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Christmas Reviews: 2011
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Christmas Reviews
2011s
This year I need to fight to get into the Christmas spirit more then ever. This time of the year is always tough for me as most of you here already know... but this year more then ever for some reason. So I thought I would start some Christmas viewing earlier then usual and see if I can snap myself out of this funk.

So I thought that I would create this thread and review whatever Christmas Movies/TV Eps/Specials that I watch between now and Dec. 25th.

I have loads of Christmas episodes... to many to list. But as for Christmas Movies and Specials... Here is what I have to choose from...

Titles in Bold are from my unwatched pile.
- An Angel for Christmas
- Beyond Tomorrow
- Black Christmas (1974)
- Black Xmas (2006)
- Christmas Evil
- A Christmas Story
- The Christmas Tree
- A Christmas Without Snow
- Cricket on the Hearth
- Don't Open Till Christmas
- Elf
- The Family Stone
- Frosty the Snowman
- Frosty Returns
- The Good Witch's Wedding
- Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer
- The Great Rupert
- Gremlins
- Home Alone
- How the Grinch Stole Christmas
- How the Grinch Stole Christmas (animated)
- It's a Wonderful Life
- Jack Frost
- Jeff Dunham's Very Special Christmas Special
- Jingle All the Way
- The Little Drummer Boy
- Little Women: Jo's Story
- Little Women: Meg's Story
- Miracle on 34th Street (1947)
- Miracle on 34th Street (1955)
- Mr. Magoo's Christmas Carol
- National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation
- The Nativity
- A Nightmare Before Christmas
- The Pilgrimage Play
- Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
- Santa Claus (1959)
- Santa Claus Conquers the Martians
- Santa Claus is Coming to Town
- The Santa Clause
- The Santa Clause 2
- Scrooge (1935)
- Silent Night, Bloody Night
- A Very Brady Christmas

As usual... if there is something here you would like me to review please feel free to ask. I won't promise... but I will try to get to it before Christmas.
Pete
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Grey's Anatomy: The Complete Second Season: Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer (2005/United States)
Length: 43 Min.
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.78:1
Audio: English: Dolby Digital: 5.1, Commentary: Dolby Digital: Mono
Subtitles: English

Stars:
Ellen Pompeo
Sandra Oh
Katherine Heigl
Justin Chambers
T. R. Knight

Plot:
Cristina and Burke squabble over a young boy's heart transplant, as the interns pitch in to help Alex pass his upcoming exam and Meredith reminds Izzie about the spirit of the season.


Extras:
Audio Commentary
Closed Captioned

My Thoughts:
A good Christmas episode. I like how they made it Cristina that gave the boy the will to live... what with her being so anti-holidays. I also liked the idea of how the doctors have to be careful of what is said while a patient is asleep and they are doing surgery (in this case brain surgery) because you do not know what will find it's way to the subconscious and effect a person in a personal way.

My Rating: 4/5
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Grey's Anatomy: Complete Sixth Season: Holidaze (2009/United States)
Length: 0 Min.
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.78:1
Audio: English: Dolby Digital: 5.1
Subtitles: English, French, Spanish

Stars:
Ellen Pompeo as Dr. Meredith Grey
Sandra Oh as Dr. Cristina Yang
Justin Chambers as Dr. Alex Karev
Chandra Wilson as Dr. Miranda Bailey
James Pickens, Jr. as Dr. Richard Webber
Sara Ramirez as Dr. Callie Torres

Plot:
As Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's pass, Miranda gets a visit from her father, William who disapproves of her choices in life. Mark and Lexie cope with an arrival of a woman from his past. Thatcher questions the Chief's recent behavior as Meredith comes to his defense.


My Thoughts:
As you can see from the overview... this episode not only covers Christmas... but also Thanksgiving and New Years Eve. Not a very cheerful episode... but that is to be expected from a medical drama. It does have a couple interesting medical cases though. A good episode... but far from the best that Grey's Anatomy has to offer.

My Rating: 3/5
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House M.D.: Season One: Damned if You Do (2004/United States)
Length: 43 Min.
Video: Widescreen 1.78:1
Audio: English: Dolby Digital: 5.1
Subtitles: English, Spanish

Stars:
Hugh Laurie
Lisa Edelstein
Omar Epps
Robert Sean Leonard
Jennifer Morrison

Plot:
Original Air Date: 12/14/04
A nun appears in the ER with red and swollen palms, but when an allergy prescription for her goes awry, House and the crew wouldn't mind a little divine intervention in the case.

Extras:
Scene Access

My Thoughts:
This is a very good medical drama... one of my top favorites. It is a good episode. I enjoyed the storyline. While they make it obvious that it is a Christmas episode... Christmas isn't the main focus of the episode.

