HOLLYWOOD- From “Home Alone,” “Elf “to “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation,” to classics like It’s A Wonderful Life,”, so many great holiday films to watch with the family. So many jolly gems to add to the list , such as the newly released “ A Very Jonas Christmas.” A movie full of Yuletide cheer, Elf is a spirited, good-natured family comedy, and it benefits greatly from Will Ferrell’s funny and charming performances as one of Santa’s biggest helpers. Buddy (Will Ferrell) was accidentally transported to the North Pole as a toddler and raised to adulthood among Santa’s elves. It stars Will Ferrell, James Can, bob Newhart, Ed Asner among many more. “A Very Jonas Christmas Movie,” stars Kevin Jonas, Nick and Joe as they face a series of escalating obstacles as they struggle.
One of my favorite movies is “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation,” as the holidays approach, Clark Griswold (Chevy Chase) wants to have a perfect family Christmas , so he pesters his wife, Ellen (Beverly D’Angelo) and children, as he tries to make sure everything is in line, including the tree and house decorations. However, things go awry very fast. His hillbilly cousin, Eddie (Randy Quaid) and his family show up unplanned and start living in their camper on the Griswold property. Even worse, Clark’s employer renege on the holiday bonus he really needs to pay for the pool. The Griswold family isn getting ready for a vacation but instead of taking s cross-country road trip, or flying off to Europe, they are instead staying home in Chicago and hosting their family for Christmas tree but, of course, things don’t go as planned. Then as the family arrives, some uninvited, things deteriorate quickly including an electrocuted cat, the Christmas tree on fire, and a citywide power outage thanks to Clark’s decorations.
Written by John Hughes, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation tripled its budget in worldwide box office sales. As the third movie in the franchise, it has a previously established audience and some will say it is the best film in the series. The cast is excellent and Chase’s ability to make comedy and pratfalls look easy has endeared him to audiences for decades. D’ Angelo plays the perfect role and just adds the perfect togetherness to his goofiness that make a genius team. The kids change with every film but Galecki and Lewis were excellent casting choices. Randy Quaid as Ellen’s cousin Eddie, shows up uninvited with his family. National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation is a must-watch movie every holiday season. So when my friend Sue, mentioned the film was going to be screening at the NJPAC, she drove in from Pennsylvania and I met her there with her amazing family to view the screening with live Q&A with Chevy Chase. His family was in the audience, his two daughters and son-in-law, and his wife Jayni Chase was on stage with him.
He seemed a little tired, expected since he was just getting over pneumonia , and probably passed his bedtime, since he was there until almost 11:30 pm. Chevy Chase,82, new documentary will be airing on CNN on New Year’s Day on CNN. The doc titled “I’m Chevy Chase and You’re Not, an authorized yet unfiltered look at his comedic genius, controversial reputation, and personal struggles, directed by Marina Zenovich is set to premiere on January 1, with streaming on the CNN app the next-day. The film explores his Saturday Night Live fame, box-office success, difficult behavior, and includes interviews with collaborators like Ryan Reynolds, Goldie Hawn, Lorne Michaels, alongside archival footage and his family . He is now a grandparent, and like most of us grandparents, we truly spoil our grandkids.
Rose’s Scoop: Wishing everyone a very Blessed Christmas, and it will be extremely challenging for me to spend the first Christmas without my mom. St. Patrick’s Cathedral 2025 Midnight Mass will be beautiful as usual, it will continue its annual tradition of airing the mass from 12 a.m. to 1.30a.m PIX 11 will also livestream the Midnight Mass.
Enjoy Weekend Guide 