Man! I thought I knew movies. I thought, "Thanksgiving Day is coming. My favorite holiday. Good food, good company, an attitude of gratitude. Time to see the movies I always see this time of year."
Then, I tried to list them, but I couldn't.
Because there aren't any.
You may have already noticed this horrifying revelation yourself. There are no great Thanksgiving movies. It's true.
Christmas movies, we got. Every year, there is at least one brand-new studio movie meant to dilute and world-ize and cheapen the beautiful Christmas story. Happens every year.
Christmas movies, we got. Every year, there is at least one brand-new studio movie meant to dilute and world-ize and cheapen the beautiful Christmas story. Happens every year.
New Year's Day, Groundhog Day, Valentine's Day, those holidays have movies, but not Thanksgiving Day.
Growing up, I remember the Rankin-Bass Christmas animations, and Charlie Brown Christmas, and "The Homecoming" for Christmas, and "It's a Wonderful Life" covered both Christmas and New Year. And the Dolly Madison snack cake Arbor Day special of course, everybody remembers those, but there was nothing for Thanksgiving, and that was my favorite holiday.
No guilt, no straining of one's finances, no responsibility for somebody else's Christmas joy. Nothing was expected of you at Thanksgiving, just sit down and eat. And to capacity! And beyond! A capacity unimagined at other times of the year. A creaking, groaning, falling-down packed stuffed fullness that seriously threatened to take you out, some terrifying excessive November.
So I guess I really didn't need a Thanksgiving movie, just food.
Growing up, I remember the Rankin-Bass Christmas animations, and Charlie Brown Christmas, and "The Homecoming" for Christmas, and "It's a Wonderful Life" covered both Christmas and New Year. And the Dolly Madison snack cake Arbor Day special of course, everybody remembers those, but there was nothing for Thanksgiving, and that was my favorite holiday.
No guilt, no straining of one's finances, no responsibility for somebody else's Christmas joy. Nothing was expected of you at Thanksgiving, just sit down and eat. And to capacity! And beyond! A capacity unimagined at other times of the year. A creaking, groaning, falling-down packed stuffed fullness that seriously threatened to take you out, some terrifying excessive November.
So I guess I really didn't need a Thanksgiving movie, just food.
Luckily, some of my favorite movies have a Thanksgiving Day scene in them. Woody Allen's "Broadway Danny Rose" has a great Thanksgiving scene, where Danny and his Actor friends meet in Danny's crummy little apartment, and he feeds them turkey tv dinners. "Broadway Danny Rose" is a sweet little movie, with some quiet little gems.
So I roasted a turkey, and had WILD SIDE Theatre Actor friends over for Thanksgiving Dinner, several times. It was fun, and we weren't just a bunch of Hollywood refugees, stuck in Hollywood, away from friends and family. We were all alone, together.
Of course, if we had really wanted to, we could go home to our families.
"Planes, Trains And Automobiles" is a 1987 story from the late John Hughes, of two guys who really want to get home, go through great difficulty getting there, and learn a lot on the way.
Another John Hughes road-buddy movie set at Thanksgiving,
is 1991's "Dutch." Not as good a cast, and the story seems...familiar, about two guys who really want to get home, go through great difficulty getting there, and learn a lot...um...on the way.
I remember Thanksgiving 1989. A bunch of us pale NW Evergreen animation people, at my pal Craig Bartlett's Hollywood place for a nice dinner.
I helped Craig with his 2x4 16mm animation stand, and our friend Matt Groening told us about his new animated segment for the "Tracey Ullman Show," a funny cartoon about Matt's family, growing up.
A lot happened over the next 365 days.
One year later, I watched Matt's creation, Bart Simpson of "The Simpsons," float by on tv, a balloon in the Macy's Parade. Surreal! (And now it's 20 years later. That's surreal, too).
This is probably the ONLY REAL MOVIE ABOUT THANKSGIVING.
Directed by Jodie Foster, who always has a special place in my heart, this movie is called "Home For The Holidays," with a great cast. Some favorite Actors, all in the same story. A little sordid, as modern holiday stories made by Hollywood refugees tend to be, but it is very funny.
Here's how far movies have sunk.
2003's "Pieces of April" is also about Thanksgiving, but it's a grubby indy movie about a girl having her family over for dinner. That could be nice, but it gets pretty depressing, don't say I didn't warn you. Maybe Hollywood refugees shouldn't make Thanksgiving Day movies.
2003's "Pieces of April" is also about Thanksgiving, but it's a grubby indy movie about a girl having her family over for dinner. That could be nice, but it gets pretty depressing, don't say I didn't warn you. Maybe Hollywood refugees shouldn't make Thanksgiving Day movies.
After that, I need something for dessert - pumpkin pie would be nice. Here's a little home-made Thanksgiving pumpkin pie stop-motion video.
Happy Thanksgiving! I hope you are warm and dry, and thankful to be home with your loved ones, for a lovely meal.
Planes, Trains And Automobiles
Dutch
The Simpsons MovieHome For The Holidays
Pieces of April
Happy Thanksgiving Stop-Motion Video