My Rating: 4/5
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That '70s Show: Holiday Edition (1998/United States)
Length: 22 Min.
Video: Full Frame 1.33:1
Audio: English: Dolby Digital: 2-Channel Stereo
Subtitles: None

Stars:
Topher Grace
Mila Kunis
Ashton Kutcher
Danny Masterson
Laura Prepon

Plot:
Deck the halls with this far out DVD collection featuring 10 beloved amd outlandish Holiday-themed episodes together in one festive and hilarious DVD package! Join Eric, Kelso, Hyde, Fez, Donna and Jackie as they celebrate Christmas, Thanksgiving, Halloween and more, 70s style!

Episode:
The Best Christmas Ever
Eric gets permission to have a Christmas party in the basement. Red gives Eric money to buy the family Christmas tree, but the guys chop down a tree on the interstate and keep the money for beer. And Hyde wants to buy a special Christmas gift for Donna.

Extras:
None

My Thoughts:
A fun episode that has a few good laughs. This is a show that I haven't seen many episodes of... but always wanted to watch all the way through. While this DVD has episodes for a few different holidays... there is mostly Christmas episodes. Matter of fact half the episodes on the disc (5 Episodes) are Christmas ones. So you should see at least some more reviewed here before too long.

My Rating: 4/5
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Title: Chasing Christmas: Widescreen
Year: 2005
Director: Ron Oliver
Rating: Rated PG : Some Language, Sensuality, Thematic Elements, and Violence
Length: 81 Min.
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.78:1
Audio: English: Dolby Digital: 5.1, English: Dolby Digital: 2-Channel Stereo
Subtitles: Spanish

Stars:
Tom Arnold
Andrea Roth
Leslie Jordan
Brittney Wilson
Robert Clarke
Jed Rees

Plot:
Christmas isn't coming early, late, or at all for the bitterly divorced Jack Cameron. This modern-day Scrooge hates Santa and any soul who loves Christmas. Jack gets a Christmas wake-up call from the Ghost of Christmas Past, who suddenly decides to take a vacation, leaving Jack in the past. Now Jack must team up with the gorgeous Ghost of Christmas Present to save the future of Christmas.

Extras:
Scene Access
Feature Trailers
Bonus Trailers
Closed Captioned

My Thoughts:
This is a movie that one of my brothers rented from Netflix. So far 2 of my brothers watched it and they both enjoyed it. So between that and the fact that I always liked the story of A Christmas Carol I thought I would give it a chance despite it having Tom Arnold in it. As I never cared for him at all. Unfortunately it seems they liked it quite a bit more then I did. Sure it had a chuckle or two in it. But for the most part it was barely entertaining enough to keep my attention for the entire movie. What enjoyment I did get from this one came from the work Leslie Jordan did in it. I definitely got a kick out of seeing that little guy tossing Tom Arnold around like a sack of potatoes in the beginning of the movie. I would say this one is barely an average Christmas movie.

My Rating: 2.5/5
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The Big Bang Theory: The Complete Second Season: The Bath Item Gift Hypothesis (2008/United States)
Length: 22 Min.
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.78:1
Audio: English: Dolby Digital: 2-Channel Stereo, Portuguese: Dolby Digital: 2-Channel Stereo
Subtitles: Chinese, English, French, Portuguese, Spanish, Thai

Stars:
Johnny Galecki
Jim Parsons
Kaley Cuoco
Simon Helberg
Kunal Nayyar

Plot:
Penny gives Sheldon the most exciting, wonderful, amazing Christmas present ever. Sheldon gives Penny soap.


Extras:
None

My Thoughts:
An absolutely hilarious episode! I loved every minute of it! Once again it is Sheldon that steals the story. First his obsession of what to give Penny when he finds out that Penny got him a Christmas gift.. then his reaction to that gift was I don't know... it couldn't have been done any better! I even liked the side story of the good looking scientist taking out Penny.  Probably one of the best episodes of the entire series so far!

My Rating: 5/5
Pete
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The Big Bang Theory: The Complete Third Season: The Maternal Congruence (2009/United States)
Length: 22 Min.
Video: Widescreen 1.78:1
Audio: English: Dolby Digital: 2-Channel Stereo, Portuguese: Dolby Digital: 2-Channel Stereo
Subtitles: Chinese, English, French, Portuguese, Spanish, Thai

Stars:
Johnny Galecki
Jim Parsons
Kaley Cuoco
Simon Helberg
Kunal Nayyar

Plot:
I saw Mommy kissing...who? Christmastime brings Leonard’s mother and a number of surprises, including that smooch.

Extras:
Nonr

My Thoughts:
While I still enjoy this series very much... this Christmas episode just wasn't up to the challenge. Especially compared to the excellent season 2 Christmas episode. I mean sure... a good episode... it had a laugh or two in it for me... I have just grown to expect so much more then an average episode from this series.

