The Perfect Holiday (2007)

Director:

Lance Rivera

Writers (WGA):

Lance Rivera (written by) &
Marc Calixte (written by) ...
(more)

Release Date:

12 December 2007 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Family | Romance

Tagline:

This Christmas, the perfect man just happens to be Santa.

Plot:

A young girl turns to a department store Santa (Chestnut) in the hopes that he will help find a new husband for her divorced mother (Union). |

Plot Keywords:

Christmas | Angel | Mall Santa | Deception | Mother Daughter Relationship

Cast

Morris Chestnut	...	Benjamin Armstrong
Gabrielle Union	...	Nancy
Faizon Love	...	Jamal
Charles Q. Murphy	...	J-Jizzy (as Charlie Murphy)
Katt Williams	...	Delicious
Jill Marie Jones	...	Robin
Rachel True	...	Brenda
Malik Hammond	...	John-John
Khail Bryant	...	Emily
Pedro Kim	...	Clerk
David Anzuelo	...	Maintenance Man
Frank Bonsangue	...	Police Sergeant
John Bryant	...	Rottweiler
Paul Woodburn	...	Driver
Modi	...	Father in Line
Amber Joy Williams	...	Five-Year-Old in Line
Ira Hawkins	...	Judge
Conor Carroll	...	Kid on Jamal's Lap
Reymond Wittman	...	Kid on Santa's Lap (as Reymond Charles Wittman)
Brian Gilbert	...	Kid with List
Victoria Pannell	...	Sassy Little Girl on Street
Christopher Burns	...	Man in Crowd
Lisa Datz	...	Melody
Dylan Hartigan	...	Nerdy Kid on Lap
Mary L. Narango	...	Receptionist
Sandra 'Pepa' Denton	...	V-Jay
Susan Barrett	...	Woman in Crowd
Mike Elliott	...	Mr. Sing-a-long
Evelyn Taucher	...	Old Lady
Didi Gruenwald	...	Annabella
Maria Ford	...	Herself
Queen Latifah	...	Mrs. Christmas
Terrence Howard	...	Bah Humbug
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
John Farrer	...	Mall Janitor
Jeremy Gumbs	...	Mikey

Directed by
Lance Rivera

Writing credits (WGA)
Lance Rivera		(written by) &
Marc Calixte		(written by) and
Nat Mauldin		(written by) &
Jeff Stein		(written by)

Produced by
Shakim Compere	....	producer
Leifur B. Dagfinnsson	....	producer
Mike Elliott	....	producer
Joseph P. Genier	....	producer
Petra Hoebel	....	line producer
Queen Latifah	....	producer
Stevie 'Black' Lockett	....	associate producer
Marvin Peart	....	producer

Original Music by
Christopher Lennertz

Cinematography by
Teodoro Maniaci		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Paul Trejo

Casting by
Leah Daniels

Production Design by
Anne Stuhler

Art Direction by
Randall Richards

Set Decoration by
Amanda Carroll

Costume Design by
Misa Hylton-Brim

Makeup Department
Robin Day	....	key hair stylist
Hildie Ginsberg	....	makeup department head
Tina LaSpina	....	additional makeup artist
Susan Schectar	....	hair stylist

Production Management
Karen Gorodetzky	....	production manager
Jan Kikumoto	....	post-production supervisor

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Thomas Fatone	....	first assistant director
Patrick Gibbons	....	second assistant director
Kim Thompson	....	second second assistant director

Art Department
Sally Bonython	....	assistant property master
Robert Castillo	....	scenic artist
Robert Castillo	....	storyboard artist
Lou Charles	....	set dresser
Pete Dancy	....	set dresser
Peter DeCurtis	....	lead man
Yolan Fisher	....	property master
Dan Kajeckas	....	scenic artist
Lyvan A. Munlyn	....	scenic charge
Kevin L. Raper	....	graphic artist
Niquan Riley	....	set dresser
Kyle Salvatore	....	props
Billy Stearne	....	best boy set dresser
Adriano Valle	....	set dresser

