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The Holiday

As a pleasant dose of holiday cheer, The Holiday is a lovable love story with all the Christmas trimmings. In the capable hands of writer-director Nancy Meyers (making her first romantic comedy since Something's Gotta Give), it all begins when two successful yet unhappy women connect through a home-swapping website, and decide to trade houses for the Christmas holiday in a mutual effort to forget their man troubles. Iris (Kate Winslet) is a London-based journalist who lives in a picture-postcard cottage in Surrey, and Amanda (Cameron Diaz) owns a movie-trailer production company (leading her to cutely imagine most of her life as a "coming attraction") and lives in a posh mansion in Beverly Hills. Iris is heartbroken from unrequited love with a cad of a colleague (Rufus Sewell), and Amanda has just broken up with her cheating boyfriend (Edward Burns), so their home-swapping offers mutual downtime to reassess their love lives. This being a Nancy Meyers movie (where everything is fabulously decorated and romantic wish-fulfillment is virtually guaranteed), Amanda hooks up with Iris's charming brother Graham (Jude Law), and Iris is unexpectedly smitten with Miles (Jack Black), a super-nice film composer on the downside of a failing relationship. --Jeff Shannon

Extras from The Holiday

First Look Featurette high bandwidth

Film Clip: "Sushi for Two" high bandwidth

Film Clip: "Oh Brother" high bandwidth

Stills from The Holiday (click for larger image)

Beyond The Holiday on Amazon.com

On Blu-ray

CD Soundtrack

The Films of Nancy Meyers

Two women, one Los Angeles and the other in London, exchange homes during the Christmas holiday to forget the men in their lives, only to fall in love again.
No Track Information Available
Media Type: DVD
Artist: DIAZ/WINSLET/LAW
Title: HOLIDAY
Street Release Date: 03/13/2007
Domestic
Genre: COMEDY VIDEO

While You Were Sleeping

In Chicago, a subway employee is in love with a stranger she only sees from a distance. But when she rescues him from a mugging in which he is knocked into a coma, his family mistakes her for his fiancee. When she falls for his charming brother, the mix-u
Genre: Feature Film-Comedy
Rating: PG
Release Date: 4-JAN-2005
Media Type: DVD

If you don't mind a heavy dose of schmaltz and sentiment, this romantic comedy has a gentle way of seducing you with its charms. While You Were Sleeping was the first starring role for Sandra Bullock after her blockbuster success in Speed. In a role that nicely emphasizes her easygoing appeal, Bullock is the reason the movie works at all. She plays Lucy Eleanor Moderatz, a Chicago Transit tollbooth clerk who's hopelessly smitten with a daily commuter, Peter Callaghan (Peter Gallagher). She saves the object of her affection from certain death after he's mugged and falls onto the train tracks. While Peter is in a coma, she lets his family believe that she is his fiancée, and surprisingly finds herself drawn to his brother (Bill Pullman), for whom the attraction is definitely mutual. How Lucy gets out of this amorous predicament is what makes this pleasant movie less predictable than its familiar ingredients would initially indicate. It's feel-good fluff, with characters and performances that keep you smiling through the drippy plot mechanics. --Jeff Shannon

Emma (1996)

Most people didn't mind Gwyneth Paltrow's English accent in this charming, 1996 adaptation of Jane Austen's novel (which also inspired Clueless). But even if it doesn't sound quite right to you, there are plenty of authentic and wonderful Brit thespians in this film by screenwriter-turned-director Douglas McGrath (co-author of Woody Allen's Bullets Over Broadway), including Juliet Stevenson (Truly Madly Deeply), Alan Cumming (Buddy), Phyllida Law (Much Ado About Nothing), Ewan McGregor (the Scots star of Trainspotting), and Sophie Thompson, outstanding and finally heartbreaking as the chattering Miss Bates. Paltrow plays Austen's benign busybody, Emma Woodhouse--so busy trying to arrange the lives of others that she is sidestepping her own. McGrath brings a kind of pretty and light touch to the production, his best move the wise delegation of creative authority to the actors themselves. --Tom Keogh

