Top Twelve Christmas movies (part II)

We've already gotten the preliminaries out of the way in part I so if you haven't seen that yet, check it out. Here's the first half of our list.

Number 12

"While You Were Sleeping" takes full advantage of the Christmas holiday to make Sandra Bullock's character's believable. A lonely single young woman saves the life of a man she's been interested in for years and is mistakenly thought to be his fiance through some miscommunication. Who can blame her for going through with the deception?

While the man she thinks she likes is in a coma, she gets to know his brother and things get really complicated from there. I'm not sure we can say that the movie does more than take advantage of the holiday to play with our emotions, but it isn't obvious about it. It's a fun movie, and if you haven't' seen it already, you should get your act together and check it out.

Number 11

"Babes in Toyland" has had a long history. It started as a popular operetta in 1903 written by Victor Herbert. In 1934, it was made into a movie that started the comedy team of Laurel and Hardy. This was probably their best-known and best-loved movie. In 1961, the Walt Disney company remade the movie. This version starred one of Disney's favorite Mouseketeers, Annette Funicello. 1986 saw yet another release with Drew Barrymore and Keanu Reeves, but not in romantic roles since Drew was playing an 11-year-old at the time.

These are the main three versions, and there have been plenty of others that I have no interest in at all. I also never saw the 1986 version. I recommend that you find one of the older versions (or both) and spend a night checking them out. I think it will be a fine addition to your holidays.

Number 10

"The Santa Clause" is the movie that kept Tim Allen from disappearing into obscurity after his television show, Home Improvement, went off the air. This movie has two sequels, and like most sequels they get a little more ridiculous as they progress, but it is a fun franchise to enjoy during the holidays.

The plot is pretty simple even if it is a little bizarre. Allen's character accidentally kills Santa on Christmas Eve. It turns out that there is a Santa Claus the makes whoever might kill Santa the new bit man of Christmas. Allen spends the next year slowly turning into Santa and fighting the change all the way. If you haven't seen this movie, get off your backside and watch it. Then you can decide what to do about the other movies.

Number 9

"Die Hard" is the ultimate Christmas action movie. This is the movie that made Willis an action star and moved him from TV to the big screen. Follow Bruce Willis as he plays John McCain trying to stop terrorists from killing his wife. Wait, let me back up a little bit.

John McCain is a NYC cop who has flown out to LA to see his estranged wife and kids for Christmas. She is working for a large corporation on the West Coast which just happens to get their building taken hostage on Christmas Eve.

 Look for Die Hard I and II to give you a healthy dose of Christmas action. There are plenty of explosions and Willis just dishes out the snappy banter throughout the entire movie.

Number 8

What are the people of Mars to do when their children discover Earth television and learn about Santa Claus? Well of course the best solution is to kidnap Santa and force him to make toys for all the Martian children. That's the plot for "Santa Conquers the Martians," and the movie is just about as bad as you might expect.

This is one of those "so bad it's good" movies. The kind they use on Mystery Science Theater 3000. (In fact, the team did release their commentary on this,) Special effects are seriously old school and the aliens are definitely just people in cheap costumes and let's not talk about the quality of the acting.Do yourself a favor and check it out even if you only see it once in your life.

Number 7

You know this kind of thing happens every Christmas. Some kid gets left behind in the chaos of trying to get the whole family to the airport. That's no big deal. Of course there has to be the burglars trying to get into the house while the family is away. Wait, when does that ever happen? That's right, it happens in the "Home Alone" movies.

A poor stranded boy stops two experienced thieves the only way he can-lots of goofy traps and pratfalls. Be on the lookout for the scene where Kevin orders a pizza and uses a movie to tell the delivery guy what to do

This franchise would get a much higher rating if the story hadn't been beaten to death. The first movie is truly a classic and deserves to be a part of your Christmas movie routine, and "keep the change, you filthy animal."


Be on the lookout for part III of the list coming out soon, and feel free to leave a comment below to tell me what you think.

