User reviews

Queen Latifah is the reason we attended the advance screening of PERFECT HOLIDAY in our area. If she is your only reason for viewing this movie, you might be as disappointed as we were. My husband would have bolted after 15 minutes, but in deference to me, he sat through the entire movie. He did laugh once, towards the end of the movie, at a cryptic comment uttered by Terrence Howard's character in front of a closed outlet mall. I won't spoil the movie for you by telling you the line, but you will probably laugh, too. Speaking of Terrence Howard, he must have owed Queen Latifah BIG TIME to appear in this movie, especially as the humbug to her holiday.

The movie has some warm, touching moments, with a little bit (very little bit) of comedy and (more than a little bit) love. It is just too bland and average to warrant a night out, especially at today's ticket prices. Wait for the DVD, or better yet, wait for cable (unless you really have to see the Queen). Please don't spoil your perfect holidays by going out of your way to see this movie.

I can witness why all the bad hovering reviews are floating around this film and I can see why everyone is so confused about that. This movie was OK could've been better but a little bit more peachier, Santa dies, the boy realizes that his mom won't be capable to get a new husband, and lots of crying. Could've gone better but in my opinion, it was alright. A young girl wants to get a new husband and suddenly, she and her brother realizes that they won't get the husband so he starts crying and Santa helps him rely on his crying to get through disappointing situations. It tells how he might get a new husband for them or not. This is an uplifting Christmas Spirit and very original but it's not really my fav. Could've been better...

One thing you can say about The Perfect Holiday is that it's slightly less idiotic than most of the recent crop of holiday movies. It doesn't suffer from the same juvenile slapstick bits as Deck The Halls, Surviving Christmas, or Christmas With The Kranks. Furthermore, it's nice to see people of color getting a story they can call their own, while all of those other titles (forgettable as they may be) depict Christmas as something that exists entirely in a white-bread suburban world. It's a shame that this movie isn't more original. It's filled with talented actors, but the script is at the level of a TV sitcom holiday special. Morris Chestnut and Gabrielle Union do they best they can with their cookie-cutter parts, but the audience knows from Minute One exactly where the jokes are going.

Queen Latifah vanity project (she produced) story of a single mom with three kids looking to find a life beyond her kids and ends up with a guy playing Santa.

Manufactured "feel good" flick with Latifah in a Greek chorus/on screen narrator role. Its not bad as such but awfully artificial in a way that is more ideal than real. take for example the opening bit of the guy chasing the money down the street, its a cutesy idea that is too artificial to illicit any reaction other than "Oh Please". Actually that kind of sums up the whole movie "oh please". This is holiday "goodness" so plastic as to squeeze all of the life out of it.

If you must see this wait for it to show up on cable where you won't have to pay ten bucks a head for something you can't get away from by changing the channel

THE PERFECT HOLIDAY is another one of those typical holiday films that some have touted as the "first African-American ensemble" that plays like its a television special than a theatrical release. This is another one of those hair-splitting claims that requires us to consider another movie about another over-the-top out of control African-American family going through the motions around the most joyous time of the year. For one,Gabrielle Union and Morris Chestnut make a sexy caramel couple. Maybe that explains why they're always paired up in movies. In this case you didn't get enough of their chocolate combo work in such films as "The Brothers","Two Get Play That Game",and "Breaking All The Rules". This time around they're back in "The Perfect Holiday". "Holiday" has Chestnut playing a struggling singer-songwriter working part time as a mall Santa. Apparently, this must be at the progressive mall if they're hiring a brotha to play of the traditionally alabaster St. Nick.

