Review of Home for the Holidays (1995) by Jake W — 09 Aug 2009

I really enjoyed this film. It had a well-written screenplay and Jodie Foster did fantastic with the directing. The performances, however, are what really make the film.

Claudia Larson (Holly Hunter) is a single mother who goes home to spend time with her family on Thanksgiving. It sounds simple, but it's really not all that simple. Her family consists of her mother (Anne Bancroft), her father (Charles Durning), her uptight sister (Cynthia Stevenson), her brother-in-law (Steve Guttenberg), her aunt (Geraldine Chaplin), and her gay brother (Robert Downey, Jr.). As can be expected, Thanksgiving dinner is more of a nightmare than anything else...

I give Jodie Foster credit for making the film seem real. There are lots of different conversations going on at the dinner table on Thanksgiving Day. Upon first observation you would think "What does that have to do with anything?", but it sets a mood, an atmosphere. You actually believe that you are watching a normal family eating a Thanksgiving dinner instead of an actual film.

Then the performances. Anyone who knows me is probably guessing that I'm going to say that Robert Downey, Jr. gave the best performance in the film. Of course, anyone who makes that assumption... is right again. He plays Tommy, Claudia's gay brother. When he's first introduced, there's not much to him, but as time progresses throughout the film, you see his character, his struggle as a human being. It makes itself known. He was allowed to improvise many of his lines (Jodie Foster gave him the okay to do that), and his improvisation was so wonderful. The telephone scene where he's talking to "Jack" near the end of the film is very touching and sentimental.

Holly Hunter as Claudia comes in a close second. She was great. Her character has many layers and Hunter shows them all off in a fantastic fashion.

Overall, great film. Great cast.

Recommended.