In Theaters: ****Rental Family (2025)

 This is a look at a Japanese custom, the family for rent.  These service do exist in Japan.  A down-on-his-luck actor, Phillip Vanderploeg (Brendan Fraser) is hired to impersonate family members.  His first case is a marriage which he executes allowing a woman to save face while moving to Canada with her lesbian partner.  He also takes a job pretending to be a girls father so she can get into a special school; and another where he acts as a reporter, interviewing a retired actor who is trying to save his former glory.  Both of these jobs lead to problems as he bonds with the people he is serving.  He has difficulty leaving the young lady; but she does get in the school.  And he takes the old man to his native area where he recovers a time capsule and memories of his deceased wife.

This movie leads to dealing with moral and ethical issues, and as a result the company changes.  This includes no longer doing apologies pretending to be women whose husbands have been unfaithful.  It deals with these issues in good fashion and the movie is interesting.  As much as My Big Fat Greek Wedding teaches about a new culture, this movie does the same.

Shinji Tada (Takehiro Hira) is the owner of the business.  He too has rental family at home.  Aiko Nakajima (Mari Yamamoto) is the woman who has to pretend to be a wife stealing woman.

Music Review: Elvis Presley Christmas Duets

This CD is based on a clever idea.  They have used Elvis Presley music and added a duet with female singers.  This includes the likes of Martina MCBride, Olivia Newton John, Carrie Underwood, LeAnne Rimes, Amy Grant, Anne Murray and Wynona Judd.  Elvis is a master of singing and performing, and these women add to his music rather than take away.  Some of the songs include: Wynona Judd singing a gritty Santa Clause is back in Town; Olivia Newton John with a very pleasing O Come, All Ye Faithful; Amy Grant a very enjoyable White Christmas.  It starts with Elvis and Martina McBride singing Blue Christmas which sets the tone for the entire CD.  It ends with three Elvis only Christmas songs as a bonus.  

I very much enjoyed this music.

Christmas Movie Review: Christmas in Wonderland (2006)

 This is an interesting story about a family moved from L.A. to Edmonton Canada chasing a job.  The youngest, daughter, Mary (Amy and Zoe Schlagel) believes in Santa Clause and his magic.  She wishes for a million dollars from the mall Santa Clause, and not much later a bag of money falls from the upper levels of thee mall and she finds it.  Mary and her brother Brian (Matthew Knight) decide it wouldn't hurt to spend some of the money.  Problem is three crooks, Leo and Sheldon Cardoza (Chris Katten and Preston Lacy) and Ginger (Carmen Elektra) are trying to launder the money as it is counterfeit.  They spend some, and get an officer on their tail, (Tim Curry) and the bad people after them.  They also get their father (Patrick Swayze) arrested.  And eventually their older brother, Danny (Cameron Bright) and his new girlfriend are also arrested.  There is an actor Matthew Walker) who plays multiple parts, and brings the magic: Santa, Mr Nicholas, the mall ghost, Old Man Walker, Kristopher Kringle, and the mall owner.  With a little magic all things are possible.

Christmas Movie Review: Scrooge (1935)

Scrooge (Seymour Hicks) starts out a very scary man with his white unkempt hair and his grouchy attitude.   This movie is shorter than most, so skips some very important parts.  It does have his nephew (Robert Cochrane) inviting him to dinner.  Christmas past shows him his old girl friend (Mary Glynne) and his terrible stinginess.  He put a couple out for shipping to different places.  Christmas present shows him the family of his employee, Bob Cratchit (Donald Calthrop).  They find happiness in Christmas despite being very poor.  It isn't until the Ghost of Christmas Yet-to-be when he finally finds the Christmas spirit.  This ghost shows him how he will not be missed when he dies if he does not change his ways.  And when he does he makes a hearty turnaround.  

James Bond Movie Review: ***Casino Royale (1954)

 This is not one of the Bond Movie franchise, but it is based on the book by Ian Fleming.  It actually predates the Bond movies is a made for TV movie.  The main character goes by Jimmy Bond (Barry Nelson) rather than James Bond.  The film focuses on the gambling, and the desire to Bankrupt Le Chiffre (Peter Lorre) who is an active spy but also has a bad gambling habit.  The West is hoping that by bringing him down at gambling his handlers will eliminate him.  An ex girlfriend, Valerie Mathis (Linda Christian) stakes Bond with additional cash when he is running out.  With the extra stake he is able to bankrupt Le Chiffre.  Bond also looks to Clarence Leiter (Michael Pate) for support.  

After the gambling Bond hides the check he received as quickly as possible.  Le Chiffre and his goons show up to get hi to sign over the check.  Otherwise Le Chiffre knows he is dead.  SO he kidnaps the girl, and Bond.  He begins torturing Bond and threatens to torture Mathis as well if he doesn't say where the check is.  However fortunately he is able to free himself, and over power one of the goons, and gets the drop on Le Chiffre.  He forces Bond to shoot him.

Music Review: Bing Crosby Christmas: The Very Best of Bing Crosby

 Bing Crosby Christmas MCA Records, 1999 has 18 songs, all sung by Bing Crosby and all sporting his clear vocals.  Often there is back up choir with the harmonies of the era.  He includes many of the all time favorite Christmas songs: Its Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas, Adeste Fideles, Santa Clause is Coming to Town, Away in a Manger, Jingle Bells, Silent Night, The First Noel, I'll Be Home for Christmas, and of course White Christmas and Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.

There is plenty to enjoy with this CD.

Christmas Movie Review: *** Lost Christmas: The Miracle of Holiday Magic (2011)

 This is a movie out of the BBC made for TV.  IUt is a bit confusing, but maybe purposefully so.  It presents two Christmases, the first and its effect on the second.  A young boy hid his father's keys when he was called out to work on Christmas.  He was an emergency responder.  His wife had to take him, and they both died in a car accident.  Next Christmas all is messed up.  Our young man meets a stranger (Eddie Izzard) with amnesia but an ability to find things that are lost.  A bangle is lost, stolen by the boy.  But the boy loses his dog,  A couple lost their daughter last Christmas.  Sometimes Christmas brings second chances.  our mysterious stranger is an adult version of the boy, and he receives a chance to change last Christmas, which prevn\ents the accident, and is father is there to ave the little girl, and he no longer has need for a youth authority.  And finally the strange man fades away.