My Top Ten Football Movies (Part I)

I thought it might be fun to do a top ten list every once in a while. I used to post lists on my bulletin board when I was working as a Resident Director during college. The are a great way to get people thinking and to encourage discussion. In this case, I will be listing my personal favorite football movies. I know there will be lots of movies that are not on the list that people will wonder why they aren't on the list. There's a simple answer to that question: I haven't seen the movie. I will probably add those movies in a Top Ten Football Movies I Haven't Seen list.  Anyway, here's the list. I hope you enjoy.

Number 10

The first movie on the list is probably one that you've never encountered. It's really only on the list because I can only come up with 10 movies and as a result this one makes the list. So the basic plot is that 12 years after Robin Williams drops the ball in the game-deciding moment, he convinces everyone on both teams to come back and play the game again.

What can I say about a movie where Robin Williams plays football. I can get over my disbelief on most things. I can believe just about anything, but not that Robin Williams was ever a football player. I can accept him as an alien that ages backwards, or a blue genie, or any of the other eccentric roles he has taken, but not this. The movie is OK, and it follows the standard formula. I won't give away the ending, but I'm sure you can figure it out on your own. It's a decent movie if you don't have to pay too much for it, but I wouldn't track down a copy if you can't find it easily.

Number 9

I know many will disagree with me on the placement of this movie. It was a huge hit, and I do remember liking the movie once things got going, but honestly, I don't remember much about it. I definitely remember the disturbing parts (which are a lot) but not much more.

Here's the rough plot as far as I remember it. Al Pacino is the coach of a football team that loses the quarterback and his backup in the same game. Cue Jamie Foxx as the third-string QB to come into his first professional game. I think he ends up doing really well or maybe he just gets better as the movie continues. I really don't remember. There is lots of great football action, and a great coach-quarterback relationship between Pacino and Foxx. I'm pretty sure it's a better movie than I'm giving it credit for, but I just can't put it any higher on the list without watching it again. Give this movie a chance just be prepared for some questionable material and you will be fine.

Number 8



Movies like "Little Giants" follow a long history of "little league" underdog sports movies. I know there were movies like this in the 40's and 50's, but the movie I think of for this genre is "The Bad News Bears." Take a group of nonathletic misfits and turn them into a sports team. Let them face lots of hard times, and then let them face off against the meanest nastiest group of sports-star athletes in the game of the season.

Oh, and don't forget to throw in the tomboy who's better than everyone else and just wants to play.

This movie changes the formula a little bit. All the kids that get cut from the town's team get together to form a team of their own. You also get the coaches who are brothers with issues. It's a fun movie even if most of it is unlikely. Sure these kids learn how to work together and pull of some really creative plays, but there's still only so much that can be accomplished even with Madden giving you advice.

Number 7

Once upon a time, Adam Sandler was just a guy who did stand up and got a job on Saturday Night Live. After he finished that gig, he started getting the chance to make movies. Fortunately for all of us, Adam Sandler is was able to make some of the best movies around. This movie is one of his best.

Sandler plays a mentally-challenged young man with an obsession with "high-quality H20." Through a strange twist of events he goes from the team's water boy to becoming a player. He uses his pent up rage to make a name for himself. I would probably have put it higher on the list, but It is definitely a movie that is more about the main character than about the football.

Number 6

This isn't a football movie. Instead it is a movie about the politics of football. It's the typical Willis character. His wife is having an affair, his daughter hates him, and he's about as low as a guy can get.Willis and Wayans are both sexist bastards.

Willis plays a former secret service agent that took a bullet for the President. Wayans is a former NFL quarterback who got hooked on pain killers and lost his job. They fight a lot and spend most of the movie trying not to get killed. Willis takes his bad attitude to the extreme in this movie and has some great action-hero moments.

Be aware that this movie is full of profanity, racism, and sexism. This movie may not be for you, but the action is fun, and it may be worth it to see Willis dance a jig.

That's the first half of the list. I'll get the other half out eventually. Feel free to leave any comments or questions.