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At one of the heights of his career, following films like “Malcolm X,” “Philadelphia,” and “Devil in a Blue Dress,” Denzel Washington starred in a remake of the 1947 Christmas movie, “The Bishop’s Wife.” Directed by the late great Penny Marshall, the remake was called “The Preacher’s Wife” and centered on a struggling Baptist pastor, played by Courtney B. Vance, and an angel come down to help, but who ends up focusing more on the pastor’s wife. Marshall cast this role to another megawatt talent of the time, Whitney Houston. Discussing his career with Chaz Ebert at the American Black Film Festival in Miami, per People, Denzel Washington remembered the concern he had for Houston while making the film.

“I felt like I always wanted to protect her,” he said. Ebert acknowledged how this was present in the film. She said, “There was a vulnerability that you saw.”

Surprised this came across in his performance,...

What kind of Christmas movie do you get when your director’s inspirations are early-90s Nickelodeon live-action shows and 1960s European cinema? In Tyler Taormina’s case, the answer is Christmas Eve In Miller’s Point.

The movie sees four generations of the Balsano family get together for what, it transpires, may be their last annual Christmas party. With celebrations underway, two of the clan’s younger members sneak out in an act of teenage rebellion, which plays out against a backdrop of wintery and suburban Long Island.

The film is Taormina’s follow-up to the well-received indie pic Ham on Rye. He co-wrote the script with Eric Berger. Michael Cera is a producer and part of an ensemble cast that includes Elsie Fisher, Maria Dizzia, Francesca Scorsese, Ben Shenkman, Gregg Turkington, Sawyer Spielberg and newcomer Matilda Fleming.

Taormina and the cast of his new movie dropped by the...

"It's A Wonderful Life" is an unforgettable classic that renews itself every holiday season. The striking narrative articulates strong morals, like the importance of family and an individual's importance in a community, punctuated by almost hallucinogenic imagery of the ground opening up beneath one's feet. It's a heartwrenching picture made all the emotional by the sentimentality of Christmastime. The Frank Capra film is nostalgic for everyone, from older people who watched it as a child to the generations to follow who passed down the tradition to their children. Most kids aren't dying to sit down and watch a black-and-white talkie from studio-era Hollywood, and yet the film's fanbase gains new members every year.

But as the 1946 film ages, so too does its cast, and many of the main cast members have not made it to 2024, including leading man Jimmy Stewart. In fact, most of the adults in the film passed...

Slow weekend for new titles as cinemas await ‘Avatar: The Way Of Water’.

RankFilm (distributor)Three-day gross (Dec 9-11)Total gross to date Week 1. Roald Dahl’s Matilda The Musical (Sony) £2.1m £10.8m 3 2. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (Disney) £802,106 £30.8m 5 3. Violent Night (Universal) £567,351 £1.9m 2 4. Strange World (Disney) £305,802 £1.8m 3 5. The Menu (Disney) £192,742 £3m 4

Gbp to Usd conversion rate: 1.23

Sony’s Roald Dahl’s Matilda The Musical held first place at the UK-Ireland box office for a third consecutive weekend, as cinemas await the arrival of Avatar: The Way Of Water.

On its third weekend in cinemas, Matilda dropped just 16 on its previous session...

Also out this weekend is a live brodcast of New York’s Metropolitan Opera ’The Hours’ at 133 venues.

Distributors have steered clear of major new releases this weekend ahead of the UK and Ireland December 16 opening of Avatar: The Way Of Water, however there are some notable arthouse titles debuting at the box office.

Cannes premiere The Silent Twins is this weekend’s widest new release, playing in 160 sites for Universal, following Tamara Lawrance and Letitia Wright’s recent British Independent Film Award (Bifa) win for best joint lead performance. The Lure’s Agnieszka Smoczynska directs this Poland-uk co-production, which is Smoczynska’s English-language debut,...

Denzel Washington has a reputation as one of the best American actors of all time, and it's easy to understand why. First, there's the nine Oscar nominations for acting including two wins, but even if he hadn't been lauded so, his career speaks for itself. It began in earnest in the mid-1980s, when he started to make the transition from television drama "St. Elsewhere" to movies. Theater has also always been a presence for Washington, a Tony Award winner, especially the work of August Wilson.