This delightfully fun and lighthearted comedy is based on the story that inspired the hit movie CLUELESS! Dazzling Gwyneth Paltrow (SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE, THE ROYAL TENENBAUMS) shines as EMMA, a mischievous young beauty who sets up her single friends. Funny thing is ... she's not very good at it! So when Emma tries to find a man for Harriet (Toni Collette -- THE SIXTH SENSE, ABOUT A BOY), she makes a hilariously tangled mess of everyone's lives. You'll enjoy all the comic confusion ... until Emma herself falls in love, finally freeing everyone from her outrageously misguided attempts at matchmaking.

Overboard

Real-life couple Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn star in this enjoyable 1987 comedy by Garry Marshall (Pretty Woman) about an imperious heiress (Hawn) who loses her memory after a boating accident and is identified as the wife of a handyman (Russell). Russell's character brings her "home" to his messy house and unruly kids, and the laughs follow as the aristocratic Hawn tries fitting in. Marshall delivers the comic goods, the leads are entertaining (Russell needs to do more comedy), and the supporting cast is made up of happily familiar faces, including Roddy McDowall, Edward Herrmann, and Marshall favorite Hector Elizondo in an unbilled bit. --Tom Keogh

A bored super-rich woman falls off her yacht and into the life of a carpenter with four children in need of attention.
Genre: Feature Film-Comedy
Rating: PG
Release Date: 30-JUL-2002
Media Type: DVD

Sweet Home Alabama

Melanie leaves her small Alabama town for the glamour and fame of the New York fashion world. Successful in the business and in love her boyfriend proposes. It should be a happy moment but Melanie can't marry him until she gets a divorce from her husband still in Alabama. As her first marriage is unbeknownst to her NYC friends Melanie returns to her hometown to demand a divorce. There is something about getting back to your roots and Melanie realizes maybe her fast-track life isn't exactly what she wants after all.System Requirements:Starring: Reese Witherspoon Josh Lucas Patrick Dempsey Candice Bergen Mary Kay Place Fred Ward and Jean Smart. Directed By: Andy Tennant. Running Time: 109 Min. Color. This film is presented in "Widescreen" format. Copyright 2003 Buena Vista Home Video.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: COMEDY Rating: PG-13 UPC: 786936208030 Manufacturer No: 02912600

As formulaic, utterly inoffensive romantic comedies go, Sweet Home Alabama could be better, and could be worse. It's a variant of Julia Roberts's Something to Talk About, with all the same strengths and weaknesses, and Reese Witherspoon is definitely its saving grace. As an Alabama country girl turned hot New York fashion designer, Witherspoon finds the genuine emotions hidden under a blandly familiar plot, making her character's romantic indecisiveness seem not only credible but disarmingly appealing. She's just agreed to marry the Camelot-bred son (Patrick Dempsey) of New York's no-nonsense mayor (Candice Bergen), but first she has to officially divorce the husband (Josh Lucas) she left behind years earlier... only to discover that their love is stronger than ever. The rest, of course, is a foregone conclusion, but with a sharp supporting cast and a few charming moments, Sweet Home Alabama will satisfy anyone who prefers safe, reassuring entertainment. --Jeff Shannon

Annie Hall

Annie Hall is one of the truest, most bittersweet romances on film. In it, Allen plays a thinly disguised version of himself: Alvy Singer, a successful--if neurotic--television comedian living in Manhattan. Annie (the wholesomely luminous Dianne Keaton) is a Midwestern transplant who dabbles in photography and sings in small clubs. When the two meet, the sparks are immediate--if repressed. Alone in her apartment for the first time, Alvy and Annie navigate a minefield of self-conscious "is-this-person-someone-I'd-want-to-get-involved-with?" conversation. As they speak, subtitles flash their unspoken thoughts: the likes of "I'm not smart enough for him" and "I sound like a jerk." Despite all their caution, they connect, and we're swept up in the flush of their new romance. Allen's antic sensibility shines here in a series of flashbacks to Alvy's childhood, growing up, quite literally, under a rumbling roller coaster. His boisterous Jewish family's dinner table shares a split screen with the WASP-y Hall's tight-lipped holiday table, one Alvy has joined for the first time. His position as outsider is uncontestable he looks down the table and sizes up Annie's "Grammy Hall" as "a classic Jew-hater."

