Christmas Vacation. When Christmastime comes around each year, do you and your family have a favorite movie that you just have to watch?

Mine without a doubt is the classic, Home Alone. Love the house, love the humor and I can’t help but feel a little sentimental when I see it since my son was about Kevin’s age when the movie first came out. Another movie that’s become a favorite over the years for many folks is National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation starring Chevy Chase as Clark Griswold and Beverly D’Angelo as his wife, Ellen. In the movie, Clark has big plans for a “good, old- fashioned family Christmas.”  Both sets of grandparents are coming for Christmas, along with his Aunt Bethany and Uncle Lewis. The Griswolds get a surprise visit from Cousin Catherine (Miriam Flynn) and her moocher husband, Eddie, played by Randy Quaid.

The movie takes place in this adorable house. You know I have an affinity for yellow houses from THIS post. It definitely has that “all- American, mom and apple pie” look. If you’ve seen some of the other movie house tours at BNOTP, you are probably wondering if the movie was really filmed in this house. Per riverblue. com, the exterior shots were constructed and filmed entirely on a studio lot in southern California. They even had an earthquake occur during the filming!

Fake snow was produced for the movie–amazing how realistic it looks. Reminds me of the “snow effect” in the filming of the Pottery Barn commercial seen in this Pottery Barn garland hack post, HERE. Riverblue. com also reveals that many of the outdoor scenes were filmed in Breckenridge, Colorado.

That’s about the only place I’m actually familiar with in CO since we used to go there to ski every few years. It’s a beautiful, quaint picturesque town. While in Breckenridge for the filming, some of the indoor sets for the Griswold home were built inside an old high school gymnasium.

Christmas Vacation: A Movie House Tour. When Christmastime comes around each year, do you and your family have a favorite movie that you just have to watch? Review, cast and crew information, and plot summary at the Internet Movie Database.

Free Full movie porns videos. Categorized Full movie, Full movie Teen, Mexican, Ebony movies. The house used as the set in the movie A Christmas Story, now serving as a fund raising facility.

Well, it’s still a great looking “fantasy” movie house, even if it is just a set. Once again, the movie producers and set directors know just how to get to us, don’t they? One of the main themes throughout the movie is Clark’s elaborate decorating of the exterior of the home with 2. In this scene below, Clark is at the fuse box flipping the switches while Ellen shouts the bad news that the lights still won’t light up. After all his hard work stringing the lights, they will not light up. Did you find yourself rooting for poor old Clark and his lighting attempt?

He so badly wants to make this the best Christmas ever for his family. Long after everyone is in bed, Clark is still up on the roof testing each bulb, trying to figure out why they will not work. Let’s leave Clark to his work and tour the inside of the home. Maybe he’ll figure out the problem by the time we’re done. Christmas Vacation was filmed in 1. Get ready for some late 8.

In this scene we get a nice view of the entry. Love the wainscoting going up the stairway. That’s something that never goes out of style. I’ve seriously considered adding some wainscoting to my main stairway. I like this pattern.

Note to self:  save copy of this pic for future reference. Step into the living room and feast your eyes on THE TREE.

This reminds me of the year I talked my sister and her husband into letting me bring home a Christmas tree that was so big, my cat climbed it three times that year! It really didn’t look that big when we were out in the woods. Another view of the living room. You’ll see some pairing of red and green throughout this movie, but not near the amount we saw in the Home Alone house tour. Another view of the living room with “the stockings hung by the chimney with care.”The lighting feels so warm and cozy in all these scenes. We get a brief glimpse or two into what I’m calling the den or TV room. Remember when folks used to have a “TV room” in the house?

Lots and lots of shutters…again very cozy. Here’s Rusty, played by Johnny Galecki chilling out watching TV. Looks like he’s watching a black and white movie…maybe it’s an old Christmas movie like, It’s a Wonderful Life. Lots of wallpaper in this house…after all it’s the 8.

List of CD covers and DVD covers found in the DVD section of Cdcovers.cc staring with the letter N. Ed Helms stars in the New Line Cinema reboot of the Vacation film series as Rusty Griswald, the son of Chevy Chase's iconic character of the original four films. The answer to that hotly-debated question depends almost entirely on your definition of what a Christmas movie is. Is it a film having a festive release? Clark: Where do you think you're going? Nobody's leaving. Nobody's walking out on this fun, old-fashioned family Christmas. No, no. We're all in this together. This.

Note all the red and white transferware in the china hutch. What pattern is that? Yes, I want to know. These are important questions I have here!

The scenes around the table in the dining room always remind me of a famous painting. Can you guess which one? Yup, Norman Rockwell’s, “Thanksgiving Dinner.”   I think I read once that Norman Rockwell painted himself into this scene.