Washington has certain directors who he has collaborated with many times, most famously Spike Lee. There's also Tony Scott, Antoine Fuqua, Edward Zwick, Jonathan Demme, and Carl Franklin. Since 2000, he has mainly made thrillers and played heroic characters, but ironically he won the Best Actor Oscar for one of his rare villainous roles. Washington always brings a magnetic charisma to whatever part he is playing,...

Emmy winner Anthony Hemingway has signed on to direct a present-day “reimagining” of The Preacher’s Wife, featuring original cast member Courtney B. Vance, for Bassett Vance Productions.

Penny Marshall’s 1996 film, starring Denzel Washington, Whitney Houston and Vance, was itself a remake of The Bishop’s Wife, the 1947 film based on Robert Nathan’s book of the same name that starred Cary Grant, Loretta Young and David Niven. It centers on Dudley (Washington), an angel who comes to earth to help preacher Henry Biggs (Vance) and his wife Julia (Houston) save the church and their family. The film endures as a perennial favorite around the holidays; its soundtrack remains the bestselling gospel album of all time.

Hemingway’s version of The Preacher’s Wife will “creatively evolve the story in a new direction,” per Bvp’s producing partner Dwayne Johnson-Cochran, while boosting “the musicality” of the storytelling.

CineSavant’s hands-down favorite holiday film, this Ernst Lubitsch classic radiates human kindness in all directions. Nobody is perfect: misunderstandings benign and profound are the gentle impetus for a sweet story that will renew one’s belief that people are basically good. It’s James Stewart’s best pre-war performance, as he fits his character so perfectly; as in last month’s The Mortal Storm he and Margaret Sullavan exude decency and ‘niceness’ even when they’re being rude to each other. Frank Morgan tops his Wizard characterization, and the movie is so generous that it lets the nervy little go-getter William Tracy be the hero of the day. I’m glad this wasn’t re-invented as a sitcom, but they sure ran it through the remake hurdles.

The Shop Around the Corner

Blu-ray

Warner Archive Collection

1940 / B&w / 1:37 Academy / 99 min. / Street Date December 22, 2020 / available through the WBshop / 21.99

Starring: James Stewart,...

Time and time again during this year’s pandemic, movie studios have had to make the best of a bad situation. HBO Max’s list of new releases for December 2020 comes along with the most extreme example yet.

WarnerMedia undoubtedly had big plans for Wonder Woman 1984 when it scheduled it for a holiday release last year. After moving it to the summer, however, the conglomerate had to delay its theatrical release time and time again. Now HBO Max is the lucky winner of the saga, as it gets to premiere the long-awaited sequel on its servers on Dec. 25.

While Wonder Woman 1984 is definitely the headline this month, there are some other intriguing streaming options for HBO Max in December. The month plays host to a whole host of high-powered documentaries like Heaven’s Gate: The Cult of Cults (Dec. 3), Alabama Snake (Dec. 9), and the Tiger Woods documentary Tiger (Dec.

We’ve now got just a few days left of November, so it’s time to take a look ahead at everything that’s headed to the major streaming networks in December. As it’s Christmas, Netflix, Disney Plus, HBO Max, Hulu and Prime Video have extra special hauls ready to gift to their subscribers this holiday season, with literally hundreds of new movies and TV shows dropping over the course of the month.

All the various sites – excepting Disney Plus – are serving up a ton of newly licensed films on December 1st. Netflix, for instance, is adding such classics as E.T., Little Nicky and the first three Jurassic Parks. Meanwhile, HBO Max is offering up The Shawshank Redemption, Shaun of the Dead and a bunch of Final Destinations, while Hulu and Prime Video, which share a lot of the same movies, are treating users to a host of iconic...

Just like Netflix, Hulu, Amazon and Disney Plus, HBO Max is adding a ton of great new titles to give you some festive treats this holiday season. The Warner streaming service’s December haul isn’t necessarily full of Christmas content – there’s a lot of that already available – but there are definitely a ton of must-see films and TV shows on the lineup, so let’s take a look at the highlights.

December 1st brings a glut of newly licensed titles, including everything from horror prequel Annabelle: Creation to the original Westworld movie. In terms of franchises, you’ll be able to find a bunch of The Crown films, some Final Destinations and the whole Free Willy trilogy on the site next month. And if you’re looking to chow down on some of the best movies around, you won’t be disappointed. Just a few of the acclaimed...

Today isn’t just the day before Thanksgiving, as it also marks one month exactly until Christmas. And you know what that means? Yes, tis the season to binge watch all your favorite holiday movies and TV specials.