The relationship arcs, as does Annie's growing desire for independence. It quickly becomes clear that the two are on separate tracks, as what was once endearing becomes annoying. Annie Hall embraces Allen's central themes--his love affair with New York (and hatred of Los Angeles), how impossible relationships are, and his fear of death. But their balance is just right, the chemistry between Allen's worry-wart Alvy and Keaton's gangly, loopy Annie is one of the screen's best pairings. It couldn't be more engaging. --Susan Benson

Considered to be "Woody Allen's breakthrough movie" (Time), Annie Hall won* four OscarsÂ(r), including Best Picture, and established Allen as the premier auteur filmmaker. Thought by many critics to be Allen's magnum opus, Annie Hall confirmed that he had, "completed the journey from comic to humorist, from comedy writer to wit [and] from inventive moviemaker to creative artist" (Saturday Review). Alvy Singer (Allen) is one of Manhattan's most brilliant comedians, but when it comes to romance, his delivery needs a little work. Introduced byhis best friend, Rob (Tony Roberts), Alvy falls in love with the ditzy but delightful nightclub singer, Annie Hall (Diane Keaton). When his own insecurities sabotage the affair, Annie is forced to leave Alvy for a new lifeand lover (Paul Simon)in Los Angeles. Knowing he may have lost Annie forever, Alvy's willing to go to any lengthseven driving L.A.'s freewaysto recapture the only thing that ever mattered'true love. *1977: Picture; Actress (Keaton); Director; Original Screenplay

Emma (A&E, 1997)

Emma Woodhouse imagines that she dominates those around her in the small town of Highbury, but her matchmaking creates problems for herself and others.
Genre: Feature Film-Drama
Rating: NR
Release Date: 26-OCT-1999
Media Type: DVD

Similar to the equally excellent Valmont, this version of Jane Austen's classic novel had the misfortune of following a sumptuous big-star version with Gwyneth Paltrow, which was released the summer before. And, just as 1989's Valmont suffered comparisons with Dangerous Liaisons, inevitably these Emmas were held up next to one another.

This delicious Emma concerns a young woman of financial substance (Kate Beckinsale), who fancies herself a matchmaker, especially with shy Miss Harriet Smith (Samantha Morton, who also appears in A&E's Jane Eyre). In Emma's swirling world of social activity and social consciousness, one's position and stature is a constant preoccupation. But to her credit, Emma, albeit a busybody, has compassion for all classes, and for her kindly but hypochondriacal father (Bernard Hepton).

This miniseries is more subtle than the grand theatrical release, is truer to the novel, and gives a richer explanation of the relationship between Emma associates Jane Fairfax (beautiful Olivia Williams of Rushmore) and the duplicitous Frank Churchill (Raymond Coulthard). Of course, at the center, as in all Austen stories, is the romance between the unsuspecting leading lady and an unlikely, but wholly suitable gentleman. In this case, it's Emma and her brother-in-law, the righteous (as played here) Mr. Knightley (Mark Strong). Strong's Mr. Knightley is more reserved, less coy than Jeremy Northam's; he plays Knightley more like Mr. Darcy (the leading man in Austen's Pride and Prejudice, which A&E also offers in a wonderful miniseries). Beckinsale proves to be utterly delightful and in no way should this excellent adaptation be ignored. --N.F. Mendoza