I think he’s either the guy on the left closest to us or the one looking back at us. Ummm, anyone know if that’s true? The wallpaper appears to be a blue and white toile. What a skinny little chair rail. Do you have a fireplace in your dining room? Oh, I would so love that! Wonder why they didn’t have a fire going?

Definitely needed a fire in the fireplace for this scene. There’s one of those brass chandeliers that everyone in Blogland is always painting over these days. Not me, I still like brass. I know, I’m weird. Notice we have the kid’s table…always the kid’s table.

During the movie, the Christmas tree goes up in flames and Clark cuts down a tree right from his yard. He unknowingly brings a squirrel into the house via the tree. The squirrel goes berserk running through the house with Cousin Eddie’s dog in hot pursuit, leaving a big mess behind. This is the only scene I was able to capture of the kitchen.

Love the plaid curtains…feels sooo homey and so Christmasy. The messy laundry room shortly after the squirrel/dog escapades. Showtime Full King Of The Avenue Online Free there. Let’s head upstairs. Here’s a brief view of the stairway with yet, more wallpaper.

A really great scene occurs in the attic. Clark accidentally gets shut up in there while the family is out shopping for the day. He ends up watching old home movies…very sentimental scene. Another view of the upstairs landing/hall and we can see more wall paper in the one of the bedrooms. This is the only bathroom scene in the movie. Interesting paper, huh? Audrey, Clark and Ellen’s daughter, (played by Juliette Lewis) is seen here in her bedroom for this scene.

How did they come to pair that comforter with those curtains? Watch Bone Dry Online Facebook. This feels very much like a typical American home, doesn’t it?

Not overly decorated, just cozy and very livable. Watch Diablo Online Moviesdbz on this page. I remember those ruffled curtains.

I had them in beige in the living room. Ha!  Did I just admit that? That was back around 1. That’s all we get to see inside the Griswold home. There’s another home we get a brief glimpse inside during the course of the movie–the home of Clark’s boss, Frank Shirley, played by Brian Doyle- Murray. He is said to live “on Melody Lane with all the other rich people.”During the movie, Clark becomes very upset because he discovers his boss has stiffed everyone on their Christmas bonus without warning any of the employees in advance. Eddie, (the redneck cousin) decides to get even and wants to grant Clark his one Christmas wish.

He personally fetches the boss for Clark–one of the funniest scenes in the movie. There’s Eddie’s “deluxe” RV parked right out front. So funny! This home is a real home and not just a set, per Lindsay at iamnotastalker. Love the name of that site.)  This 5,6. Glendale, CA.   You can see an aerial view on Zillow.

In this scene, Mr. Shirley’s wife is calling the police to report her husband has been kidnapped. Nice study! Clark manages to solve his lighting woes and electrifies his house…Which causes a near black out for miles! So funny! The power company throws the switch for their nuclear powered generators and electricity is restored to the rest of Chicago.

It’s been a full year since I watched Christmas Vacation…I’m ready again. What movie will you be pulling out this Christmas?

Love touring movie houses as much as I do? You’ll find additional Movie House Tours, by clicking on Home Tours at the top of the blog and then Movie House Tours. Or, click here:  Movie House Tours.

Is Die Hard A Christmas Movie? It’s that time of year again. Healthy eating takes a month off so we can all gorge on Nero’s pizza, the high street becomes an intense rush to get the last Turbo Man, people are professing wordless love for their best friend’s wife, and world- weary policemen wind up taking down a massive vault heist.

Hmm… one of those doesn’t quite fit. Yes, it’s Christmas, and everybody’s forming their lists of favourite Christmas movies. All the undisputed classics are there – It’s A Wonderful Life and Miracle on 3. Street (the original, obviously) – along with some widely- loved modern takes – Elf undoubtedly, and possibly Aardman’s delightful Arthur Christmas – but there’s one movie that invariably keeps cropping up that (at least some part of the online film community think) perhaps shouldn’t: Die Hard. About a decade ago, as the basic lists began to reach saturation, writers started looking at the “alternative” Christmas film – pictures that were set at Christmas and ticked the usual feel- good boxes, but were packaged in a more off- kilter wrapping.

Think Gremlins, Batman Returns and The Nightmare Before Christmas. At some point in this evolution, people noticed that John Mc. Tiernan’s action classic, a tense story about a New York cop visiting his estranged wife forced to take down a building full of terrorists, was set at Christmas, so gleefully started including it too, primarily just for the shock reveal of it even being a Christmas movie in the first place.

However, thanks to the internet’s love of all things edgy, over time it’s transcended being a jokey outside choice and became a mainstay of the standard lists, often placing top because, hey, it’s a great movie. And let’s make this clear before the comments descend into a total mess quicker than Hans Gruber: Die Hard is a great action movie. One of the absolute best. That can’t and won’t be disputed. It’s a tense, emotive film full of expertly constructed action bursts grounded by a relatable protagonist. And boy did it have an impact. Coming at the tail- end of a decade dominated by over- the- top antics from muscled demi- gods, presenting an everyday hero and harkening back to the simple heroism of classic westerns led to a revolution in the genre (just look at Arnie going from Predator to True Lies).