This December, a lot of folks will be scouring the various streaming services for the classics, then. And if you’re an HBO Max subscriber, you need look no further, as the platform is playing host to a sleigh-full of festive content this yuletide.

As well as its original output, such as the latest Sesame Street Christmas special, the streaming site is home to a raft of iconic holiday films as well. These range from the family favorites to some alternate picks that keep things from getting too schmaltzy. For that old time-y festive feel, check out The Wizard of Oz or The Bishop’s Wife. Alternatively, action lovers have the likes of...

When HBO Max launched last month, DC fans hoped it would be the premiere place to go to watch all their favorite DC content. While the streaming service did have an impressive array of films and TV shows available on launch, there were a lot of notable missing titles, too, due to pre-existing licenses getting in the way. As time goes on, though, more DC properties will end up on the site. Case in point: this July will see a whole heap of superhero content go up on HBO Max.

Below you can find the full list of every movie and TV series coming to HBO Now, Go and Max next month, broken down by day of release. It includes an enormous amount of DC animated movies, mostly featuring Batman, the Justice League and Green Lantern. All of the Christopher Reeve Superman films will be up on HBO Max as of July,...

by Nick Taylor

One way to search for great performances outside of Oscar's history books is merely to check in on what the great character actresses of their day were busy doing besides not getting their due. In 1947 just to cite a few examples, You couldn’t go wrong with Mary Astor, warm and sympathetic as the mother of sickly Liz Taylor in Cynthia, and even better at nimbly flipping through the morally compromised history of a saloon-owner afraid her daughter will run away with a dangerous man in Desert Fury. There’s also Elsa Lanchester as the housemaid in The Bishop’s Wife, so piquantly observant in a role that often invites stooging. But if we’re talking supporting actresses, surely the first stop for anyone seeking out the heavies of Classic Hollywood is Agnes Moorehead. Moorehead’s performances n Dark Passage and The Lost Moment were my first stops...

By now we all know that the film the Academy selects as the “Best Picture” of any given year is rarely the actual Best Picture, but some years it’s hard to explain why they picked what they picked. Never mind “Shakespeare in Love” beating “Saving Private Ryan,” because at least “Shakespeare in Love” is a handsome production with a witty script. Never mind “Dances with Wolves” beating “Goodfellas,” because at least “Dances with Wolves” is a respectable western. We’re taking a look at the films that we can’t watch, even in a vacuum, without cringing nowadays. And when you compare them with the nominees that didn’t earn the Oscar, it’s just plain hard to justify why the Academy voted the way it did.

“The Broadway Melody” (1929)

The second Best Picture winner, and the first synch sound movie to win the top prize, was innovative for the time.

Remember Charlie Chaplin's 'The Killer with a Heart?' You too will be frustrated by this well-produced story of a slum kid who commits an unpardonable crime... except that a do-gooder priest wants to pardon him. Dana Andrews and Farley Granger star but the good work is in the smaller roles of this urban tragedy. Edge of Doom DVD-r The Warner Archive Collection 1950 / B&W / 1:37 flat Academy / 97 min. / Street Date February 9, 2016 / available through the WBshop / 18.59 Starring Dana Andrews, Farley Granger, Joan Evans, Robert Keith, Paul Stewart, Mala Powers, Adele Jergens, Harold Vermilyea, John Ridgely, Douglas Fowley, Mabel Paige, Howland Chamberlain, Houseley Stevenson Sr., Jean Inness, Ellen Corby, Ray Teal. Cinematography Harry Stradling Film Editor Daniel Mandell Original Music Hugo Friedhofer Written by Philip Yordan Produced by Samuel Goldwyn Directed by Mark Robson

Reviewed by Glenn Erickson

What's the most hopeless, depressing, feel-bad film noir on the charts? How about Detour,...

Merle Oberon films: From empress to duchess in 'Hotel.' Merle Oberon films: From starring to supporting roles Turner Classic Movies' Merle Oberon month comes to an end tonight, March 25, '16, with six movies: Désirée, Hotel, Deep in My Heart, Affectionately Yours, Berlin Express, and Night Song. Oberon's presence alone would have sufficed to make them all worth a look, but they have other qualities to recommend them as well. 'Désirée': First supporting role in two decades Directed by Henry Koster, best remembered for his Deanna Durbin musicals and the 1947 fantasy comedy The Bishop's Wife, Désirée (1954) is a sumptuous production that, thanks to its big-name cast, became a major box office hit upon its release. Marlon Brando is laughably miscast as Napoleon Bonaparte, while Jean Simmons plays the title role, the Corsican Conqueror's one-time fiancée Désirée Clary (later Queen of Sweden and Norway). In a supporting role – her...

