Christmas Is Coming!

Last Christmas I gave you my heart I listed the Christmas TV specials from my DVD or VHS collection that I try to watch every year. Well, this year I haven't watched a single one yet, and time is running out. (Although I have listened to every Christmas song in my iTunes. I want to try to do a holiday music-related post this week as well.) But it's not as if I haven't watched any Christmas programs. I've got both the "Glee" Christmas episode and this year's Christmas-themed "Simpsons" episode guest-starring Martha Stewart and (in live-action with Muppetized Simpsons) Katy Perry on my DVR and have watched both two or three times.

I also just recorded the TV-movie "A Diva's Christmas Carol" starring Vanessa Williams -- surely this helped lead to her becoming Wilhelmina Slater on "Ugly Betty" -- and right now I'm recording "Bad Santa" from Spike TV, although I'm sure it's a censored version that may disappoint.

Tomorrow I plan to try and add to my DVD collection, if I can find an inexpensive DVD of "Scrooged" starring Bill Murray. Like the Vanessa Williams film, it's another update of the Dickens classic, but with a more satirical streak. The soundtrack included the duet by Annie Lennox and Al Green of "Put A Little Love in Your Heart," a non-Christmas song that is now, for me, a holiday classic.



Yes, Christmas is coming...although the case can be made that it arrived early this year...

Quick Review: Fantastic Mr. Fox

The title character in "Fantastic Mr. Fox," the stop-motion animated film based on the book by Roald Dahl, is voiced by George Clooney. It's a brilliant bit of casting. As much as possible with an animated movie, George Clooney was born to play Mr. Fox, who retires from raiding chicken farms at the behest of his pregnant wife -- only to be tempted to go for a big score when, later, the family moves into a tree close to the huge Boggis, Bunce and Bean farms. Meryl Streep plays Mrs. Fox, and she's good in everything, of course. Also in the film are Bill Murray, Willem Dafoe, Owen Wilson and Jason Schwartzman -- not exactly a cast of unknowns. Funny, charming and smart, this is another animated film that kids and adults alike can enjoy. It pretty much lives up to its title. My grade: A.

Another friendly reminder: at this link you'll find the list of grades for all the movies I've seen in 2009 (Good grief, I'll have to start one for the new year soon!)