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When we went through Cinematic Titanic, we passed over one episode to save it for the Holiday Marathon: their re-riff of Santa Claus Conquers the Martians. A weird conceit (the lives of Martian children are too regimented so they need Santa to break them out of it), the actors give it their all but the low production values have given it a reputation of one of the worst movies ever made. Among the actors in this are a young Pia Zadora as Girmar the Girl Martian, and Bill McCutcheon, who later appeared on Sesame Street and in Steel Magnolias, as the childlike Martian Dropo.
posted by JHarris on Dec 24, 2023 - 3 comments

[TRAILER] Jim (Bing Crosby) and Lila are members of a performing trio who plan to quit and run a country hotel. When Lila says she has fallen in love with the dancer in the act, Ted (Fred Astaire), Jim leaves town with a broken heart. After turning the inn into a holidays-only live entertainment venue, Jim winds up booking -- and falling for -- Linda (Marjorie Reynolds). But when Ted shows up at the place after being dumped by Lila, he too sets his sights on beautiful Linda. [more inside]
posted by DirtyOldTown on Dec 12, 2022 - 12 comments

[TRAILER] In this remake of Charles Dickens' classic "A Christmas Carol", cold-hearted superstar Ebony Scrooge (Vanessa Williams) gets a reality check when she meets three Christmas spirits who would change her miserly ways for the better. [more inside]
posted by DirtyOldTown on Dec 2, 2022 - 1 comment

[TRAILER] When a team of mercenaries breaks into a wealthy family compound on Christmas Eve, taking everyone inside hostage, the team isn't prepared for a surprise combatant: Santa Claus (David Harbour) is on the grounds, and he's about to show why this Nick is no saint. [more inside]
posted by DirtyOldTown on Dec 2, 2022 - 21 comments

Siblings Lily and Jorge Diaz are each on a mission to find love and purpose during the holidays. [more inside]
posted by the primroses were over on Dec 31, 2021 - 2 comments

Netflix delivers a new holiday film that is either a mind-numbing retread of the most egregious Lifetime/Hallmark Channel Christmas movie cliches, or a poker-faced parody of them. [more inside]
posted by DirtyOldTown on Dec 23, 2017 - 14 comments

We address winter holiday disputes in this all-docket episode (with a special surprise appearance from a past guest).
posted by ocherdraco on Dec 18, 2014 - 5 comments