Billy Wilder directed Sunset Blvd. with Gloria Swanson and William Holden. Billy Wilder and Charles Brackett movies Below is a list of movies on which Charles Brackett and Billy Wilder worked together as screenwriters, including efforts for which they did not receive screen credit. The Wilder-Brackett screenwriting partnership lasted from 1938 to 1949. During that time, they shared two Academy Awards for their work on The Lost Weekend (1945) and, with D.M. Marshman Jr., Sunset Blvd. (1950). More detailed information further below. Post-split years Billy Wilder would later join forces with screenwriter I.A.L. Diamond in movies such as the classic comedy Some Like It Hot (1959), the Best Picture Oscar winner The Apartment (1960), and One Two Three (1961), notable as James Cagney's last film (until a brief comeback in Milos Forman's Ragtime two decades later). Although some of these movies were quite well received, Wilder's later efforts – which also included The Seven Year Itch...

Debbie Reynolds ca. early 1950s. Debbie Reynolds movies: Oscar nominee for 'The Unsinkable Molly Brown,' sweetness and light in phony 'The Singing Nun' Debbie Reynolds is Turner Classic Movies' “Summer Under the Stars” star today, Aug. 23, '15. An MGM contract player from 1950 to 1959, Reynolds' movies can be seen just about every week on TCM. The only premiere on Debbie Reynolds Day is Jerry Paris' lively marital comedy How Sweet It Is (1968), costarring James Garner. This evening, TCM is showing Divorce American Style, The Catered Affair, The Unsinkable Molly Brown, and The Singing Nun. 'Divorce American Style,' 'The Catered Affair' Directed by the recently deceased Bud Yorkin, Divorce American Style (1967) is notable for its cast – Reynolds, Dick Van Dyke, Jean Simmons, Jason Robards, Van Johnson, Lee Grant – and for the fact that it earned Norman Lear (screenplay) and Robert Kaufman (story) a Best Original Screenplay Academy Award nomination.

Teresa Wright: Later years (See preceding post: "Teresa Wright: From Marlon Brando to Matt Damon.") Teresa Wright and Robert Anderson were divorced in 1978. They would remain friends in the ensuing years.[1] Wright spent most of the last decade of her life in Connecticut, making only sporadic public appearances. In 1998, she could be seen with her grandson, film producer Jonah Smith, at New York's Yankee Stadium, where she threw the ceremonial first pitch.[2] Wright also became involved in the Greater New York chapter of the Als Association. (The Pride of the Yankees subject, Lou Gehrig, died of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis in 1941.) The week she turned 82 in October 2000, Wright attended the 20th anniversary celebration of Somewhere in Time, where she posed for pictures with Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour. In March 2003, she was a guest at the 75th Academy Awards, in the segment showcasing Oscar-winning actors of the past. Two years later,...

Teresa Wright-Samuel Goldwyn association comes to a nasty end (See preceding post: "Teresa Wright in 'Shadow of a Doubt': Alfred Hitchcock Heroine in His Favorite Film.") Whether or not because she was aware that Enchantment wasn't going to be the hit she needed – or perhaps some other disagreement with Samuel Goldwyn or personal issue with husband Niven Busch – Teresa Wright, claiming illness, refused to go to New York City to promote the film. (Top image: Teresa Wright in a publicity shot for The Men.) Goldwyn had previously announced that Wright, whose contract still had another four and half years to run, was to star in a film version of J.D. Salinger's 1948 short story "Uncle Wiggily in Connecticut." Instead, he unceremoniously – and quite publicly – fired her.[1] The Goldwyn organization issued a statement, explaining that besides refusing the assignment to travel to New York to help generate pre-opening publicity for Enchantment,...