Sound Department
Laurel Bridges	....	boom operator
Chris David	....	sound re-recording mixer
Patrick Dunnam	....	assistant dialogue editor
Christopher Eakins	....	adr supervisor
David Esparza	....	supervising sound editor
David Hingorany	....	sound mix engineer
John Marquis	....	dialogue editor
Daniel McIntosh	....	sound mixer: additional photography
Trevor Metz	....	foley cueing
Richard Murphy	....	sound mixer
Paul Ordonez	....	temp. sound recordist
Victoria Rose Sampson	....	dialogue editor
Adam Sanchez	....	utility sound
Gabriel J. Serrano	....	sound recordist
Geordy Sincavage	....	foley mixer
Eric Thompson	....	adr mixer
Mandell Winter	....	supervising sound editor

Special Effects by
Neil Ruddy	....	special effects coordinator

Visual Effects by
David Van Woert	....	visual effects producer
Leo Vezzali	....	visual effects producer

Stunts
Jared Burke	....	co-stunt coordinator
Jeremy Sample	....	stunt double
Jeremy Sample	....	stunt double: Faizon Love
Derrick Simmons	....	stunt double: Morris Chestnut
Derrick K. Simmons	....	stunt double: Mikey
Anthony Vincent	....	stunts

Camera and Electrical Department
Michael Arisohn	....	additional electrician
David Benaroya	....	grip
Manuel Billeter	....	additional camera operator
Oliver Cary	....	camera operator
Marshall Coles	....	electrician
John Coots	....	best boy electric
Matt Cross	....	electrician
David Daniel	....	camera operator: second unit
Cory Durst	....	company grip
Philip Gleason	....	video assist operator
Wesley Hodges	....	additional camera loader
Milly Itzhak	....	second assistant camera: "a" camera
Bernard James	....	electrician
Alexandra Kanal	....	camera loader
Ed Koza	....	grip
Gareth Manwaring	....	camera intern
Dave McAllister	....	key grip
Nestor Medina	....	electrician
Jessica Miglio	....	still photographer
Simeon Moore	....	generator operator
Roy Nowlin	....	electrician
Steve Peloquin	....	best boy grip
Antonio Ponti	....	assistant camera
Craig Pressgrove	....	first assistant camera
Brian Pryzpek	....	gaffer
Rachael Saltzman	....	electrician
Daniel D. Sariano	....	assistant camera
Ethan Wilhelm	....	additional electrician
Darryl Wilson	....	dolly grip
Ian Woolston-Smith	....	steadicam operator

Casting Department
Don Wongprapan	....	casting assistant

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Lorraine Coppin	....	wardrobe supervisor
Jan Finnell	....	costumer (uncredited)

Editorial Department
John Gilbert	....	additional editor
Sandy Meade	....	post-production
Megan Robb	....	assistant editor
Christopher Wild Rogers	....	digital intermediate producer
Lynne Whitlock	....	additional editor

Music Department
Drew DeAscentis	....	music editor
Paul Di Franco	....	music supervisor
Peter Fuchs	....	scoring mixer
Rossano Galante	....	orchestrator
Michael John Mollo	....	score coordinator
Philip White	....	orchestrator

Transportation Department
Michael Fennimore	....	transportation captain

Other crew
Peter Anders	....	craft service
Monica Barraza	....	production coordinator
Rebecca Bernard	....	set intern
Eve Biddle	....	production assistant
Eunice Choi	....	assistant to executive producer
Pierre M. Coleman	....	production assistant
Stacie Blair Davis	....	assistant to producer
Anne Marie Dentici	....	set production assistant
William Doll	....	electronic press kit
Vadim Epstein	....	key production assistant
Steve Faughnan	....	location assistant
Jason Fesel	....	set production assistant
Jonathan Gardner	....	production assistant
Tena Golding	....	assistant production coordinator
Trish Gray	....	location scout
Matthew Kreiner	....	production secretary
Ronnie Kupferwasser	....	location manager
Jennifer Markowitz	....	accounting clerk
Brendan O'Rourke	....	assistant location manager
Susan T. Parsons	....	production coordinator
Kevin Pazmino	....	production assistant: first team
Jean Pesce	....	additional location scout
Matthew T. Price	....	assistant: Mr. Elliott
Matthew Reedy	....	production assistant
Guillaume Renberg	....	remote head technician
Patti Small	....	production accountant
Michelle Stella	....	clearances and product placement
J.P. Summerskill	....	payroll accountant
Willie Toubman	....	assistant location manager
Angelika Walaszczyk	....	executive clearance specialist
Sharon Watt	....	script supervisor
Cohl Klop	....	voice-over (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Capital Arts Entertainment
• Destination Films
• Flavor Unit Entertainment
• Truenorth Productions

