“Best Man Holiday”
If you’ve seen the classic “The Best Man,” made in 1999, then the “Best Man Holiday” has to be on your list of movies to watch this season. Fifteen years later, a group of friends rekindles for Christmas. We watch our on-screen favorites — Taye Diggs, Morris Chestnut, Harold Perrineau, and Nia Long, Sanaa Lathan, Monica Calhoun, and Regina Hall— try to mend old rivalries, broken friendships, and shattered relationships. They deal with past issues, re-spark old flames, and rebuild friendships as they recreate the unbreakable bond they had 15 years ago. With this movie, you will need to grab your tissue boxes, wine, and chocolates, and at the end, you may even get the urge to call an old friend just to wish them a happy holidays as well.
“Scrooged”
So what if Ebenezer Scrooge was a network television executive? Enter Scrooged, the Christmas movie we are all sure to watch at least once every holiday season. “Scrooged” is the 1988 comedic remake of “A Christmas Carol” that has one foot firmly in horror. Cue zombie boss dangling our hero out the window of his high rise as his tendons pop off one by one. Directed by Richard Donner, “Scrooged” stars Bill Murray as a horrible network boss actively trying to scare his viewers to death and Alfre Woodard as his warm-hearted assistant. Throw in a taxi driver ghost of Christmas past, a flying (and punching) fairy ghost of Christmas present, and a demon bellied ghost of Christmas future, and you have one rollicking (and surprisingly heartening) Christmas classic.
“The Preacher’s Wife”
At its heart, “The Preacher’s Wife” is a family story about questioning your faith and finding grace once again. But that is kind of hard when the angel sent to make things better, is really just happy to be back on Earth and causes all sorts of mayhem instead — including falling in love with the preacher’s wife. Cue street of red lights, right here.
“A Diva Christmas Carol”
“Christmas can be such a b*tch” in this “Devil Wears Prada” take on the holiday classic, “A Christmas Carol.” Directed by Richard Schenkman and starring Vanessa Williams, “A Diva’s Christmas Carol” takes the wizened and bitter Ebeneezer Scrooge and turns him into mega pop star Ebony, a stunning, slaying, foul-mouthed goddess that gives her staff hell on the regular. Ebony (played by Vanessa Williams) is all set to milk the Yuletide season for as much money as she can until she is visited by three spirits who help her see the error of her ways. Cameos galore including Kathy Griffin and Rozonda “Chili” Thomas.
“Last Holiday”
What would you do if you only had three weeks to live? That is the conundrum Queen Latifah faces as she breathes good-natured warmth into her character, Georgia Byrd, a meek and careful New Orleans chef on a Lean Cuisine diet. That is until she gets misdiagnosed with a life-threatening medical condition that her HMO will not cover. What is a girl to do but cash in her 401k and take three weeks of me-time in the Czech alps as LL Cool J and Giancarlo Esposito vie for her attention. Directed by Wayne Wang of “The Joy Luck Club” and “Maid in Manhattan” fame, “Last Holiday” is a delightful movie that fills you up with comfort and joy.
“This Christmas”
Directed by Preston A. Whitmore II, “This Christmas” is a 2007 hit that immediately gave holiday moviegoers a “Soul Food” vibe as they watched the Whitfield family come together to celebrate Christmas amid a slew of family secrets and incompatible in-laws. But there is lots of love to go around, too. Over the course of a three-day weekend, this tight-knit brood will confront debt-collecting thugs, overbearing husbands, hidden pregnancies, and an impending divorce. And that is all before one present is unwrapped. But the family comes together through it all with their faith and support from their community to show what the holiday season is really all about.
The all-star ensemble includes Idris Elba before he became Idris Elba, Loretta Devine, Delroy Lindo, Regina King, and Mekhi Phifer just to name a few. So, if you are dreading what your family has to bring this holiday season, go on ahead and pop this one in. There is no bigger drama than Whitfield family drama.
Of course, we can’t leave you hanging with just six.
Though these next two movies may not “technically” be Christmas classics, they sure deserve to be on your holiday movie marathon list!
“Trading Places”
“I had the most absurd nightmare – I was poor and no one liked me.”
There are appropriate holiday classics, and then there is “Trading Places.” Starring Eddie Murphy as Billy Ray the “street hustler,” Dan Aykroyd as Louis the “preppy Manhattanite” and Jamie Lee Curtis as the “prostitute with a heart of gold,” there is no cliché that “Trading Places” does not confidently walk through –– which is what makes it so much fun. Directed by John Landis, the core story involves two billionaire brothers with nothing better to do than make a wager that they can turn a pauper into a prince (Eddie Murphy) and a prince into a pauper (Dan Aykroyd). Jamie Lee Curtis comes to the emotional rescue as Eddie Murphy and Dan Aykroyd work together to turn the tables on The Man. Come for the inappropriate 80s comedy; stay to watch Eddie Murphy in his heyday. Though, perhaps, put the kids to bed first.
The Wiz
Not sure if this 1978 hit falls squarely into Christmas or Halloween, but it is definitely a holiday classic as audiences “Ease on Down the Road” with a cast of superstars including Diana Ross as Dorothy, Michael Jackson as the scarecrow, Lena Horne as Glinda the Good Witch, and Richard Pryor as The Wiz. But that is only a small taste. You can easily play spot the superstar as Robin Givens, Quincy Jones, Luther Vandross and more all make uncredited appearances. Directed by Sidney Lumet, “The Wiz” was originally a Tony award-winning play that captivated audiences as it reimagined Dorothy as a Black girl from Harlem and Oz as a scary and wonderful downtown Manhattan.
Humanoid crows, flamboyant prostitutes, motorcycling monkeys, deadly trash cans (that will eat you!), bone rushing pillars, crazy peddlers, and numbers runners are just a few of the out-of-the-box attractions this wizarding world brings. Don’t watch alone.
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