Teresa Wright in 'Shadow of a Doubt': Alfred Hitchcock heroine (image: Joseph Cotten about to strangle Teresa Wright in 'Shadow of a Doubt') (See preceding article: "Teresa Wright Movies: Actress Made Oscar History.") After scoring with The Little Foxes, Mrs. Miniver, and The Pride of the Yankees, Teresa Wright was loaned to Universal – once initial choices Joan Fontaine and Olivia de Havilland became unavailable – to play the small-town heroine in Alfred Hitchcock's Shadow of a Doubt. (Check out video below: Teresa Wright reminiscing about the making of Shadow of a Doubt.) Co-written by Thornton Wilder, whose Our Town had provided Wright with her first chance on Broadway and who had suggested her to Hitchcock; Meet Me in St. Louis and Junior Miss author Sally Benson; and Hitchcock's wife, Alma Reville, Shadow of a Doubt was based on "Uncle Charlie," a story outline by Gordon McDonell – itself based on actual events.

The Bishops Wife | Mary Poppins | Sleeping Beauty | The Nightmare Before Christmas | The Other Side Of Yuletide | Dead Of Night | The Queen Of Spades

Christmas cinema programming tends to involve the doling out of well-worn classics, most of which are on the telly anyway – and nobody seems to mind. So for those after something – or at least somewhere – a bit special, you'll have to look a bit harder… at the rest this page.

If it's an alternative to It's A Wonderful Life you're after, a good bet could be The Bishop's Wife, made a year later and covering similar themes – angels, the true spirit of Christmas, etc – with Cary Grant and David Niven filling that James Stewart-shaped gap. It plays at Picturehouses and other venues, as do Mary Poppins and the Bolshoi Ballet's Sleeping Beauty. (various venues).

It's a good year for festive counter-programming in general, actually, partly thanks to...

Why is it that that movies get annoyingly preachy at this time of year? Turn on Lifetime or The Hallmark Channel and you're bound to see a whole host of "soulless person/dysfunctional family meets some magical Christmas source and learns an important holiday lesson that changes their lives" movies.

Personally, we prefer our life lessons doled out in a less hit-you-over-the-head fashion — and with a running time closer to 2 minutes than 2 hours. With that in mind, we undertook the arduous task of scouring through hundreds of Christmas movies to serve up the 12 vital holiday lessons in bite-sized tidbits, leaving you more time for shopping ... or drinking.

What vital holiday lesson does Gremlins have to offer? >>

Next Showing:

Link | Posted 12/25/2012 by reelz

Santa Claus Conquers the Martians | Scrooged | Die Hard | The Muppet Christmas Carol | The Bishop's Wife | Miracle on 34th Street...

At this point of the year, month and week, it had better be looking a lot like Christmas.

With the much-anticipated holiday upon us, television is doing its part, presenting attractions that reflect the spirit of the season in a variety of ways ... some funny, some serious and some simply built for all-out yuletide fun. Here's a roundup of much of what's still left for viewers on the virtual Christmas tree otherwise known as a TV screen.

ABC: This year's "Cma Country Christmas" special, with Jennifer Nettles of Sugarland back as host for the third consecutive year, gets a repeat Sunday, Dec. 23 -- and later that day, the Julie Andrews-starring holiday-season perennial "The Sound of Music" also returns. Monday, Dec. 24, sees repeats of the animated specials "Disney's Prep & Landing" and "Shrek the Halls." And Christmas itself is packed with TV tradition Tuesday, Dec. 25; the morning is marked by the Disney Parks Christmas Day Parade,...

If you're anything like us, then at this time of year you're a sucker for Christmas movies of any kind. You melt and grin over the tender lessons learned, the opening of presents, the sourpuss having a change of heart, the pratfalls, the lovers sharing a kiss in the snow, the realization that Santa actually exists. Oh, and Martians.

We're celebrating our love of Christmas movies, not to mention the holiday itself, with this heartwarming mashup of Christmas cheer. Merry Christmas from all of us here at NextMovie — as well as a multitude of movie characters — to all of you.

Movies Included (Click to Buy):

Holiday Inn | How the Grinch Stole Christmas | Love Actually | Bridget Jones' Diary | The Nightmare Before Christmas | Batman Returns | Pirate Radio | Home Alone | Eight Crazy Nights | Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist | Prancer | Christmas in Connecticut (1945) | The Holiday | A Charlie Brown Christmas | Bad Santa | American Psycho...

Late singer showed dignity and vulnerability in films like 'The Bodyguard' and 'Waiting to Exhale.'

By Ryan J. Downey

Whitney Houston in "Bodyguard"

Photo: Warner Bros.