Distributors

• Yari Film Group Releasing (2007) (USA) (theatrical)

Other Companies

• Chapman / Leonard Studio Equipment  dollies
• Identity Studios  visual effects
• RPM Group  promotion and marketing
• Wildfire Studios  ADR recording facility
• Wildfire Studios  sound post-production

Also Known As:

Perfect Christmas (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated PG for brief language and some suggestive humor.

Runtime:

USA:96 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:PG

Filming Locations:

Bergenfield, New Jersey, USA

Company:

Capital Arts Entertainment

Quotes:

Jamal: Hi, I'm Santa's Number One Elf!
Brenda: More like numbers one through ten...

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Siskel & Ebert & the Movies: (2007-12-15)" (2007)

Soundtrack:

The Perfect Christmas

If it weren't for Queen Latifah,this was would have been completely forgettable

THE PERFECT HOLIDAY is another one of those typical holiday films that some have touted as the "first African-American ensemble" that plays like its a television special than a theatrical release. This is another one of those hair-splitting claims that requires us to consider another movie about another over-the-top out of control African-American family going through the motions around the most joyous time of the year. For one,Gabrielle Union and Morris Chestnut make a sexy caramel couple. Maybe that explains why they're always paired up in movies. In this case you didn't get enough of their chocolate combo work in such films as "The Brothers","Two Get Play That Game",and "Breaking All The Rules". This time around they're back in "The Perfect Holiday". "Holiday" has Chestnut playing a struggling singer-songwriter working part time as a mall Santa. Apparently, this must be at the progressive mall if they're hiring a brotha to play of the traditionally alabaster St. Nick.

When a little girl(Khail Bryant)hops on this fake Santa's lap,all she asks for is a man to pay her mom(Union)a compliment she tells her friends she would like. Once our Kriss Kringle sees how mochalicious this girl's mama is,he decides to fulfill the wish himself. This sets off a farcial courtship between the two,which mostly has him keeping an eye out for one of her other children(Malik Hammond),who tries to prank this fool out of his mom's life(Fortunately,baby girl hips him to her big bro's tricks whenever he's in Santa mode.)The boy wants his mom to get back together with their father(Charlie Murphy of Chappelle's Show),an egostistical rapper our part-time Father Christmas-who doesn't know he's going out with his ex-is also hoping to work with. As cute and cuddly as this sounds,I have seen better movies with the same plot line and it is basically forgettable. What follows next is a series of events so uninspired and delusional that an old soul like Father Christmas couldn't save this fiasco of a film with a strong black cast. And speaking of the supporting cast,the actors are mostly made up of former UPN and WB sitcom players not to mention former comedians(Faizon Love from WB's "The Parenthood"and was also in the first "Friday" film opposite Ice Cube and Chris Tucker;Rachel True from "Half and Half";Jill Marie Jones-aka Toni Childs from "Girlfriends",and I know some of you wonder whatever happened to her after her departure from that show...;not to mention comedian Katt Williams and a host of others from "BET's Comicview")who look as if they took the job because,they didn't have much else to do.

The baffling parts of this are the special guest appearances by Queen Latifah and Terrance Howard as the night-and-day spirits who decide the fate of these characters. Terrance Howard is totally waste here(who looks like he doesn't want to belong in this in the first place and for an actor with an impaccable capacity of playing good roles),and it shows in some of the performances since the only saving grace here is Latifah herself who keeps this movie afloat,since Latifah's production company Flavor Unit films produced this movie which explains why she is there(Latifah serves as executive producer). But it is nice to see Union and Chestnut once again on the screen making black beautiful which is the only saving grace here.