When a little girl(Khail Bryant)hops on this fake Santa's lap,all she asks for is a man to pay her mom(Union)a compliment she tells her friends she would like. Once our Kriss Kringle sees how mochalicious this girl's mama is,he decides to fulfill the wish himself. This sets off a farcial courtship between the two,which mostly has him keeping an eye out for one of her other children(Malik Hammond),who tries to prank this fool out of his mom's life(Fortunately,baby girl hips him to her big bro's tricks whenever he's in Santa mode.)The boy wants his mom to get back together with their father(Charlie Murphy of Chappelle's Show),an egostistical rapper our part-time Father Christmas-who doesn't know he's going out with his ex-is also hoping to work with. As cute and cuddly as this sounds,I have seen better movies with the same plot line and it is basically forgettable. What follows next is a series of events so uninspired and delusional that an old soul like Father Christmas couldn't save this fiasco of a film with a strong black cast. And speaking of the supporting cast,the actors are mostly made up of former UPN and WB sitcom players not to mention former comedians(Faizon Love from WB's "The Parenthood"and was also in the first "Friday" film opposite Ice Cube and Chris Tucker;Rachel True from "Half and Half";Jill Marie Jones-aka Toni Childs from "Girlfriends",and I know some of you wonder whatever happened to her after her departure from that show...;not to mention comedian Katt Williams and a host of others from "BET's Comicview")who look as if they took the job because,they didn't have much else to do.

The baffling parts of this are the special guest appearances by Queen Latifah and Terrance Howard as the night-and-day spirits who decide the fate of these characters. Terrance Howard is totally waste here(who looks like he doesn't want to belong in this in the first place and for an actor with an impaccable capacity of playing good roles),and it shows in some of the performances since the only saving grace here is Latifah herself who keeps this movie afloat,since Latifah's production company Flavor Unit films produced this movie which explains why she is there(Latifah serves as executive producer). But it is nice to see Union and Chestnut once again on the screen making black beautiful which is the only saving grace here.

I have to say that I'm a bit disappointed to see this film getting a below average rating. Being quite a romantic man I have seen most of the Christmas romantic comedy such as 'Christmas in Boston', 'His and Her Christmas', 'Christmas do over', 'The Twelve days of Christmas Eve' etc and I am adamant that 'The Perfect Holiday' stands level with these and in some cases it's better. The story is simple and real to life and believable and the acting is excellent. Gabrielle Union is one of the best romantic comedy actresses around, probably the Afro American equivalent of Katherine Heigle. I just wish she got more starring roles, Gabrielle Union is a truly beautiful woman. I gladly give this film a seven out of ten, my only concern is what was the Queen Latifah and Terence Howard characters. Nevertheless I loved the film and I am watching it again as I write this review.

This movie was OK, probably the best thing I liked was the Perfect Christmas song in it. I'd like to hear that song on the radio. In this movie, Queen Latiefa plays the narrator role: maybe an angel since she uses a little magic. She introduces the story of a song writer Benjamin, whom is trying to get a dead with record star Jizzy. To make money in the mean time, he is a mall Santa. Next comes Jizzy's ex wife, Nancy, and her kids. The kids tell Santa, aka Ben, that their mom needs a complement. So, Ben takes it on himself to find a way to introduce himself. Nancy tries to track him down and two meet again and start dating. Nancy's oldest son John John dislikes Ben and plays pranks; however, Ben knows about them in advance because the other kids tell Santa what's going down. Eventually, Ben gets a call from Jizzy about liking the song he wrote and then he finds out Nancy is his ex, which leads to complications. But being a kid film, you know it will work out in the end.

FINAL VERDICT: Kids will probably enjoy this more. There's just not much to the plot.

The movie was a great movie. Was it predictable? Yes all family movies are. It's wasn't a mystery or action flick. But it was very good. Morris Chestnut was good. There was just enough comic relief to make some parts funny. I liked the way they really focused on the older son's dislike of the "new guy" in his mother's life. The supporting cast members were very good. Lots of stars with little roles that made me laugh. They showed a lot of depth in the characters. Queen Latifah, Katt Williams, among others were great! If you are looking for a nice wholesome feel good movie. This is the one for you! Not Oscar worthy but definitely a good DVD Christmas movie.

Dejavu! Oh wait…it just seems like I have seen the same movie a hundred times. The Perfect Holiday was pretty much the same feel as the Last Holiday, Diary of a Mad Black Woman, The Best Man, and Are We There Yet? Needless to say that it was extremely predictable. They all reminded me of each other so much that I did some research; I was surprised to find that they all had different writers and directors.

