Thanksgiving is later this week, so after a feast, there is no better time to sit on the sofa with family and watch some great movies. Here are six to binge on.
Thanksgiving arrives later this week, and it’s a traditional time for families to come together. And, after enjoying a meal, what better thing to do than sit and watch some great movies together?
There has been a plethora of great movies that are set around the time of Thanksgiving over the years – from animation to comedy to drama. Here is our list of six of the best that you can settle down with the family and watch.
Mrs Doubtfire (1993)
This classic starring the late, great Robin Williams is perfect for the family. Williams is the divorced father who wants to spend more time with his kids – so ends up disguising himself as a nanny to do it.
Included in a litany of laughs are a terrifically chaotic Thanksgiving meal scene, which Williams alone could pull off in such a way. It brings two separate family celebrations together, which is pivotal to the plot.
Mrs Doubtfire was also released in theaters on the Thanksgiving weekend back in 1993, which helped cement it as a holiday favourite.
A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving (1973)
This isn’t a movie as such – its running time is 25 minutes – but it is a Thanksgiving classic. This much loved animated version of the Peanuts gang has been a staple in the TV schedules for more than 50 years, and for good reason: its brilliant.
The show sees Peppermint Patty inviting herself – along with Marcie and Franklin – over to Charlie Brown’s for Thanksgiving. But can Charlie, Snoopy and Linus put together a feast? This animation shows the value of friendship and making the best of things.
Planes, Trains and Automobiles (1987)
If you want a bit of screwball comedy for your after-dinner viewing, then you could do a lot worse than Planes, Trains and Automobiles. It sees an odd couple of Steve Martin and John Candy thrown together when their travel plans fall through and follows their increasingly desperate (and hilarious) attempts to get home for Thanksgiving by any means necessary.
The movie is packed full of one-liners, physical comedy – and a twist at the end that – which means that it has been a family favourite for nearly 40 years.
Home for the Holidays (1995)
Thanksgiving is often a time for family reunions, and that provides scriptwriters with plenty of ammunition for great movies. One such movie is Home for the Holidays starring Holly Hunter and a pre-Marvel (and goatee) Robert Downey Jr.
There is nothing revolutionary in the plot – Claudia (Hunter) is fired from her job and returns to her hometown and her dysfunctional family. Of course, nothing runs smoothly and there are confessions, arguments and fistfights along the way as they try to get through Thanksgiving with their sanity intact.
Hannah and her Sisters (1986)
While Woody Allen’s Hannah and her Sisters isn’t all set at Thanksgiving, some of the most significant scenes are. Three Thanksgivings are featured, where we all find Hannah, her sisters and others in changing scenarios.
Mia Farrow is the titular Hannah, with Michael Caine on Oscar-winning form as her husband, Elliot. Dianne Wiest plays middle sister Holly and Barbara Hershey is youngest sister Lee.
The drama involves the interplay between the sisters and their lives, loves (including affairs), culminating in a third Thanksgiving dinner.
Spider-Man (2002)
OK, while Spider-Man isn’t technically a Thanksgiving movie by plot, it does include pivotal scenes around the Thanksgiving holiday.
We all know the story by now of how Peter Parker became Spider-Man, but this is a great telling of it. The Thanksgiving connection comes with a dinner, featuring Peter, Norman Osborne and others that sets up the second half of the movie. There is also a famous scene involving a fictionalised version of the famous Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.
The first iteration of the on-screen Spidey this century, it has become much beloved by fans of all ages.