Whitney Houston will be remembered for her voice, her hit songs, her charismatic presence. As someone who has spent my life sharing equal passion for music and movies, it's particularly noteworthy to me that the biggest hit I associate Houston with is intrinsically tied to a film. Judging by the number of "Whitney, I will always love you" tweets from celebrities and fans on Saturday, I'd say I'm not alone in thinking of her big voice mostly in "I Will Always Love You," which is inseparable from "The Bodyguard."

My late mother was a huge fan of Dolly Parton, who originally wrote and recorded the song that would become a huge hit for Houston on the soundtrack to "The Bodyguard,...

Late singer showed dignity and vulnerability in films like 'The Bodyguard' and 'Waiting to Exhale.'

By Ryan J. Downey

Whitney Houston in "Bodyguard"

Photo: Warner Bros.

Whitney Houston will be remembered for her voice, her hit songs, her charismatic presence. As someone who has spent my life sharing equal passion for music and movies, it's particularly noteworthy to me that the biggest hit I associate Houston with is intrinsically tied to a film. Judging by the number of "Whitney, I will always love you" tweets from celebrities and fans on Saturday, I'd say I'm not alone in thinking of her big voice mostly in "I Will Always Love You," which is inseparable from "The Bodyguard."

My late mother was a huge fan of Dolly Parton, who originally wrote and recorded the song that would become a huge hit for Houston on the soundtrack to "The Bodyguard,...

Kevin Costner, Whitney Houston, The Bodyguard Singer Whitney Houston was found dead at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills earlier today. She was 48. For the time being the cause of death is unknown. Though best remembered for hit songs such as "Where Do Broken Hearts Go" and "I Wanna Dance With Somebody," in the 1990s Houston also appeared in a handful of movies. Her most notable film role by far was in Mick Jackson's The Bodyguard (1992), an unabashedly romantic tale (written by Lawrence Kasdan) co-starring Kevin Costner, then at his peak as a box-office star. Much ado was made at the time because the interethnic romance between Costner (as the bodyguard, a role originally written for Steve McQueen in the '70s) and Houston (as a singer threatened by a stalker, a role originally written for Diana Ross) was never consummated on screen, and even more ado was...

Clark Gable, Loretta Young, The Call of the Wild Judy Lewis, out-of-wedlock daughter of Loretta Young and Clark Gable, died of cancer on Friday, Nov. 25, at a retirement home in the Philadelphia suburb of Gladwyne. She was 76. Young, who was an ardent Catholic, and Gable, then married to Maria Franklin Langham (17 years his senior) had an affair while starring in William A. Wellman's 1935 adventure drama The Call of the Wild. Young had just turned 22, Gable was 34. In a manner similar to the absurd stories of so many Hollywood melodramas of the period, after learning of her pregnancy Young took off for Europe. Upon her return months later, she was reported ill and convalescing at a hospital in the Los Angeles suburb of Venice, where Judy was born Nov. 6, 1935. When the girl was almost two, Young officially adopted her (and a boy, later returned) from an orphanage in San Francisco.

Creator of film special effects who turned an 18-inch model ape into King Kong

In the history of cinema, many children have followed their mothers or fathers into the film business, but few offspring pursued the path of a parent more slavishly than Harry Redmond Jr, who has died aged 101. Like a master craftsman, Harry Redmond Sr passed on the skills of his trade to his son, the trade being the creation of special effects for films. Most notably, they worked together on King Kong (1933), in which a giant gorilla captures an actor, Ann Darrow, played by the "scream queen" Fay Wray.

The Redmonds were important members of the King Kong technical team under the supervision of Willis O'Brien, the pioneer of model animation. Part of their job was to integrate the stop-motion models and animatronics into live-action sequences by means of back projection and travelling mattes. Although the model...

I know, this is the Internet and the immediate reaction to such a question as I pose in the headline is, "Hell no! Censorship sucks! Down with the man!" But this isn't that kind of a conversation. I'm with you 100%. I hate censorship, but there is something to be said for the creativity censorship imbues into artists of all crafts.

Censorship in movies has evolved over the years, from the times when movies needed to be approved by a governing board before they could be exhibited, to today where they receive a specific rating for their content. While the former meant a filmmaker may have to cut their film to get approval, is the latter necessarily better?

Take for example the recent Nc-17 rating for Blue Valentine that had to be appealed down to an R-rating. Then there's the R-rating The King's Speech received due to a single profanity filled...

