Home for the Holidays (1995)

Director:

Jodie Foster

Writers (WGA):

Chris Radant (short story)
W.D. Richter (screenplay)

Release Date:

3 November 1995 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

Tagline:

On the fourth Thursday in November, 84 million American families will gather together... And wonder why.

Plot:

After losing her job, making out with her soon to be ex-boss, and finding out that her daughter plans to spend Thanksgiving with her boyfriend...

Plot Keywords:

Dysfunctional | Dysfunctional Family | Christmas | Family | Homosexual

Awards:

2 nominations

US TV Schedule:

Fri. Aug. 22	4:00 PM	HBO
Thur. Aug. 28	9:00 AM	HBO

Cast

Holly Hunter	...	Claudia Larson
Robert Downey Jr.	...	Tommy Larson
Anne Bancroft	...	Adele Larson
Charles Durning	...	Henry Larson
Dylan McDermott	...	Leo Fish
Geraldine Chaplin	...	Aunt Gladys
Steve Guttenberg	...	Walter Wedman
Cynthia Stevenson	...	Joanne Larson Wedman
Claire Danes	...	Kitt Larson
Emily Ann Lloyd	...	Brittany Lace Wedman
Zack Duhame	...	Walter Wedman Jr.
Austin Pendleton	...	Peter Arnold
David Strathairn	...	Russell Terziak
Amy Yasbeck	...	Ginny Johnson Drewer
James Lecesne	...	Ron Drewer

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for thematic material, language and brief drug use.

Runtime:

103 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:L | Australia:MA | USA:PG-13 (certificate #34076) | Australia:M | Canada:PG | Finland:S | Germany:12 (w) | Portugal:M/12 | Spain:T | Sweden:7 | UK:15 | Argentina:13 | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Baltimore Museum of Art - 10 Art Museum Drive, Baltimore, Maryland, USA

Company:

Egg Pictures

Trivia:

Robert Downey Jr. publicly admitted to using heroin during the making of this film. Jodie Foster wrote him a letter praising his work but warning him that he could not keep doing this on other films.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Claudia goes into the basement to talk to her sister, her lipstick is on/off between shots.

Quotes:

Joanne: You're calling me a freak?
Tommy: No, I'm calling you a product of baboon lovin'. There's a distinction.

Movie Connections:

Featured in The Cutting Edge: The Magic of Movie Editing (2004)

Soundtrack:

Theme from Shaft

Teensy Little GEM

I am so glad I found this movie. It is a snug little favorite of mine already. I come from a big family (all weirdos) who somehow get along very well. But this story of a bunch of weirdos who do not is just GRAND. Others may say that the themes of family and home and blah blah are the central idea here, but I say it is that Claudia (Hunter, playing our protagonist) has a really wonderful brother (Downey Jr. who nearly steals this film altogether).

Brother Tommy comes home for the holidays unexpectedly because he finds out his sister has just had a reaaaaalllly bad day (fired from her job, teen daughter announces she's going to have sex, loses her coat, makes out with her boss, etc) and dealing alone with the family would be unthinkable. He arrives with some hilarious fanfare, and proves to be excellent moral support for Hunter, a distraction for his family, and the provender of an interesting new element....in the person of Leo Fish, who may or may not be Tommy's new "partner."

Tommy ((heavily embellished and ad-libbed by Downey...listen carefully to his banter...hilarious)ends up taking the inevitable flack for his gayness (probably why he was not going to come home in the first place) but her lets it roll off his back, choosing instead to enjoy his sister's company and his parents' foibles. He also really enjoys (and so do we) watching Claudia and Leo Fish figure each other out.

They do...albeit obliquely and elliptically, with the conclusion sort of up in the air (hee hee). But in the process we are treated to Leo's very funky and offhand outlook on life. Listen for his very wry speech about trying to talk golf with his own father...."Par Par Bogie Bogie Par Par" has become a catchphrase for "blah blah blah" in my house...

Anne Bancroft and Hunter are stellar, and McDermott is darned cute (the making-out-on-the-doorstep scene is darling). But Downey (yet again) is the one you watch. The director's commentary by Foster gives a clue that he was frustrating to work with, but it seems very worth it here. He is just SO watchable, boistrous, too-energetic, motor-mouthed and loveable. We should all have such a brother. Lucky Claudia.

OH! Don't miss the turkey scene. Play it again to catch the peripheral characters' faces. I cannot wait for Thanksgiving!