"The Holiday:" Are You Not Entertained?!

So, the other night, after my Moment, I plopped down on my couch and watched Nancy Meyers' ("Something's Gotta Give," "What Women Want") "The Holiday" on DVD. It was light-as-a-feather, clichéd, and and about as predictable as you can get in terms of rom-coms.

And I loved every second of the damn thing!!

The film stars Kate Winslet as love-sick, lonely Iris and Cameron Diaz as the shallow, emotionally-distant Amanda. The simple premise involves the two women switching living spaces on either side of the pond for a two-week, um, holiday. It's during this time, they find themselves and--you guessed it, you cinematic geniuses, you!!--L-O-V-E.

That's it!! That's all you need to know!! This isn't "Memento," folks!!

This should come as no surprise to many people (i.e. The Haters and Pretentious Film Snob types in my life) who know me: I'm a sucker for heart-tugging sentiment ("The Family Stone," "Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants," anyone?), a whore for mindless entertainment (anything from Michael Bay--the director of "The Rock" and Armageddon"--is pretty much irresistible to me. Though, I cross the line at "Pearl Harbor") and indefensible pulp trash (Last year's "Running Scared" was the ultimate example of this and I ate up every single last morsel of it, as if it were my last meal; the year before that, it was Rob Zombie's "The Devil's Rejects").

So, yeah, I like a lot of movies that most critics turn their noses at. Hell, I lost two "friends" for giving the campy--and fun--awfulness that was "Coyote Ugly" a pass, going as far as buying it on DVD, the moment it hit shelves. What can I say? I want to be entertained, dammit!! I know I'm repeating myself when I write this, but I rather be entertained than educated or intellectually stimulated. Personally, watching Cate Blanchett in "Babel" piss herself because of a bullet wound just doesn't have the same emotional resonance as seeing the dowdy Kate Winslet (only in the movies, people!) find a kindred spirit in the portly Jack Black.

Why is it that film critics, these days, have to bash a movie for wanting to do nothing more than give you a good time? I'll tell you: They want to see something that they haven't seen before. They want something that will make them say, "wow! That's so new, so interesting and therefore, so wonderful!!"

BZZZZ!! WRONG!!

As the British say, that's absolute bullocks!! That high-minded, snobbish mentality annoys the hell out of me! See, I've always taken pride in that I'm able to examine each movie at face value. Sure, there will always be movies that resemble other movies (I mean, come on! Everyone knows "E.T." was clearly a generic rip-off of "Mac & Me"). Most movies don't pretend that they are different. Sure, there are bound to be some that, well, suck balls, but it's unfair to punish a movie that is as entertaining, sweet, charming, heartwarming and funny as "The Holiday," simply because it's been done before or that it's not particularly deep.

I mean, what do the critics want? Would they have liked the film better had the emotionally-distant Diaz started making out with the love-sick, lonely Winslet on top of a mountain while they herd sheep?! Ooooh...that would be sooo edgy!!! Maybe shark tooth-grinned Black could whip out a camcorder and videotape the luscious girl-on-girl action a la "Sex Lies & Videotape." How provocative!! Better yet, Jude Law's dewy-eyed single father could pull out a baggie of coke and start snorting it around his utterly adorable kids. The film is so REAL!!

Wait!! OK, yeah, I'll admit it. I'd probably see that film, too. But still...

While it may not be the most insightful, edgy film in the world, "The Holiday" certainly didn't need to be as critically-reviled as it was when it hit the theatres, during this last Christmas season. It was exactly what it set out to be: A sparkling romantic romp about love lost and, eventually, found. What can I say? I was moved. I cried as much as I laughed. The film was just what I needed: Rock-solid entertainment!!

Then again, who knows?

Maybe some sheep really would have just knocked the sucker right out of the park!