I felt that this type of movie is not for Terrence Howard. He is a much better actor than this cliché type of holiday movie. He is already well established, he did great films such as Crash and Hustle and Flow. Why this film?

Though predictable and a cookie cutter holiday film, I enjoyed The Perfect Holiday. It's light, cute and funny. Who doesn't love a cliché holiday flick?

Gabrielle Union, Queen Latifah, and Morris Chestnut are always in the same type of movies. They are good actors. I don't know why they choose to type cast themselves?

This isn't much of a review because it wasn't much of a movie. It was a cute, mindless, feel good holiday film. You see it once during the holidays and never think about it ever again.

My seven and ten year old daughters loved this movie. They laughed so hard I couldn't hear. For those of us who grew up watching "The Wonderful World of Disney," it was refreshing to see a clean movie. Keep in mind that this is not "The Cookout." I enjoyed watching Faizon Love return to a family orientated roll. Morris Chestnut did a great job as the man every single mom would love to know better. And of course, Gabrielle Union, is always a believable actress. As for Terrance Howard, everything he has done since "Living Single," has been gold. Although I love any and everything about Queen Latifah, I think she did a great job making a wonderful family movie.

The Perfect Holiday is definitely a cute movie, but despite its PG rating it's better for adults. A lot of kids movies have inappropriate parts or innuendos, but the pens thing was so obvious. Also, the music video for the kids Dad was too much for a kids movies. There were some asian stereotypes, and it was cringe.

Morris Chestnut and Gabrielle Union can make any role good, so of course all their scenes were great. All of the actors committed though, and everyone did well. Despite the predictable and sometimes awkward script everyone gave a fulfilling performance. The two leads are just who everyone showed up to watch, so that's why they got a special shout-out.

I think the film should have either become more kid friendly and cut some of the rap storyline, or it should have went for a PG-13 rating.

I would still recommend watching it to get into the holiday spirit, but not putting it on a party. If you need a predominantly black Christmas movie there are only so many options, but there are still better ones.

I saw "Perfect Holiday" and "I Am Legend" on the same day and to tell you the truth after the dreariness of "Legend", this was a nice movie to cheer me and my wife up. I mean we enjoyed Legend too, but this one made me feel better with the touching love story between Gabrielle Union and Morris Chesnutt and how the small children interacted in the movie.

The story line was predictable going in to it, but it was better than I expected and if you rely on others comments, you are missing a nice charmer. The writing or character development isn't as profound as the other two African -American themed ensemble movies of the past two months, "This Christmas" or "Why did I get married?, but it is still charming enough for families and probably geared more toward younger families with kids where the other two movies were for more of an adult or older teen audience.

Although both Queen Latifah and Terrance Howard have small roles, I hope no one was going to the movie expecting to see them. As someone stated earlier, I believe Howard just did it as a favor to his friends.

As far as the box office receipts and interest, this is a movie that got lost in the shuffle of other so called black movie releases. Either there are none or too many. It probably should been released the Friday before Will Smith', I Am Legend and when "Awake" was the only new movie debuting and it probably would have made a few more dollars. Unfortnately even though it open two days before "Legend", it got caught up in that juggernaut and got lost like all other movies did with the exception the "Chipmunks". With "The Great Debaters" coming out Christmas Day, the Perfect Holiday will be gone from theaters before the holidays are over. Rent the DVD when it comes out and watch it with your toddlers...you all will enjoy it!!

Most of the people writing these reviews watched the movie for queen Latifah, I watched it because it looked like a cute, romantic, holiday themed movie - which is exactly what it was. It honestly makes you think, maybe pure love does exist.. the way the male lead cares not only about the female lead, but also her kids. It's sweet and endearing!

Would I watch this movie again, yes I probably would. It's such a heart warming movie. I would say their relationship moved kinda fast (even though no timeline was given), but if we are being honest time doesn't determine how much you love a person.

I also love that the kids go to Santa to have their wishes granted, such a sweet exchange. I also love all the characters' dynamics. The main couple have great chemistry, their eye contact gives me butterflies.