Forget how eventually the sequels made Mc. Clane into the indestructible explosion factory he one reshaped; the first is action cinema at its finest. But does being one of the best action films ever made mean it automatically classifies as a great Christmas film? Is it even a Christmas film at all? The answer to that hotly- debated question depends almost entirely on your definition of what a Christmas movie is.

Is it a film having a festive release? Is it just the setting? Or is it something more thematic, relating back to the Victorian ethos that shaped the modern Christmas? The best estimation is that it’s a bit of all three. So, how well does Die Hard fit this? Christmas release is a tricky metric, as it can lead to movies like The Lord of the Rings, Avatar and Disney’s new era of Star Wars falling under that banner out of affectionate memories of a first viewing despite none of those having any link to the holiday. One movie that definitely doesn’t have this benefit, however, is Die Hard; it was first released on July 1.

It’s no more a Christmas film than someone with a July birthday who likes the festive season is a Christmas baby. At the very least, this would show 2. Century Fox never intended the shot of Mc. Clane crawling through an air conditioning vent to have a myriad of stock santa hats Photoshopped onto it decades on (or become an admittedly cool Christmas decoration). Of course, this same release discrepancy is also true of perennial classic Miracle on 3. Street, which was released in June 1. Santa Claus” and “Kris Kringle” to stop summer audiences realising they were in for a festive treat.

Strange, sure, but remember that this was from a different era of Hollywood, when studios maintaining a constant stream of movies trumped context – to shoot at the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade almost forced a mid- year release date – and that the film was regardless dominated by Christmas; you couldn’t have Santa on trial at any other time of year. Perhaps a better point of comparison to Die Hard in the setting- versus- release discussion is the work of Shane Black, where Christmas is likewise imposed on a story yet only plays a tangential part in proceedings. Lethal Weapon, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang and Iron Man 3 (Black wrote the former and directed the latter two) are all set at Christmas, yet were released in August, October and May respectively. For Black, the time of year is a style choice; like Die Hard, each of those movies is set in California (leading to a sun- baked winter) and use Christmas to present an alternate side to the always family- oriented celebrations.

The curious thing there about Die Hard’s setting is that while it is a style choice, it could also be viewed as a piece of deux ex machina. Just think about it; in one fell swoop the time of year explains why John Mc. Clane would be visiting his estranged family on the same day as an office party that’s happening when the rest of the building is conspicuously empty, and further gives an explanation for the accessibility of everything from TV time (Christmas is always a slow news day) to back- hostler tape. It’s a framing device intended to remove contrivance that comes from the same creative place as John Mc.

Clane learning the foot- fist calming method so he can be barefoot throughout the adventure; by this logic, Die Hard is as much a podiatric film as it is a Christmas one. Although that’s not to say Mc. Tiernan doesn’t do a good job of tying the holiday into the plot. There’s the perfect level of Christmas to typical action tropes – for every “yippee- ki- yay, motherf*cker” there’s a “now I have a machine gun, ho- ho- ho” – and it’s used to ultimately accentuate the rebirth of his marital passions. And there’s definitely room for deeper reading – Hans Gruber has twelve disciples and a Jesus beard, a subtle but clearly intentional decision that goes a long way towards justifying a Christ connection.

But is that enough to get past setting and release to say it has a message imbued with (to quote every conventional movie) “the spirit of Christmas”? From White Christmas to Elf, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation to Scrooged, or even genre takes like Gremlins and Krampus, all conventionally accepted Christmas films have a uniquely Christmas moral; a wholesome one of goodwill, family and caring for your fellow man. Die Hard’s conclusion has that to a degree, but is more one of perseverance and a praising of the every- man; certainly optimistic, but not so dominated by the setting that it means you can watch it at any other time of year and not feel weird. Perhaps that should be an addendum to the three- part rule made earlier; unlike any other genre, a defining trait of a Christmas film could be its exclusivity to December.

You can only reasonably watch Miracle on 3. Street in the weeks leading up to Christmas, but Die Hard doesn’t have that same Christmas- dominant feeling that makes it feel silly in the middle of April showers or a baking hot August. This may all make it seem that, by all standard metrics, Die Hard isn’t a Christmas film. It’s not a Winter release, it’s not got a typical Christmas moral and can be watched at any time of year without breaking some unwritten rule.

There is the fact it’s set on December 2. It would be very easy to conclude that it is just a great action film set at Christmas, but not intrinsically a great Christmas film. But this is a time of year when a Capra- Stewart classic can sit alongside a loose Dickens adaptation starring Kermit the Frog, when Will Ferrell is evidence of a bona fide classic and a comedy starring Jason Bateman and Jennifer Aniston feels like a must see (well, almost).