Christmas Film - Preview

Four Christmases

Presents under the tree? Check, Santa please stop here sign? Check, Turkey of a Christmas film? CHECK!

Tim Allen used to the king of the Christmas catastrophe and since he realised that the audience really was tired of him re-creating Santa year upon year... then Will Ferrell had a go and now Vince Vaughn has begun “delighting” us with his take on Christmas , last year we endured Fred Claus and this year we have Four Christmases, time to give up yet Vince?

An original concept for a plot, a couple who it turns out barely know one-another (despite having been in a relationship for three years) who always escape over the holiday season, are caught out this year and have to go and embrace family festivities in not one, but four separate houses. Kate’s (Reese Witherspoon) religious crazed mother, her Father (John Voight) and his new girlfriend and then Brad’s (Vaughn) Mother, who is now in a relationship with his childhood friend and finally his Father who lives with his two boisterous brothers. Cue madness and mayhem, just like any other family Christmas. Along the way surprising discoveries are uncovered and rash decisions are made within all aspects of Kate and Brad’s lives . . . and their family’s dynamics.

All in all it is a little bit heavy on the inspirational message and is not as funny as you hoped, heck I’d even choose to watch The Santa Clause 3 : The Escape Clause than see this again, at least that film has true Christmas spirit. It makes you feel as if you have sat down for the main event and only the trimmings have been served.

I really wanted to like this film as I usually admire Witherspoons’ work and find Vaughn genuinely funny, but even with a fairly well known supporting cast, this film has resided itself to the ‘get it for £5 if you spend £30 in HMV’, next Christmas. I’ll just sit back and await the 17^th December when White Christmas is on re-release on the big screen, instead.

Amy Victoria Gathercole

As my first post on my editorial blog I thought that I would have a little discussion about a story that hit a few of the nationals today.

This buissness about the Cambridge University student who posed "wearing a black, lacy thong with hold-up stockings as she poses on one of the city's historic bridges with a cigarette in her hand".

The reactions to the scandaous story are, in some cases quite suprising. Some people obviously are outraged. (I wonder if it would be the case if it wasn't a student from an old Redbrick institution?) Others (predominantly students) are all for it. It's not the first of the page 3-esque shots that "Vivid" has featured on it's pages, and judging by this reaction , I'm pretty sure that it won't be the last.

At the end of the day, I think that it's the old trick of "publicity that money can't buy" ... I mean how often does a story about a student rag make the national news papers? It goes back to what I said re. the Sachs scandal... if you want to get attention do something outrageous. The shock factor always sells... especially when coupled with the (se)X - factor.

Amy Victoria Gathercole
Editor

Let me know your opinon....