Watch out, Chris Brown. The gang from This Christmas is sure to face stiff competition from The Perfect Holiday, a romantic comedy which features its own all-star cast of bold-faced Hollywood names like Gabrielle Union, Morris Chestnut, Queen Latifah, Terrence Howard, Charlie Murphy, and Katt Williams.
The Perfect Holiday centers on Nancy (Union), a single mother of three whose only Christmas wish is to meet a good man. Her ex-husband, the hip hop entrepreneur J-Jizzy (Murphy), is the type whose sights are mostly set on his career, not his family life. This spells endless frustration for both Nancy and her trio of mischief-makers, one of whom is determined to find her mom the perfect doting boyfriend.
Enter Benjamin (Chestnut), also a passionate musician – albeit the struggling kind. To fund his artistic aspirations, Benjamin works shifts at an office supplies store and, on the far less glamorous end, poses for holiday photos in a Santa suit. Handsome, humble, and armed with a winning sense of humor, he's the type to help someone out "just because." Also, despite penning beautiful love songs, he has no love to call his own. On top of that, he's great with kids. Can you guess what happens next?
Narrated by Queen Latifah - a sort of Dickensian presence a la Christmas Carol - The Perfect Holiday keeps with the downhome spirit of director Lance Rivera's previous effort, 2004's The Cookout, while adding a more family-friendly element to character dynamics. Watching the children's hijinks, you'll no doubt be reminded of other holiday classics like Home Alone, while Union and Chestnut's chemistry harkens to their more adult turns in films such as Breakin' All the Rules. Striking a balance between broad family comedy and grown-up quips was a challenge, Rivera told reporters at a recent roundtable interview. "Especially dealing with people like Katt Williams, who's kind of an R-rated comedian, and Charlie Murphy and all of these other talented people, it was about, you know, 'Just tap into your inner child and give your performance to that person.' If you want to use 'the F word,' say it in PG," he said, quickly adding, "And, you know, they were talented enough to be able to do that."
Commenting on the similarities between his film and This Christmas, released in November, Rivera notes that they're both "black traditional Christmas movies." But while one is more focused on the realities of family life, the other is prone to flights of holiday fancy. "When I set out to write this movie based in an urban setting, I wanted the traditional sense of a Christmas movie with the belief in Santa Claus and the existence of the spirit of what Christmas is and also the whole spirituality and inner emotion of the holiday season," he explains. "It's about the gift of giving unconditionally and not expecting anything in return." The road to getting a greenlight wasn't easy - Rivera admits he ran into obstacles when explaining that a black traditional Christmas film could work. "And [I'm] not saying in the sense that people couldn't grab hold of that element. It was that they didn't have anything to equate it to," he reasons. The upside to that, however, is that The Perfect Holiday is a "new and inventive idea."
Rap moguls singing Christmas carols? Mall Santas finding love? Katt Williams turning the F word into PG? Sounds pretty new and inventive to us. At a recent press day, VIBE.com got the scoop from the stars of The Perfect Holiday on their experiences making the film and what they have in store this holiday season.
The Perfect Holiday hits theaters today, December 12.
December 12, 2007 @ 11:28 am
Good Tidings from "The Perfect Holiday"
Romantic comedy / Christmas fantasy stars Gabrielle Union, Morris Chestnut, Katt Williams and more. Opens today.
Article tags: Charlie Murphy, Gabrielle Union, Jill Marie Jones, Katt Williams, Lance Rivera, Morris Chestnut, Queen Latifah, Terrence Howard, The Perfect Holiday
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