My Rating: 3/5
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Hart of Dixie: Hairdo and Holidays
Zoe and Lemon's rivalry heats up when they coach Lemon's sister and Rose separately for a pageant that Lemon's sister is the favorite to win; and Wade and George go in search for a Christmas tree for the town square.

Stars:
Rachel Bilson as Dr. Zoe Hart
Jaime King as Lemon Breeland
Cress Williams as Lavon Hayes
Wilson Bethel as Wade Kinsella
Scott Porter as George Tucker

My Thoughts:
This is a new Medical series that started just this season on the CW. And a new favorite of mine. It also happens to be the first new Christmas episode I have seen for this season. This series made me realize who Rachel Bilson is. Because of this series (and thanks to a friend that gave it to me) I started to watch The O.C. which she was in several years back. While I enjoyed this episode quite a bit... it wasn't the best the series has to offer.

My Rating: 3.5/5
Pete
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Christmas Treats: Special DVD Collection (1962/)
Length: 218 Min.
Video: Full Frame 1.33:1
Audio: English: Dolby Digital: Mono, English: Dolby Digital: 2-Channel Stereo
Subtitles: English


Plot:
Delicious Holiday Classics from 9 of your favorite TV Comedies.

The Beverly Hillbillies
Christmas at the Clampetts
Original Airdate: 12/25/63
Christmas brings great cheer for the Clampetts along with lots of fancy gifts from the Drysdales that has got this country clan totally mystified.

The Lucy Show
Together for Christmas
Original Airdate: 12/24/62
Lucy wants turkey; Vivian wants goose. When the Carmichaels and the Bagleys spend their first Christmas together, no one can agree on the traditions.

Petticoat Junction
Cannonball Christmas
Original Airdate: 12/24/63
Bedloe is a real Scrooge for visiting Hooterville during the holidays. He even has a court order to take control of the train, threatening to ruin Christmas.

Happy Days
Richie Branches Out
Original Airdate: 12/7/76
Richie (Ron Howard) goes to extremes to receive his Christmas wish: to meet the Wisconsin Cola poster girl.

Laverne & Shirley
O Come All Ye Bums
Original Airdate: 12/19/78
Laverne (Penny Marshal) and Shirley (Cindy Williams) raise money to save the annual Pizza Bowl Christmas Dinner for the less fortunate.

Mork & Mindy
Mork's First Christmas
Original Airdate: 12/13/78
Mork (Robin Williams) is overwhelmed by his first Christmas experience until his friends show him the true meaning of the season.

The Odd Couple
Scrooge Gets An Oscar
Original Airdate: 12/17/70
Oscar Ousts Felix, and in a nightmarish version of Dickens' "A Christmas Carol," sees himself as Ebenezer Madison, haunted by his past misdeeds.

Cheers
The Spy Who Came In For A Cold One
Original Airdate: 12/16/82
An Englishman visits Cheers and tells tall tales of being a World War II spy. Everyone is impressed except Diane (Shelley Long).

Love, American Style
One Segment Intitled:
Love And The Christmas Punch
Original Airdate: 12/17/72
Christmas Eve has never been this fun or sexy when this segment of "Love, American Style" takes over, with hilarious slapstick results.

Extras:
Bonus Trailers

My Thoughts:
I just finished watching this disc of classic comedies. 9 fun Christmas episodes. Though of course some were better then others. A couple of them Christmas was just the background setting for the episode. They made no big deal out of it in the storyline at all. Such as the episode of Cheers. Over-all a nice collection worth pulling out this time of the year.

My Rating: 4/5
Pete
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House M.D.: Season Three: Merry Little Christmas (2006/United States)
Length: 44 Min.
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.78:1
Audio: English: Dolby Digital: 5.1
Subtitles: English, Spanish

Stars:
Hugh Laurie
Lisa Edelstein
Omar Epps
Robert Sean Leonard
Jennifer Morrison

Plot:
It’s the time for peace and goodwill to all, but House feels none of it when he discovers that Wilson has ratted his Vicodin problem to Detective Tritter.

Extras:
None

My Thoughts:
Another very good episode of House. I really enjoyed the storyline and the medical mystery of this one. It is a pretty down episode.... the only thing dealing with Christmas here is the background. Nothing at all in the storyline.

My Rating: 4/5
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Title: Christmas Caper
Year: 2008
Director: David Winkler
Rating: Rated PG : Brief Mild Language and Thematic Elements
Length: 88 Min.
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.78:1
Audio: English: Dolby Digital: 5.1
Subtitles: English, Spanish

Stars:
Shannen Doherty
Ty Olsson
Conrad Coates
Stephanie von Pfetten
Sonya Salomaa
Jano Frandsen

Plot:
Professional thief Kate Dove (Shannen Doherty) takes refuge in her hometown after a heist goes bad. Unwittingly, she is roped into a role unfamiliar to her — babysitter to her sister's kids during the Christmas holiday. Not the most nurturing or sentimental person, Kate finds herself casing the neighborhood for her next big score. Eventually the comforts of suburban life makes her realize family and friends might be better than a life of crime.

