check out my Sierra Creek Series, Her Country Heart Book 1 and His Country Heart Book 2. If you have had enough holiday stuff, how about a chilling suspense? Reggi's books Amazon