A Very Murray Christmas is Holiday Awesome

[ManOnTheWave]

Watching this Netflix exclusive for a second time today. It's fantastic while simultaneously being a parody of and a faithful recreation of the holiday specials of olde. The titular star is in preparation for a live Christmas special with a huge blizzard shuts down New York and the eastern seaboard and cancels the show. He of course retreats to the bar here the real special begins. I have no idea who Jenny Lewis, but her duet with Murray of "It's Cold Outside" may be my favorite version ever. Small, medium, and big stars pop up Here and there. I wish Davd Johansen had more to do, but A certain movie star 's appearance in "Santa Needs Some Lovin'" was laugh out loud funny. I think I'll be watching this one for years to come.

Beg, borrow or steal a Netflix subscription and get in the holiday spirit with Murray just being Bill Murray.

 

[Gary Mitchell]

I was hoping that it would be funny. I love Bill Murray but unfortunately the only time I chuckled was during that "Santa Needs Some Lovin" song that you mentioned.

 

[Commander Richard]

I'll check this out when I can.

Jenny Lewis was the girl in The Wizard with Fred Savage.

She also did a music video with Anne Hathaway and Kristen Stewart.

[yt]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Irvcf6dCk-k[/yt]

 

[Amaris]

It was okay. I love Bill Murray, but this one just didn't strike my funny bone. I chuckled a few times, but didn't openly laugh like I normally do when it comes to his comedy. Ah well, it was still a decent way to pass the time.

 

[Guy Gardener]

I don't think he was going for belly laughs.

It was nice, and made me feel happy for a few minutes.

 

[Owain Taggart]

I find Bill Murray very hit & miss. The material usually has to be very good in order for it to work for him, as his humour tends to be very dry. I'll watch this, only because I like Bill Murray, but I don't really have high hopes based on what I've been hearing.

 

[Mojochi]

I think the general premise was to parody by purposely playing out the most banal & hackneyed stereotypes. It's a cerebral humor, which they push to extremes, that almost go on too long. That number with Chris Rock is pretty funny, but purposefully awful at the same time. It's the perfect gauge for what the rest of the show will be

A lot of the guests are SNL alumni, & those of us old enough to remember when Murray himself was on SNL, you'll remember that one of his most memorable skits was the world's cheesiest lounge singer, who made up awful lyrics to things like Star Wars music

This special is almost a running joke that plays out what it would be like if Murray tried to relive that character, in a holiday special, but it ends up being more personal & relevant than that, by playing on real aspects of him & his life, as part of the production, which it really had to do to work

And it does work, but it's not everyone's cup of tea. It's a big slam on the whorishness of the entertainment business, & Murray dons the most desperate archetype of all. I liked it, but it'll be hard to watch again

 

[CorporalClegg]

Kristen Stewart can even make playing guitar look boring.

 

[ManOnTheWave]

The special is Murray working with Sophia Coppola again, and it shares a great deal with Lost in Translation which is a movie I love so much that I forget how much people hated it. I'm sorry so many disliked it, but it's the funniest damn thing I've seen in a while and perfectly fits my mood this holiday season.

 

[Beagleman]

I'll check this out when I can.

Jenny Lewis was the girl in The Wizard with Fred Savage.

She also did a music video with Anne Hathaway and Kristen Stewart.

Saw her on stage with her (then) band Rilo Kiley about 10 years ago, she's awesome.

Oh, and I found the special to be very funny but yes, it is also very dry and probably not for everyone...

 

[Mr. Adventure]

I'll check it out but I doubt it can outdo the Pee Wee's Playhouse Christmas Special with Frankie and Annette, Charo, kd lang, Dinah Shore, Whoopi, Grace Jones, Joan Rivers, Magic Johnson, Little Richard, Oprah Winfrey and Zsa Zsa Gabor.

 

[Amaris]

I don't think he was going for belly laughs.

It was nice, and made me feel happy for a few minutes.

You're right, I guess I was just expecting belly laughs for some reason. I think it's because I'm used to seeing Bill play the cheese factor up to 11, and while he did it here, it didn't have the goofiness he often applies to it, like he did in Stripes, for example, or Scrooged (which is still one of my very favorite holiday films).

The special is Murray working with Sophia Coppola again, and it shares a great deal with Lost in Translation which is a movie I love so much that I forget how much people hated it. I'm sorry so many disliked it, but it's the funniest damn thing I've seen in a while and perfectly fits my mood this holiday season.

I didn't mean to imply I disliked it, it was just okay for me. I'm not entirely certain what I was expecting, but I still liked it. I might go back and watch it again and see if I missed anything, though I really did like the Chris Rock scene, where most of my chuckles went (big fan of Chris right here).

That said, I didn't know people disliked Lost in Translation. I watched it once on Netflix, and then bought it on DVD that same night. I was floored by how wonderful it was, and had to own it. The same applies to Broken Flowers, which I felt was an excellent film as well.

 

[ManOnTheWave]

I heard lots of complaints about LIT and BF as well when they came out, both from viewers and critics. I think it was Murray's best work up to that point. I guess a lot of people walked into those thinking they were Stripes, Ghostbusters, or even Groundhog Day. Which brings us back to humor being rather subjective, and I can't fault anyone for their genuine reaction of good bad or indifferent.

 

[Amaris]

I heard lots of complaints about LIT and BF as well when they came out, both from viewers and critics. I think it was Murray's best work up to that point. I guess a lot of people walked into those thinking they were Stripes, Ghostbusters, or even Groundhog Day. Which brings us back to humor being rather subjective, and I can't fault anyone for their genuine reaction of good bad or indifferent.

I can, and do. It's on a list in my desk. I use different ink colors to signify the depths of my displeasure. My angriest level is mauve.

 

[Mr. Adventure]

I think "A Very Murray Christmas" is actually a pretty good descriptor for this project. A very low-key, sweet but melancholy Christmas special with a bit of schmaltz. I think Clooney stole the show IMO.

 

[Owain Taggart]

Well, I just watched it. I have to say that it's really not quite as bad as what the ratings make it out to be. Maybe that's due to people expecting something different going in. As far as things go, this is like an old glove; Bill Murray doing what he's most comfortable doing, something that won't push any boundaries.

But personally I have to say I was pleasantly surprised. Was very nice to see Paul Schaffer. And I was also very impressed with Miley Cyrus. This special is like a warm mug of hot chocolate on a frosty day.