THE BEST CHRISTMAS MOVIES EVER – JOYEUX NOËL

Joyeux Noël portrays a small part of the historic events of Christmas Eve 1914 when numerous sections of the Western Front called an informal, and unauthorized, truce where the French, German and British front-line soldiers of the conflict met peacefully in No Man's Land.

The film shines a light on the rare window of peace when men met to share a precious pause in the hostilities to exchange mementoes and sing Christmas songs.

The short respite when humanity briefly returned to the battle scarred land was soon at an end but this film portrays events beautifully.

 

WHEN RUDOLPH ARRIVED

 

When Rudolph arrived

Cupid was so pleased

It meant the other reindeer

Had someone new to tease

MIDDLE AGED SPREAD

 

During the Middle Ages Christmas was the most popular of the religious holidays as it was generally the happiest and undoubtedly the longest, lasting from Christmas Eve until the feast of Epiphany on January 6^th.

In the royal or wealthy houses Christmas preparations would begin as early as November when beasts were slaughtered and this would have happened in spite of Christmas rather than because of it as there was normally not enough food to keep large numbers of beasts through the long winters.

Nothing was wasted and every part of the animals was used and the meat was preserved with salt and spices or pickled in vinegar or smoked and cured by a fire.

Quinces, apples, pears, plums and assorted other fruits were exceeding popular in the Middle Ages and were dried and stored for the winter.

The poor celebrated the two week holiday as best they could with the luckiest workers being given some time off and they might even receive gifts of ale, food or firewood.

The wealthiest in the land would lay on great banquets and entertainments and the more important of the local workers or villagers were sometimes invited to the lord’s hall for a feast, though they had to take their own cup and plate.

I SAW SANTA CLAUS LAST NIGHT

 

I saw Santa Claus last night

Messing with a ho ho ho

When he was kissing her

Underneath the camel toe

THE BEST CHRISTMAS MOVIES EVER – TRADING PLACES

 

Trading Places is a very amusing Christmas Comedy.

Duke and Duke, owned by the brothers Mortimer and Randolph Duke (Don Ameche and Ralph Bellamy) are commodity brokers, though a long-standing family institution they are not averse to breaking the law.

There employee Louis Winthorpe (Dan Ackroyd) on the other hand is as straight as an arrow.

So, when Winthorpe encounters Billy Ray Valentine (Eddie Murphy), a street hustler and assumes he is trying to rob him, he has him arrested.

The Dukes however have a bet between themselves on whether Winthorpe would resort to crime if separated from everything and everyone he knows.

And if they offered his job, his home, his life to Valentine, would the blueblood Winthorpe revert to crime and would the petty criminal rise to meet the challenge of his new position.

When the wheels are set in motion is when the fun begins.

Jamie Lee Curtis who plays prostitute Ophelia adds the romantic interest and a little extra.

THE PIPES OF CHRISTMAS PAST

 

The pipes of Christmas past

Carry with every merry blast    

Seasonal joy, when they play

Their tunes of Christmas day