Q-Tips Reviews

12/21 – Lucille Ball (Nicole Kidman) and Desi Arnaz (Javier Bardem) are threatened by shocking personal accusations, a political smear and cultural taboos in Academy Award (R)-winning writer and director Aaron Sorkin’s behind-the-scenes drama Being the Ricardos. A revealing glimpse of the couple’s complex romantic and professional relationship, the film takes audiences into the writers’ room, onto the soundstage and behind closed doors with Ball and Arnaz during one critical production week of their groundbreaking sitcom “I Love Lucy.”

Q-tips say: Just ok – was hard, many times, when they switched to the past to the present, to adjust to which was which.

Mrs. Q says: A busy and oddly disjointed portrait of American TV icon Lucille Ball. Kidman’s Lucille Ball is a fully realized character… The problem is, Ball ends up being so unlikable you don’t want to spend this much time with her.

George Bailey has spent his entire life giving of himself to the people of Bedford Falls. He has always longed to travel but never had the opportunity in order to prevent rich skinflint Mr. Potter from taking over the entire town. All that prevents him from doing so is George’s modest building and loan company, which was founded by his generous father. But on Christmas Eve, George’s Uncle Billy loses the business’s $8,000 while intending to deposit it in the bank. Potter finds the misplaced money and hides it from Billy. When the bank examiner discovers the shortage later that night, George realizes that he will be held responsible and sent to jail and the company will collapse, finally allowing Potter to take over the town. Thinking of his wife, their young children, and others he loves will be better off with him dead, he contemplates suicide. But the prayers of his loved ones result in a gentle angel named Clarence coming to earth to help George, with the promise of earning his wings. He shows George what things would have been like if he had never been born

Q-tips say: Yes, you probably have seen it before but Wonderful Life is one of a handful of films worth an annual viewing. Mrs. Q says: It is like a nice glass of Christmas brandy, it warms the heart and makes you feel good.

Singers Bob Wallace (Bing Crosby) and Phil Davis (Danny Kaye) join sister act Betty (Rosemary Clooney) and Judy Haynes (Vera-Ellen) to perform a Christmas show in rural Vermont. There, they run into Gen. Waverly (Dean Jagger), the boys’ commander in World War II, who, they learn, is having financial difficulties; his quaint country inn is failing. So what’s the foursome to do but plan a yuletide miracle: a fun-filled musical extravaganza that’s sure to put Waverly and his business in the black!

Q-tips say: We enjoyed it. Great songs, gentle humor and a dose of syrup which is not to everyone’s tastes, but worth buying to keep that Christmas spirit going until next year. More for adults than the little ones.

NBC –

Harry Connick Jr., Taraji P. Henson, and Celina Smith in Annie Live. A young orphan opens the heart of billionaire Sir Oliver “Daddy” Warbucks.

Q-tip say: YES, see it- we enjoyed it. It was completely fine.

The story might be set in the Depression, but “Annie Live!,” warts and all, delivered a little ray of sunshine heading into the holidays — something forgotten by tomorrow, perhaps, but good enough for tonight.

A number-crunching CEO buys a family-owned airline and cancels the airline’s annual holiday charitable benefit. A pilot rallies the community to help save the event and unexpectedly finds herself falling for the magnate in the process.

When Jenny has to push back against Matt’s assertion that they cancel the Santa Flight, she says to her father, “Isn’t our job to keep mom’s dream alive and keep Santa’s Flight on course for the sake of the kids?”

That is the point of the movie.

Q-tips say: We liked it!

Mrs. Q says:  The Santa Flight is a big deal, not only to Snowflake but surely to Idaho Falls, which hosts the Santa Market. Children and local businesses — the Santa Flight benefits everything that holiday movies cherish.

12/19/21 – After winning a European vacation on a game show, Clark Griswold (Chevy Chase) convinces his reluctant family to accompany him. His wife, Ellen (Beverly D’Angelo), is excited, but daughter Audrey (Dana Hill) is reluctant to leave her boyfriend behind, while teen son Rusty (Jason Lively) dreams of meeting girls. After arriving in London, the clan encounters one disaster after another as they travel through France, Germany and Italy, while Clark’s attempts to cheer everyone up make things worse.

Q-tips say: DO NOT SEE THIS PIECE OF TRASH or PAY TO SEE IT!

Mrs. Q says: I see London, I see France, I see Chevy do a dumb dance & a dumb movie.

You may have enjoyed the other National Lampoon movies about the Griswolds but this is NOT one to watch. Both Q’s agree on this & that seldom happens that both of us agree.

Buddy (Will Ferrell) was accidentally transported to the North Pole as a toddler and raised to adulthood among Santa’s elves. Unable to shake the feeling that he doesn’t fit in, the adult Buddy travels to New York, in full elf uniform, in search of his real father. As it happens, this is Walter Hobbs (James Caan), a cynical businessman. After a DNA test proves this, Walter reluctantly attempts to start a relationship with the childlike Buddy with increasingly chaotic results.

Q-tips say: YES, see it. Even if you saw it before, see it again. Who can’t use a laugh now a days? A movie full of Yuletide cheer, Elf is a spirited, good-natured family comedy, and it benefits greatly from Will Ferrell’s funny and charming performance as one of Santa’s biggest helpers. You might even enjoy the decorations & Christmas scene of the big city in this movie.

Mrs. Q says: Ferrell is a hoot. So is much of this witty holiday family entertainment, which, up until the end, when the “true spirit of Christmas” must be reaffirmed, happily favors slapstick.

A humorous and heartfelt look back at the adventures of childhood. Set in suburban Chicago in the late 1980s, the story centers on ten-year-old Jake Doyle’s quest to get the latest and greatest video game system for Christmas.

Q-tips say: Yes, we enjoyed it.
8-Bit Christmas is a new family comedy that works well for the young crowd and will resonate strongly with those of us raised in the ’80s. Every single part of the film was working its way towards that ending, and it feels like it was made with a lot of love.

Adults who were kids from the era might get a warm/fuzzy, but kids today will likely download the whole NES system on their phones and play while half watching. Game over?

Teenage Ralphie wrecks his dream car before he even gets it off the lot, so he and his friends get jobs to earn enough money to fix it before the Old Man (Daniel Stern) finds out.

Q-tips say: Was just ok. Not really for the little ones.

Silly jokes abound but it’s no original Christmas Story.

Netflix – Desperate to avoid his family’s judgment about his perpetual single status, Peter convinces his best friend Nick to join him for the holidays and pretend that they’re now in a relationship. But when Peter’s mother sets him up on a blind date with her handsome trainer James–the plan goes awry. Cast: Michael Urie, Philemon Chambers and Luke Macfarlane star in this holiday rom-com with Jennifer Coolidge and Kathy Najimy.

Q-tips say: Was ok. This movie takes us into LGBTQ turf for the holidays in a good way.

Mrs. Q says: See it. Single All the Way ultimately does best is show us that a gay Christmas movie can be just as hackneyed as a straight one. Some humorous moments, especially when the younger kids are right on spot for some issues. The movie is smooth, fun and funny holiday rom-com that respects its characters and avoids making anyone a villain.