The Christmas Cottage
So, for our anniversary, Geo surprised me with a copy of The Christmas Cottage. It was released on our anniversary, actually, but I had it on my Netflix list, being somewhat hesitant not knowing exactly what quality of holiday sentimentality to expect. It was really a rather delightful surprise.
First off, let's get the "small world" out of the way right now. As any Jared Padalecki admirer knows, he plays a college-age Thomas Kinkade. Well, the actress who played his girlfriend Hope looked so familiar to me, but I couldn't place her. Then I looked her up. Duh. She played Haley in "Wendigo."
The cast list reads like Old Home Week. Practically every scene introduces a familiar face--most of whom my mom named when they entered a scene.
My mother-in-law also commented that "that young man has a nice smile." She of course was referring to Jared. :-)
Now, on to the movie.
I was a bit hesitant about getting this movie because I feared it would be syrupy sweet and not really my thing. I'm delighted to say that this is not the case. It is, as Geo put it, sentimental without being cloying. There were parts of the dialogue that were a little over the top, that if I'd had a say, I would have trimmed down a bit, but those were relatively few. And there aren't any "Big Reveals," but then, I wasn't expecting any. And there actually was a scene or two that brought a tear to my eye.
I was taken aback by the language. Not that it wasn't appropriate for the character(s) that used it, but that it was so prevalent in a family Christmas movie. There's also a little bit of innuendo. It's rated PG for a reason. So if anyone reading this has small children and is concerned about such things, take note, is all I'm sayin'.
The movie itself tells the story of young artist Thomas Kinkade as he and his brother come home from Berkley for Christmas vacation. They return home to discover that their mother's house is falling apart and she doesn't have the money to make the necessary repairs, and in fact is $3000 behind in her house payments. To help out the situation, Thomas takes a job painting a mural of the town for a local promoter.
The movie also highlights the relationship between Kinkade and his mentor, Glen (played by Peter O'Toole). Glen's health, both physical and mental, is fast deteriorating, and Thomas watches as his friend and teacher can no longer hold a paint brush steady and frequently becomes confused.
Thomas's mother helps, as she always does, with the church Christmas pageant, the rehearsals for which had my mom and MiL laughing heartily. (They "recognized" a lot of characters among the church personalities and mishaps.) The pageant itself is a disaster in the making.
Jared does a great job with the role, and one of the things that impressed me most is a technical character thing. Jared, a right-hander, playing an artist who is left-handed, wrote and drew left-handed for the role. That ain't easy to do. Jared really brought out the love Kinkade has for his family and his home, and you should be sure to watch the deleted scenes. I'm sure they were deleted because they don't really add to or advance the story, but still, they're great tidbits that add a bit of depth to the characters.
As a TS fan, I must mention Richard Burgi, who plays Bill Kinkade, Thomas's dad. RB often--though by no means always--plays a cad, as he does here, with relish. Bill is a drifter, a good ol' boy who believes his porn mag collection is an appropriate Christmas gift for his sons. He talks big and has big dreams, but when confronted, it turns out he lives day-to-day and paycheck-to-paycheck. Jared and RB play several scenes together (which my fannish little heart was glad to see), and they're very good. And there's a particularly great bit toward the end.
My parents and MiL were all very disappointed, upon seeing the movie, that it was not released to the theaters. "This is the kind of thing they should have in the theaters at Christmas," they said. "Why didn't it make it to the theaters?"
We were also all a little surprised that Jared actually does kinda-sorta resemble a young Thomas Kinkade, mostly around the eyes, I think.
So, yes, for those of you (izhilzha) who were wondering if the movie would be worth your time, I'd suggest at least renting it and giving a a look-see. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.
First off, let's get the "small world" out of the way right now. As any Jared Padalecki admirer knows, he plays a college-age Thomas Kinkade. Well, the actress who played his girlfriend Hope looked so familiar to me, but I couldn't place her. Then I looked her up. Duh. She played Haley in "Wendigo."
The cast list reads like Old Home Week. Practically every scene introduces a familiar face--most of whom my mom named when they entered a scene.
My mother-in-law also commented that "that young man has a nice smile." She of course was referring to Jared. :-)
Now, on to the movie.
I was a bit hesitant about getting this movie because I feared it would be syrupy sweet and not really my thing. I'm delighted to say that this is not the case. It is, as Geo put it, sentimental without being cloying. There were parts of the dialogue that were a little over the top, that if I'd had a say, I would have trimmed down a bit, but those were relatively few. And there aren't any "Big Reveals," but then, I wasn't expecting any. And there actually was a scene or two that brought a tear to my eye.
I was taken aback by the language. Not that it wasn't appropriate for the character(s) that used it, but that it was so prevalent in a family Christmas movie. There's also a little bit of innuendo. It's rated PG for a reason. So if anyone reading this has small children and is concerned about such things, take note, is all I'm sayin'.
The movie itself tells the story of young artist Thomas Kinkade as he and his brother come home from Berkley for Christmas vacation. They return home to discover that their mother's house is falling apart and she doesn't have the money to make the necessary repairs, and in fact is $3000 behind in her house payments. To help out the situation, Thomas takes a job painting a mural of the town for a local promoter.
The movie also highlights the relationship between Kinkade and his mentor, Glen (played by Peter O'Toole). Glen's health, both physical and mental, is fast deteriorating, and Thomas watches as his friend and teacher can no longer hold a paint brush steady and frequently becomes confused.
Thomas's mother helps, as she always does, with the church Christmas pageant, the rehearsals for which had my mom and MiL laughing heartily. (They "recognized" a lot of characters among the church personalities and mishaps.) The pageant itself is a disaster in the making.
Jared does a great job with the role, and one of the things that impressed me most is a technical character thing. Jared, a right-hander, playing an artist who is left-handed, wrote and drew left-handed for the role. That ain't easy to do. Jared really brought out the love Kinkade has for his family and his home, and you should be sure to watch the deleted scenes. I'm sure they were deleted because they don't really add to or advance the story, but still, they're great tidbits that add a bit of depth to the characters.
As a TS fan, I must mention Richard Burgi, who plays Bill Kinkade, Thomas's dad. RB often--though by no means always--plays a cad, as he does here, with relish. Bill is a drifter, a good ol' boy who believes his porn mag collection is an appropriate Christmas gift for his sons. He talks big and has big dreams, but when confronted, it turns out he lives day-to-day and paycheck-to-paycheck. Jared and RB play several scenes together (which my fannish little heart was glad to see), and they're very good. And there's a particularly great bit toward the end.
My parents and MiL were all very disappointed, upon seeing the movie, that it was not released to the theaters. "This is the kind of thing they should have in the theaters at Christmas," they said. "Why didn't it make it to the theaters?"
We were also all a little surprised that Jared actually does kinda-sorta resemble a young Thomas Kinkade, mostly around the eyes, I think.
So, yes, for those of you (izhilzha) who were wondering if the movie would be worth your time, I'd suggest at least renting it and giving a a look-see. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.