The Holiday

Cameron Diaz makes a really good living making trailers for movies, but she has just broken up with her philandering boyfriend. She lives in a fantastic, huge house with a pool and all the other trimmings of Hollywood success. Kate Winslet works for a newspaper writing wedding notices, and the asshole she has been hopelessly in love with for years just blindsided her by announcing his marriage to another woman. She lives in a charming cottage forty minutes north of London. They meet online and agree to exchange houses for two weeks, as a change of pace, and to get over the heartbreak.

Kate could not be more pleased. This is paradise! Palm trees, warm air, sunshine! Cam soon finds that “charming” can be cold, cramped, and a long, long walk from the road. She’s ready to leave when Kate’s brother, Jude Law, shows up, and the sparks begin to fly. Kate meets Jack Black, in an unusual romantic role. They are more circumspect, but it’s clear they have something going.

It’s a nice situation, I guess, but I thought it was about a half hour too long. There are interminable stretches of totally unconvincing romantic dialogue, particularly between Diaz and Law. It’s a feel-good movie that just seems to try too hard. There is a sub-plot with Kate befriending Eli Wallach, the last of the Old Hollywood screenwriters. Needless to say, it all turns out sweet and sugary at the end.