After the presents are opened, the halls are decked and the roast beast is carved, a lot of folks are looking to hit the movie theater or settle in front of their favorite holiday movies or TV show marathons. Zap2it's got you covered for all your Christmas weekend TV programming.

Friday, Dec. 24

A&E: "Criminal Minds" marathon

ABC Family: 25 Days of Christmas ("Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and the Island of Misfit Toys," "Mickey's Christmas Special," "Winnie the Pooh and Christmas Too," "Jack Frost," "Frosty's Winter Wonderland," "'Tas the Night Before Christmas," "Santa Claus is Comin' to Town," "The Year Without Santa Claus" and "Rudolph's Shiny New Year.")

 

AMC: "Miracle on 34th Street," "White Christmas" marathon

Animal Planet: "Planet Earth" marathon

BBC America: "Doctor Who" marathon

Cartoon Network: Various cartoon holiday episodes

Cmt: "A Smoky Mountain Christmas," "Larry the Cable Guy's Star-studded Christmas Extravaganza," "Larry the Cable Guy...

A Christmas Story Marathon

8/7c TBS

Butter up plenty of popcorn, gather the family and settle in for lots of holiday yuks as this 1983 classic airs in 12 consecutive screenings. Directed by Bob Clark (this is great enough to forgive him for Porky's), and written and wonderfully narrated by humorist Jean Shepherd, the film tracks the misadventures of Ralphie Parker (Peter Billingsley), a beamish lad in the 1940s who wants nothing else for Christmas but a Red Ryder Bb gun. — Dean Maurer

Read on for previews of SportsNation 101 Holiday Jeers, The Bishop's Wife, The Karate Kid, Hawaii Bowl, It's a Wonderful Life and Phineas and Ferb.

Read More >...

Christmas on TV: 2,270 Episodes, Specials, Movies & Marathons on TV for December 2010 are all neartly wrapped up in a bow at our database TV divas site: TVTango.com For M&C, Christmas isn't Christmas without seeing at least these three movies on TV: The Bishop's Wife (1947) Henry Koster's beautiful film starring Cary Grant, David Niven and Loretta Young. Young played Julia, the "wife" and was chic and trim, and Grant played Dudley, the handsome angel who schools her husband Henry (Niven) on what matters in life, especially at Christmas. Bonus scenes for me are the magical refilling Brandy bottle for old Professor Wutheridge (Monty Wooley), poor in finances but rich in knowledge and Christmas spirit, and...

Surviving Christmas (Family Dramedy)

TBS, 8:00 Am Et

A lonely millionaire (Ben Affleck) pays a family to spend the holiday with them in his childhood home.

The Bishop's Wife (Sugarplum Romance)

Turner Classic Movies, 12 Pm Et

A suave angel (Cary Grant) saves a bishop (David Niven) and his wife (Loretta Young) from spiritual doubt and marital woe.

The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause (Naughty v. Nice)

ABC Family, 9 Pm Et

A vindictive Jack Frost (Martin Short) tries to freeze Santa (Tim Allen) out of Christmas.

What else is showing this season? See our The 12 Flavors of Christmas - 2010 Holiday TV Movie Guide.

Next Showing:

Link | Posted 12/12/2010 by reelz

Ben Affleck | David Niven | Loretta Young | Surviving Christmas | The Bishop's Wife | The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause...

The chestnuts won't just be roasting on an open fire at this time of year; they'll also be coming to a screen near you. Christmas movies are a time-honoured tradition of saccharine family values and simulated bonhomie but, having realised that most people get enough of this at home, the smarter cinemas are at last offering alternatives.

The chestnut of choice this year is Frank Capra's It's A Wonderful Life, which, despite its icing sugar of schmaltz, could strike a chord with its themes of relinquished ambitions and financial hardship. The film is the centrepiece of the BFI Southbank's Rediscovering Frank Capra season (SE1, to 30 Dec, bfi.org.uk), and joining it in many places is another Jimmy Stewart festive classic, Lubitsch's The Shop Around The Corner.

In a similar vein, the Christmas seasons at the Glasgow Film Theatre (to 24 Dec, gft.org.uk) and Edinburgh Filmhouse (Sat to 24 Dec,...

From "Watchmen" to "Cloverfield" to "Dr. Strangelove," the Independent Film Channel counts down the 50 greatest movie trailers of all time. Watch, discuss and let us know if there's a trailer you've always loved.

