The Holiday DVD Review

It is the romantics that feel the true sting when life pours lemon all over open wounds. They seem to have the most hope, and hope is a horrible thing to see smashed. Iris (Kate Winslet) is a meek self proclaimed romantic and we immediately see her lose hope as the man she loves announces his engagement to another woman whom they both work with. When her sanctuary, Rosehill Cottage, a small home in snow-covered English countryside, becomes her prison, Iris makes a drastic plan to change her life. 6,000 miles away Amanda (Cameron Diaz) is living a luxurious life in California when she discovers her boyfriend (Edward Burns) is cheating on her. Amanda is a workaholic, stressed and high strung, appropriately cutting trailers for large budget blockbusters. The trailers flash hilarious cameos of stars in high paced action films.

With both women looking to get away for the holiday season, they swap homes for two weeks on a whim. They want an escape from romance, and unexpectedly they both find themselves in the presence of amazing men to help them recover their last relationships. Iris meets Miles (Jack Black), a film composer who writes romantic music and is a traditional romantic in a relationship with an actress. At the same time (with time difference taken into consideration) Amanda is visited by a late night drunken visit by Iris’s brother Graham (Jude Law).

Diaz is obnoxiously animated and extremely energetic, seemingly playing an exaggeration on Hollywood industry types. On the other hand Jack Black is charmingly subdued and is usually followed by the sweet romantic scores from films. In fact, aside from Winslet, who has done the quiet English girl role before, The Holiday is filled with a number of surprising roles. Jude Law is especially amazing, subtly layering his character so much that at moments I could swear I was watching a modern Cary Grant (which is coincidentally the town which Iris is from). The material isn’t anything extraordinary but when Jude Law inhabits a scene with such commitment even in the way he grabs for a mug is remarkable to watch. As ridiculous as Sean Penn’s outburst defending Jude Law at the Oscars a few years ago was, I would have to say that he is right. Jude Law is one of the most amazing actors working right now and he could make any scene watchable. And to top the entire film perfectly Eli Wallach gives an incredible performance as aging legendary screenwriter Arthur, who befriends Iris in LA. Wallach is phenomenal, stealing every scene he is in.

The DVD doesn’t have many special features, but there are two pretty good features. The first is a commentary track with writer/producer/director Nancy Meyers, who is joined by random guests throughout the commentary. There is also a making of featurette with plenty of great Jack Black interviews. It is contrived and has little real information, but it is entertaining nonetheless.