I am shocked the movie is rated so low. I would recommend this movie if you want to be comforted and have unrealistic expectations for love. Oh to be loved at first sight.

I wouldn't say this is in my top 10 favourite romance movies, but it's a good watch!

Love In The Time Of Christmas. Good clean Christmas family humor.

Love it! Love it! Love it! Family friendly. Not over the top. Funny, emotional etc. Real. My favorite actors, Morris Chestnut and Gabrielle, who have amazing chemistry when they collaborate, brought it once again!!! They are truly great actors, who aren't getting the recognition they deserve. Love it!

This movie was such a wonderful love story at Christmastime. A divorced mom who just wants to get on with life and love, daughter who wants Santa to make her mom's wishes come true, and a teenage son who just wants his parents to get back together. Well, Santa delivers, though the sleigh ride to love was not easy!!!

GREAT XMAS MOVIE TO WATCH WITH THE FAMILY

danceability-1, Amsterdam Holland

I can't believe all the poor reviews of this movie. This is one of my holiday favorites because it's a feel good, holiday themed movie with a top notch cast who also happen to be some of my favorite actors. In addition, it's great to see a majority African American cast especially in a family-friendly film. I think there's credible romantic chemistry between Gabrielle Union & Morris Chestnut, and the supporting actors hold their own as friends, family and co-workers.

No, it won't win any Academy Awards, and I think it may have been a better fit for the small screen than a theatrical release. However, once I stumbled across it on cable a few years back, my holidays just aren't complete unless I watch it.

It serves it's purpose as a cute and charming Holiday film. There is romance, laughs, and Christmas magic. Morris Chestnut and Gabrielle Union have never been so likable. The kids are adorable and the oldest son is quite funny throughout the film. It's no more predictable then higher grossing "This Christmas". People wary of this film might have been expecting too much from a family film. I've seen it with a family and their were laughs and great smiles for Charlie Murphy's rapping and Morris Chestnut's courting. Terrence Howard's appearance were always quite funny his Bah Humbug character was a nice unique add to the story. The supporting actors Faizon Love and Katt Williams guarantee a laugh for anyone willing to give this film a chance. No it's not as heartwarming as "It's a Wonderful Life" or musical as "White Christmas" , but it's found it's very own niche. The movie was like a Christmas story being read. It definitely put me in the holiday spirit.

Does Gabrielle Union look like a tired mother of three? No, I don't think so either, but in The Perfect Holiday, she struggles to keep a handle on her brood while battling the neglect of her hip-hop singer ex-husband, Charlie Murphy. When her young daughter overhears her complaining to her friends that she hasn't been complimented by a man in a long time, she passes the request on to a mall Santa, Morris Chestnut. Santa takes one look at the beautiful woman in question and guarantees the little girl's wish. It's such a cute scene when he tracks her down at the dry cleaners, catches her eye and says, "You're a very attractive woman." Cut to a close-up: he turns back at her and gives her a sparkling smile before leaving the shop.

When Gabrielle asks him out (because who wouldn't?), her kids have mixed feelings about her dating again. Gabrielle's oldest son still holds onto hope that his parents will get back together, so he doesn't approve of Morris horning in on the family. The young daughter likes seeing her mom happy, and she repeatedly returns to Santa (not knowing he's the new boyfriend) with tips and requests. This is such a sweet Christmas movie. Weaving in the children's involvement with further requests to Santa is a cute touch, since any single mom knows the difficulties of getting her kids and boyfriend to like each other.

Faison Love, Katt Williams, Jill Marie Jones, and Rachel True play the leads' sidekicks, and Queen Latifah and Terrence Howard join in the mix as naughty and nice Christmas spirits. To me, Gabrielle Union and Morris Chestnut make the movie. They're both gorgeous, and they have great chemistry together. Gabrielle doesn't usually get the chance to play in such a sweet role; seeing her get nervous when she dolls up for a date is very cute. If you haven't seen this one yet, rent it. It's very relaxing to see a movie with payphones and landlines, no emails, and CDs instead of digital music.