Emma's talent makes a poorly written scene work. An example of an excellent actor overcoming bad material.
***spoiler alert***
Emma's expecting the piece of jewelry that she saw her husband buy. She opens one present and then poof she realizes her husband bought the jewelry for another woman? Did I miss the scene where Alan Rickman tells her "This is the only present you are getting this Christmas and I have no other surprises for you, even though we have only opened one present on Christmas Eve!" The scene really should have been at the end of Christmas when we as an audience realize there's no possible way Emma's getting another present.
If anyone ever tells you that you put too much Parmesan cheese on your pasta, stop talking to them. You don't need that kind of negativity in your life.
I think it's because the boxed CD is the same size as the jewelry box, so she knows what an unlikely coincidence it would be that she's getting two identically sized gifts.
Also it may well be that the two of them only exchange one gift each (the others being for the kids).
^^ But that's a lot to assume. I believe it's a poorly written scene saved by Emma's brilliance (and Joni Mitchell).
If anyone ever tells you that you put too much Parmesan cheese on your pasta, stop talking to them. You don't need that kind of negativity in your life.
But I don't think it's a lot to assume that they've only ever exchanged one gift.
Also, doesn't that scene come after the party where she realizes that the office slut is after her husband? (I may be misremembering--even though I just watched it yesterday! Sad but true . . .)
That's Down with Love, which I love, Squintyface and all.
I only saw Love, Actually once and I remember not caring for it, but I always here people talking about how much they loved it, which makes me wonder if I should revisit it.
Family Stone is such a weird movie. Any movie that puts me on the side of Sarah Jessica Parker is doing something wrong. That family was just so nasty.
And that dinner table scene (where Carrie puts her foot in her mouth and they all rip her apart) just makes me cringe! I saw this like once not long after it came out and last summer I found the dvd at a garage sale so I bought it. And as soon as it started I remember how awful they were and how mawkish it is.
It's funny now, though, to see Coach as the patriarch of a progressive family and then recall what he said about welfare. Not that I think he should be like Papa Stone or vice versa, it's just one of those things where I go "heh"
Muppet Christmas Carol, A Christmas Story, Christmas Vacation, The Ref (Spacey be damned, I love Dennis Leary in his role and Judy Davis is fantastic), It's a Wonderful Life, Scrooged, Gremlins, and Die Hard are my X-Mas canon. This was pretty good and I am pretty certain it did have good holiday cable life since its release. Pretty certain Lifetime was constantly showing it.
I sometimes look at The Family Stone as a side-timeline to Parenthood just for the Craig T. Nelson connection (it is hilarious how he is essentially cashing checks solely on playing older hippy patriarch he seems to loathe) but then I realize the Bravermans have never been that consciously malicious to their potential in-laws. I do like Luke Wilson and Claire Danes in their roles (her unnecessary slapstick comedy and all) but you have to side with SJP. That family needed a master class in passive aggression.
I also love the Christmas special where the Muppets and the Sesame Street gang have to stay at Fozzy's mother's house, which happens to have Fraggles in the basement.