The Holiday (2006)

Two women troubled with guy-problems swap homes in each other's countries, where they each meet a local guy and fall in love.

Director:

Nancy Meyers

Writer:

Nancy Meyers

Stars:

Cameron Diaz, Kate Winslet, Jude Law

1 win & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Cameron Diaz	...	Amanda Woods
Kate Winslet	...	Iris Simpkins
Jude Law	...	Graham
Jack Black	...	Miles
Eli Wallach	...	Arthur Abbott
Edward Burns	...	Ethan
Rufus Sewell	...	Jasper Bloom
Miffy Englefield	...	Sophie
Emma Pritchard	...	Olivia
Sarah Parish	...	Hannah
Shannyn Sossamon	...	Maggie
Bill Macy	...	Ernie
Shelley Berman	...	Norman
Kathryn Hahn	...	Bristol
John Krasinski	...	Ben

Storyline

In London, Iris Simpkins writes a wedding column in a newspaper and nurtures an unrequited love for her colleague Jasper Bloom. Near Christmas, she is informed that Jasper is engaged to marry another colleague, and her life turns upside down. In Los Angeles, the movie-trailers maker Amanda Woods has just split with her unfaithful boyfriend Ethan and wants to forget him. Through a house exchange website, Amanda impulsively swaps her mansion for Iris' cottage in Surrey for the holidays. While in Surrey, Amanda meets Iris' brother and book editor Graham and they fall in love with each other. Meanwhile, Iris meets her new next door neighbor the ninety year old screenplay writer Arthur, who helps her retrieve her self-esteem, and the film composer Miles, with whom she falls in love.

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Plot Keywords:

love | film composer | house | composer | book | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for sexual content and some strong language

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [uk] United International Pictures [de]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

8 December 2006 (USA)

Also Known As:

El descanso

Filming Locations:

1883 Orlando Road, San Marino, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$85,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£2,826,520 (UK) (8 December 2006)

Gross:

$63,224,849 (USA) (26 January 2007)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures, Universal Pictures, Relativity Media

Technical Specs

Runtime:

138 min

Sound Mix:

DTS SDDS Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Amanda's stack of books on the plane to England are: "The Kite Runner" by Khaled Hosseini, "The Power of Now" by Eckhart Tolle, "Atonement" by Ian McEwan, "Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln" by Doris Kearns Goodwin, "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" by J.K. Rowling, "Bob Dylan Chronicles" by Bob Dylan, "The Corrections" by Jonathan Franzen, "Runaway" by Alice Munro, "The Wisdom of Forgiveness: Intimate Journeys and Conversations" by The Dalai Lama and Chan Victor.

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Goofs

When Eli Wallach walks up the steps in the auditorium he gives a thumbs up with his right hand, immediately he turns and has his speech in his right hand.

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Quotes

[after Amanda slams the door in his face]
Ethan: You didn't really wanna be a couple! You resist it in your own way. And it's hard to detect how you even do it, because nobody's quite as smart as you! So you're hard to catch at it. But it always surfaces and this is what happens.
[back inside the house, up on the balcony]
Amanda: What happened?
Ethan: Things end. Just like you knew they would!

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Connections

References Se7en (1995)

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Soundtracks

"Got to Be Real"
(1978)
Written by David Foster, David Paich, and Cheryl Lynn
Performed by Cheryl Lynn
Courtesy of Cheryl Lynn Productions

User Reviews

Good to pass a rainy day

Although this isn't my typical pick on movies I'd love to see, I have to say I enjoyed screening this one. The run time is a bit long, and the movie gets a bit soft in the middle, but considering you're actually watching two love stories (as opposed to one), I guess the run time is justified. It still seemed a bit forced to get the story told in a descent amount of time (still over two hours). The performances were moderate to good, with exception of Jude Law as Graham, who was wonderful.

If you're tired of holiday films that are so stacked with so much Christmas cheer that it makes you sick, this is the perfect alternative. Light enough for some serious laughs, and with enough drama to keep it interesting to audiences, this one's a good date movie. Leave the kids with a sitter. There are a few adult themes that could be uncomfortable to try to explain to a younger one.