Extras:
Scene Access
Bonus Trailers

My Thoughts:
This is another movie gotten from Netflix. I wanted toi check this one out mainly because I enjoyed Shannen Doherty in Charmed. I have to admit I was a little nervous about how good it would be when I read the plot for it. But after watching it I have to say I enjoyed it more then I thought I would. Maybe that is because I didn't care much for the last Christmas movie we got from Netflix (Chasing Christmas). This one is definitely a bit of a different family Christmas movie... but it works and is a nice change of pace. I would recommend giving it a chance.

My Rating: 4/5
Pete
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House M.D.: Season Four: It's a Wonderful Lie (2007/United States)
Length: 43 Min.
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.78:1
Audio: English: Dolby Digital: 5.1
Subtitles: English, Spanish

Stars:
Hugh Laurie
Lisa Edelstein
Omar Epps
Robert Sean Leonard
Jennifer Morrison

Plot:
A mother experiences rapid paralysis that has tragic consequences for her daughter, but House begins to wonder if his patient is withholding information that could lead to a cure.


My Thoughts:
This one is my favorite Christmas episode of the series that I have seen so far. Unlike the other episodes... this one has Christmas as part of the actual storyline instead of just a background. I think it is also more entertaining because of the new characters. Not only is it a good holiday episode... but it also has a good medical mystery storyline as well.

My Rating: 4.5/5
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House M.D.: Season Five: Joy to the World (2008/United States)
Length: 43 Min.
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.78:1
Audio: English: Dolby Digital: 5.1
Subtitles: English, Spanish

Stars:
Hugh Laurie
Lisa Edelstein
Omar Epps
Robert Sean Leonard
Jennifer Morrison

Plot:
It's not the most wonderful time of year for a bullied teenager who passes out during her school's Christmas program.


My Thoughts:
Another good Christmas episode. But not as good as the previous season. Once again Christmas is really more of the background of the episode then part of the storyline. Though not as bad as it was in some of the past Christmas episodes. They do acknowledge Christmas more then they have in some. I really enjoyed the main medical mystery storyline. Though I do think the side story of the whole "Virgin Pregnancy" thing was pushing it a bit. That is something I couldn't see believing even if a doctor told me.

My Rating: 3.5/5
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Last Man Sranding: Season One: Last Christmas Standing (2011/United States)
Length: 23 Min.


Stars:
    Tim Allen
    Nancy Travis
    Molly Ephraim
    Alexandra Krosney
    Kaitlyn Dever
    Cristoph Sanders
    Hector Elizondo

Plot:
Mike's Christmas spirit gets dampened when Ryan (Nick Jonas), the father of Kristen's baby, unexpectedly comes back to town after a long absence. Kristin's boyfriend, Kyle, also doesn't know what to make of Ryan's return. Meanwhile, Ed hires Mandy as an elf at Outdoor Man, where she tries to unionize the other elves to get better perks.


My Thoughts:
This is one of my favorite new sitcoms. And it didn't disappoint when it came to the Christmas episode. I really enjoyed every minute of it. Especially got a kick out of Tim Allen (Star of the 3 Santa Clause movies) saying "Me... in a Santa costume?... Yeah Right!" They made a big deal out of getting Nick Jonas to play the dead-beat father of Mike's grandson. But of course this meant nothing to me. I didn't even know who he was until the end of the episode and the cast was singing Silent Night... the way he did his part made me figure he is some singer or something. But while he didn't impress me any more then any other actor I am unfamiliar with... I still enjoyed the episode very much.

My Rating: 4/5
Pete
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Bones: Season One: The Man in the Fallout Shelter (2005/United States)
Length: 44 Min.
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.78:1
Audio: English: Dolby Digital: 5.1
Subtitles: English, French, Spanish

Stars:
David Boreanaz
Emily Deschanel
Michaela Conlin
Eric Millegan
T J Thyne

Plot:
The team is quarantined and must remain in the lab over Christmas when the examination of a corpse trips the building's biohazard system.


Extras:
Scene Access
Closed Captioned

My Thoughts:
This is an excellent episode. Bones has a great cast that has wonderful chemistry together. I think this was a very good way to do a Christmas episode for this series. The story was well done... I really liked the hologram Christmas Tree Angela made... as well as all the gifts they made for each other. Not to mention the case they were working on... they even made it good for the season. Definitely one I would recommend.

My Rating: 4.5/5
Pete
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