Serendipity

While Christmas shopping in the city, Jonathan and Sara meet and fall in love despite already being involved in other relationships; they decide to separate and see if fate will bring them together in the future.
Genre: Feature Film-Comedy
Rating: PG13
Release Date: 7-SEP-2004
Media Type: DVD

The irresistible casting of John Cusack and Kate Beckinsale highlights this predictable romantic comedy, which combines the romantic yearning of An Affair to Remember and the New York charm of You've Got Mail. It all begins "a few years ago," when New Yorker Jonathan (Cusack) meets Brit beauty Sara (Beckinsale). They share a few perfect hours together before parting ways, leaving future encounters to her quirky obsession with fate. "A few years later," they're about to marry their respective fiancés (reluctantly, of course), and urgently hoping for destiny to bring them back together. Under the casual direction of Peter Chelsom (barely recovering from Town & Country), this starry-eyed romance offers no surprises, but it has a comforting familiarity, made warmer by the easy chemistry of the leads, with obligatory best-friend support by Molly Shannon and long-time Cusack pal Jeremy Piven. It's hokey, but die-hard romantics are sure to be forgiving. --Jeff Shannon

The Wedding Singer

You're better off having been born after, say, 1965, if you really want to enjoy this corny romantic comedy and its abundant references to the MTV culture of the mid-1980s--and even then the odds are only 50-50 that you'll have a shamelessly good time. But a lot of people beat those odds, because The Wedding Singer was a surprise box-office hit when released in early 1998, and it resulted in Saturday Night Live graduate Adam Sandler's salary going ridiculously sky-high. It's a schizophrenic film about a seemingly schizophrenic wedding singer (Sandler) who's charmingly sweet to some people but a tongue-lashing maniac to others, probably out of frustration over his fading ambition as a wannabe rock star (not to mention Sandler's penchant for loud-mouthed lunacy). When he meets an admiring young waitress (delightfully played by Drew Barrymore), it's love at first sight, complicated by their pending marriages to much less appealing fiancés. The plot then contorts itself to accommodate this contrived will-they-or-won't-they? scenario, so you're better off ignoring the love story and focusing on the comedy, which is sporadic but occasionally hilarious. This is also a lighter, friendlier Sandler than moviegoers had seen before, which probably accounts for the movie's success. Toss in a fine supporting cast--including a show-stopping drunk act by indie-movie stalwart Steve Buscemi--and you've got the ingredients for a no-brainer that's ultimately more fun than it is annoying. --Jeff Shannon

It's 1985 and Adam Sandler is the ultimate master of ceremonies...until he is left at the altar at his own wedding. He starts to pick up the pieces of his heart after meeting Drew Barrymore but she's about to have a wedding of her own.Running Time: 97 min.System Requirements:Starring: Adam Sandler Drew Barrymore and Christine Taylor Director: Frank Coraci Produced by Robert Simonds Jack Garraputo; written by Tim Herlihy; running time of 97 minutes; Closed Captioned. Copyright: 1998 New Line Cast/Crew Bios Copy Protection Filmographies Interactive Film Trivia Interactive Menus Photo gallery Video Format: Standard 1.33:1 (4.3) Widescreen 1.85:1 aspect ratio Subtitles: French Spanish and English Audio Tracks: English: Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround French: Dolby Digital 5.1 SurroundFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: COMEDY Rating: PG-13 UPC: 794043466021 Manufacturer No: N4660

Mansfield Park (1999)

This fun and sexy comedy tells a timelessly entertaining story where wealth, secret passions, and mischievous women put love to the test ... with delightfully surprising results! When a spirited young woman, Fanny Price, is sent away to live on the great country estate of her rich cousins, she's meant to learn the ways of proper society. But while Fanny learns "their" ways, she also enlightens them with a wit and sparkle all her own! Featuring an exciting ensemble cast of young stars -- you'll join critics everywhere in their overwhelming praise of this smart, playful, and funny hit!