IFC's 50 Greatest Trailers of All Time50. "Night of the Iguana" (1964)

Richard Burton plays a troubled Episcopal clergyman who escorts a busload of middle-aged Baptist women on a tour of the Mexican coast, while coming to terms with his past. Also stars Deborah Kerr and Ava Gardner.

Scott Stewart’s new film Legion opens on Friday, January 22 and we’ve decided to take a cinematic angelic look back at the best angels on the big screen. angels of death, banished angels, space angels and troubled angels… whatever the interpretation, you won’t find any cute little porcelain angels with fluffy white wings a golden halos on their heads. Behold, our Top Ten List of the best Angel characters portrayed in the movies!

10. Don Cheadle as Cash, The Family Man

Say what you will about The Family Man. It’s a half-assed It’S A Wonderful Life. It’s Nicolas Cage trying way too hard for yet another Oscar. I liked it better when it was called Mr. Destiny. It’s Brett Ratner, ’nuff said. But, the film has a pretty cool angel played by a pretty cool guy. Don Cheadle could sleepwalk through most of his performances...

Magnificent Seven, The Ring, Psycho, The Preacher's Wife – some remakes are an improvement, some are an abysmal waste of time. Joe Queenan judges the pack

In 1992, Abel Ferrara made a very dark, very depressing movie called Bad Lieutenant. In it, Harvey Keitel played a morally bankrupt police officer who seeks redemption by investigating the rape of a nun who refuses to bring charges against her assailant, turning the Bad Lieutenant into the Mad Lieutenant. The film did nothing at the box office, and is remembered mostly because it is the motion picture in which Keitel shows off his penis. There was at the time no great demand for Keitel – a fine actor, but never a matinee idol – to show off his penis, even though it was a very splendid penis indeed, nor has there been any grassroots groundswell of support for this sort of thing afterwards.

Not so long ago,...

If angels are indeed the new vampires, as Dustin commented on earlier, then we've got something to look forward to: more remakes! Okay, that doesn't sound so good, and honestly we don't need another go at The Bishop's Wife, Angels in the Outfield or Wings of Desire, all of which were terribly redone in the '90s. But there is one film in particular that will perfectly fit with the whole teeny bopper demographic and be a welcome rehash.

I'm talking about Date with an Angel, which proved writer-director Tom McLoughlin was capable of making an even worse movie than Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives. Basically a rip-off of Splash with a hot angel instead of a hot mermaid, Date with an Angel stars soap actor Michael E. Knight, French actress Emmanuelle Beart and Phoebe Cates, who looks as bad here as she looks good in Fast Times at Ridgemont High...

A Dennis the Menace Christmas (Dickensian Re-Do)

ABC Family, 8:30 Am Et

Dennis (Maxwell Perry Cotton) and Mr. Wilson (Robert Wagner) continue their neighborhood antics, this time aided by three Christmas angels.

Christmas in Connecticut (1945) (Classic Cheer)

TCM, 12 Pm Et

An urban food writer (Barbara Stanwyck) posing as a farm mother must play holiday host to a Navy hero (Dennis Morgan).

Dora's Christmas Carol Adventure (Dickensian Re-Do)

Nick, 8 Pm Et

When Swiper tries to steal Dora's Christmas Star, the duo travels to the past, present, and future.

The Bishop’s Wife (Sugarplum Romance)

ReelzChannel, 8 Pm Et

A suave angel (Cary Grant) saves a bishop (David Niven) and his wife (Loretta Young) from spiritual doubt and marital woe.

What else is showing this season? See the complete Holiday TV Movie Guide: The 12 Flavors of Christmas.

And if you're wondering what to buy the movie lovers on your shopping list, check out our Holiday Gifts store.

This year I am already firmly in the Christmas spirit, and it isn't even Halloween yet. I am checking my store for the first arrivals of the crack cocaine of the Yuletide, Egg Nog. I have dug out all my favorite holiday films: "The Ref", "The Bishop's Wife," "Bad Santa" and 'Scrooged" are queued up in a neat stack awaiting a day I can pretend there's real weather in Los Angeles, and be at one with my fireplace and chaise, and hopefully a glass of the Nog. It was only a matter of time before some bright bulb at a studio mined the voice over gold talent of William Shatner, who has a mellifluous and sly delivery honed...