Review of Surviving Christmas (2004) by Courtney W — 27 Jun 2005

[font=Arial][color=darkorange]Hmmm...I love Wal-Mart's 2 for $11 bins. In retrospect, I should've picked up the 80's coke-fest-Bangles-song-playing-flick [i]Less Than Zero[/i] as well as [i]Foxfire. [/i] I have seen it on cable before. It is post-[i]Hackers [/i]Angelina Jolie, with her short hair and less tattoos. The film is based on the Joyce Carol Oates story of the same name about a bunch of high-school girls who have nothing in common until a rebellious, mysterious stranger named Legs (Angelina Jolie) hitches her way into town and brings them together.[/color][/font].

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[font=Arial][color=#ff8c00]I also like the film thanks to the fact that Jenny Lewis is the shy, introverted Rita. I try my hardest not to refer to her as Hannah Nefler ( She plays Shelly Long's daughter in [i]Troop Beverly Hills)[/i], because now she is fronting one of my favorite bands, Rilo Kiley nowadays and they are opening for Coldplay and whatnot. But anyways, Lewis is fantastic as Rita, one of the girls being molested by a coach/teacher at school. The part with Rita and the Violet character in the grocery is priceless. Especially the dialogue with the cucumbers and the term "schlong."[/color][/font].

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[font=Arial][color=#ff8c00]It's a fun flick, especially for those of us who were teenagers in the late 90's and transitioning into the post-grunge era in music. Looking back at the movie now, there are certain things that remind me of [i]My So-Called Life[/i] (one of my favorite tv shows of all time, I have it on DVD--seriously). Maybe it is the soundtrack, or the flannel or the teenage drug abuse--but the familiar feeling is there. [i]Foxfire [/i]is totally worth the $5.50. I may have to go back and get [i]Less Than Zero [/i]for the hell of it.[/color][/font].

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[font=Arial][color=#ff8c00]On monday night, I caught [i]Surviving Christmas [/i]on cable. It was short and suprisingly not the worst movie I have ever seen. The plot was a little silly and I don't know how Christina Applegate's character and Ben Affleck's character become attracted to each other (they have zero chemistry together). I did like James Gandolifini and Catherine O'Hara, though. I also liked it when Affleck cast a local actor to be the grandfather called "Doo-Dah." It's not a brilliant movie, but it was most certainly amusing.[/color][/font].

[font=Arial][color=#ff8c00]Well, tomorrow night we see [i]War of the Worlds, [/i]even though at the moment I am hating the Tom Cruise. I love the Steven Spielberg though (well, everything with the exception of [i]A.I., [/i]but I am willing to overlook that) he has given me some of my most memorable childhood movie moments along with Jim Henson.[/color][/font].

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[font=Arial][color=#ff8c00]Check ya laters.[/color][/font].

[font=Arial][color=#ff8c00]Court[/color][/font].

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