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I'm an outlier but I think this movie is a near perfect Christmas movie. Not the best movie ever but oen of the best in the genre.
It has a top-shelf cast, good script, tight story line and, with Whitney Houston, excellent music. And it hits the perfect wistful tone for a Christmas movie.
Of course Denzel Washington can act but Whitney Houston completely holds her own and absolutely glows. Gregory Hines is the just right amount of bad guy for a Christmas movie. Courtney Vance is spot-on as the "down to earth" husband. The kind of person Houston can be tempted away from but fall back in love with.
I don't watch it every year (I don't watch any Christmas movie every year) but I could watch it again. It really has everything. Penny Marshall's underappreciated gem.
It has a top-shelf cast, good script, tight story line and, with Whitney Houston, excellent music. And it hits the perfect wistful tone for a Christmas movie.
Of course Denzel Washington can act but Whitney Houston completely holds her own and absolutely glows. Gregory Hines is the just right amount of bad guy for a Christmas movie. Courtney Vance is spot-on as the "down to earth" husband. The kind of person Houston can be tempted away from but fall back in love with.
I don't watch it every year (I don't watch any Christmas movie every year) but I could watch it again. It really has everything. Penny Marshall's underappreciated gem.
If the quote "Living well is the best revenge" inspires you, then you are the right demographic for "Ella McCay".
In this movie, the good people win. Flawed, wounded and messy but fundamentally good people. And the world is better for them winning.
The dark times of the Great Depression and WWII mostly inspired Film Noir but there were optimistic movies that swam against the current, like "Mr. Smith". Our current era has created endless Dystopian Films but this movie swims the other direction.
It's not a masterpiece like "Mr. Smith" - the plot arc is too jumbled for that. It also kind of fails in developing two important characters: Woody Harrelson as Ella's father; and Jack Lowden as her husband. They are highly influential antagonists in Ella's life but the script doesn't give us much insight into them. They both kind of seem like nice guys who do bad things. But why?
There is an abundance of good performances in supporting roles, which probably contributes to the jumbled story telling. But I had no problem following the plot and it kept my attention throughout.
I expect audiences to like this movie better than the critics. It's not a movie for the jaded. It's a movie for the optimists. It's like a revenge fantasy for good-hearted people. Ella McCay ends up living the good life, on her terms.
In this movie, the good people win. Flawed, wounded and messy but fundamentally good people. And the world is better for them winning.
The dark times of the Great Depression and WWII mostly inspired Film Noir but there were optimistic movies that swam against the current, like "Mr. Smith". Our current era has created endless Dystopian Films but this movie swims the other direction.
It's not a masterpiece like "Mr. Smith" - the plot arc is too jumbled for that. It also kind of fails in developing two important characters: Woody Harrelson as Ella's father; and Jack Lowden as her husband. They are highly influential antagonists in Ella's life but the script doesn't give us much insight into them. They both kind of seem like nice guys who do bad things. But why?
There is an abundance of good performances in supporting roles, which probably contributes to the jumbled story telling. But I had no problem following the plot and it kept my attention throughout.
I expect audiences to like this movie better than the critics. It's not a movie for the jaded. It's a movie for the optimists. It's like a revenge fantasy for good-hearted people. Ella McCay ends up living the good life, on her terms.
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