Movies, Shows and Events to Watch/Rent on Thanksgiving!
This holiday weekend will be a good one for outdoor walks along the paths and trails in Crystal Valley AND, for getting cozy on the couch with a snack and a watchable event (like NFL football: Cowboys vs. Raiders), a TV series or Thanksgiving-themed movie. Here are a few to consider!
Contemporary Comedies and Dramadies
These movies are a sometimes fun and frivolous, sometimes feel good and sometimes emotional take on family gatherings.
Holidate is a Netflix rom-com featuring a woman (Emma Roberts) who hates the holidays because of a hypercritical reaction from her family at each holiday dinner she attends without a date. Her co-star is (Luke Bracey) who ends up fighting with his date and leaving the festivities all by his lonesome.
When the two meet, they discover they both hate the holidays for the same reason and decide to avoid family members’ judgment they will be each other’s “holidates.”
Friendsgiving is another adult comedy on Netflix that captures the chaos that unexpected guests can bring to an intimate celebration. Malin Akerman and Kat Dennings, play two best friends recovering from a divorce and a breakup, respectively, who are just hoping for a low-key Thanksgiving. Those plans spiral out of control when they decide to invite a new people to the gathering.
Little Women is Greta Gerwig’s adaptation of the timeless and beloved coming-of-age novel by Louisa May Alcott about four sisters each determined to live life on their own terms. This 2019 film stars Saoirse Ronan, Emma Watson, and Florence Pugh, and is free with a seven-day trial of STARZ on Amazon Prime Video.
Pieces of April stars a young Katie Holmes (circa 2003) as April preparing dinner for her dying mother (Patricia Clarkson) and estranged family (driven by father Oliver Platt) – none of whom think she can cook. As they travel to her tiny New York City apartment, April’s stove conks out and her parents opt out in favor of dinner at a diner. Ultimately everyone returns for what might be their last Thanksgiving together and we found this sweet movie — which originally premiered at Sundance — on more than one list. You can see this film free with a Prime Amazon membership.
Throwback to Yesteryear
Miracle on 34th Street – the original – is a classic Christmas favorite, and it actually starts out at the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade – which is on this year, BTW, as a televised event. The 1947 movie stars Natalie Wood as the little girl and Edmund Gwenn is the nice old man who claims to be Santa Claus. When the elderly gent is declared insane and institutionalized, a young lawyer decides to defend him in court, arguing that he is the real Kris Kringle! You can watch the miracle on Amazon for $3.99.
Scent of a Woman is the Al Pacino-vehicle that earned the veteran actor his only Oscar – if you can believe that. For anyone 35 or younger who may have missed this Thanksgiving-themed film, it co-stars a young Chris O’Donnell who plays a prep school student hired to “watch” the blind, tango-dancing, alcoholic military vet. Pacino comes to Chris’ defense, after a particularly awkward family dinner, in a rousing and epic speech in front of prep school administrators. You can see this one on Amazon Prime Video for $3.99.
Rudy is one of those feel-good movies the entire family will enjoy. And while not strictly Thanksgiving-themed entertainment, it’s based-on-a-true story and will have you cheering in the end. Rudy Ruettiger is a working-class kid who won’t give up on his dream to play football at Notre Dame – despite having neither a strong academic nor athletic background. You can watch the 1992 movie starring Sean Astin for $3.99 on Amazon Prime, AND see the 2018 documentary of the real Rudy Ruettiger. Hear in his own words how he succeeded getting into the famed school and on the football team The doc is free with a Prime membership.
Happy Thanksgiving from Crystal Valley
It may be a holiday week, but sales are happening all weekend, and there are still brand new homes ready now for home buyers in the master-planned community of Crystal Valley. With new homes from Richmond American Homes, D.R. Horton, Kauffman Homes and Century Communities – there are LOTS of options if you’re interested in new home construction from the $400s surrounded by nature and only minutes from the town of Castle Rock.
