|
A wedding columnist for a local daily in England, Iris (Kate Winslett) has just been dumped by her
two-timing, manipulating lover.
High-strung advertising woman in the United States Amanda (Cameron Diaz) has just kicked her philandering live-in boyfriend out of her house. Virtually man-less, both women want a holiday away from it all, hoping to nurse themselves back to emotional health in two weeks. They surf the net for home-swapping possibilities and find each other. On impulse, both women fly off the next day—Amanda to be quiet in Iris's cozy cottage in Surrey, England, and Iris to luxuriate in Amanda's plush residence in California, USA. The holiday takes surprising and delightful twists and turns, but will fate finally bring true love to the lovelorn women?
Director-writer Nancy Meyers (Something's Gotta Give and What Women Want) spins a
sentimental tale and turns it into a glossy film that manages to entertain and delight despite its clichés and obviously fictional and formulaic allure. Filling their roles
to a T, Diaz and Winslett easily win viewers' empathy. Jack Black as Iris's new friend turns in a surprisingly good dramatic performance; so does good-looking, putty-hearted
widower and single father Jude Law as Amanda's new Brit connection. A great deal of the movie is pure cutesies, but the rest offers solid food for thought, thanks to the
intelligent script/dialogue which allows the film to explore the depths of the characters.
This romantic comedy is rather long but has so many positive messages that an extra 10 or 15 minutes of it wouldn't really burden the viewer.
Contemporary Hollywood films on love and romance normally have overt sexual content, but
The Holiday, thanks be, keeps it to the minimum. It is assumed in the movie that unmarried couples sleeping together in their culture is acceptable---something that is
still frowned upon in the Philippines---so take note of this when you allow your teenagers to see The Holiday.
Focus instead on the many values the movie affirms---family, sibling bonding, concern for the elderly, compassion, friendship, healing. The transformation of Iris, for example, from dull wallflower to a radiant care-giver could inspire young people who tend to think romantic love is all they need to be happy; so can the change that happens in Amanda, from a cold career woman who could not shed a tear to a tender person capable of unconditional love.
(Date Reviewed: 16 February 2007)
|
