Indie Gems: Happy Christmas

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Getting your shit together 101.

Jenny (Anna Kendrick) moves in with her older brother, Jeff (Joe Swanberg) and his wife, Kelly (Melanie Lynskey) and their adorable two year old son. She's trying to bounce back from a breakup, one that she probably caused herself judging by the way she acts in the film. She also tries to inspire Kelly to starting writing again.

First things first, I have a gigantic crush on Mark Webber. I will seriously watch this guy in anything. I think he's tremendous. His character strikes up a relationship with Jenny, and that was one of my favorite parts of the film. Much like Drinking Buddies, this film wasn't made with a traditional script. The actors ad-libbed most of their lines. All the conversations, especially the drunken ones felt very authentic. Everyone has had these talks before.

I can't get enough of Lynskey and Kendrick. They play off each other so well. I was a little worried about Lena Dunham, but her character is only in a couple of scenes, so it's tolerable. Happy Christmas isn't as strong as Drinking Buddies, but it made for a good watch this Christmas. 

Grade: B

Memorable Quote: "So your idea is to write an erotic novel and make millions?" - Kelly (Melanie Lynskey)

Comments

  1. AnonymousDecember 26, 2014 at 7:31 AM

    I didn't really have a desire to see this, and then I saw that Lynskey was in it, and I so pray that she has this amazing resurgence and becomes that actress that we all know she deserves to be. Like, she's effing incredible and so talented and really deserves to be in better movies, you know, with Oscar campaigns and stuff.

    I'll see this.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamDecember 26, 2014 at 11:21 AM

      She's ridiculously underrated, it sucks. I thought she was so great in Hello I Must Be Going and no one saw that. Ugh.

      Delete
  2. rhysgdruryDecember 26, 2014 at 8:55 AM

    I really liked this one :) So simple and casual, really stripped back. Like an acoustic film almost. Great review :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamDecember 26, 2014 at 11:20 AM

      Thank you! an acoustic film is a cool way to describe it.

      Delete
  3. UnknownDecember 26, 2014 at 12:05 PM

    I definitely agree that it wasn't as strong as Drinking Buddies, loved that film, but I do love when Joe asks that actors to improvise because its more fun watching them have real conversations.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamDecember 27, 2014 at 8:09 AM

      It is. I really love his unique way of shooting all of this.

      Delete
  4. m.brownDecember 26, 2014 at 3:29 PM

    I was going to watch this last night...but my wife fell asleep so I opted for Big Bad Wolves. Then...I fell asleep.

    That said, after this post, I'm looking forward to the flick. Love me some Kendrick.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Candice FrederickDecember 26, 2014 at 8:23 PM

    Wow....i kinda hated this movie AND drinking buddies. it was just too bland to me. i love melanie L but she just haven't been in good projects to me lately :(

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamDecember 27, 2014 at 6:57 AM

      Aww :( Yeah, this definitely wasn't as good as Drinking Buddies, but I still liked it. I think Melanie has been in some good stuff lately. Perks, Hello I Must Be Going.

      Delete
  6. JoshDecember 30, 2014 at 10:45 PM

    I haven't seen Drinking Buddies, but I kinda loved this movie. I'd love to nominate Kendrick and Lynskey (like I did after the first half of the year), though I doubt I'll be able to fit them in. Too many good performances this year!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamDecember 31, 2014 at 6:41 AM

      You should definitely check out Drinking Buddies! It's wonderful. Lynskey is severely overdue for an Oscar nomination. I hope it happens for her some day.

      Delete

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