Liebe braucht keine Ferien (The Holiday)
U.S.A. 2006

Opening 14 Dec 2006

Directed by: Nancy Meyers
Writing credits: Nancy Meyers
Principal actors: Cameron Diaz, Kate Winslet, Jude Law, Jack Black

Two young professionals, Iris (Kate Winslet) and Amanda (Cameron Diaz), live worlds apart: Iris in a countryside village outside of London and Amanda in Beverly Hills, California. Their lives connect while surfing the internet for possible vacation spots over the Christmas and New Year holiday. Iris and Amanda do not know one another but find the internet pictures of each other’s houses the perfect get-away spot for their needs. The need they share is to escape their environment in order to do a personal reality check on their male relationships (played by Jude Law and Jack Black). They have one common denominator: their love life is in shambles. They agree to swap houses for two weeks and within 24 hours they arrive at their destinations. The surprise discovery which both women make about themselves, while transformed into different worlds, is the perfect material which director Nancy Meyers uses for The Holiday.

Meyers’ happy-end holiday film captures the essence of what is important for a love relationship to last over the long haul. Meyers’ attempt to tantalize our emotions by using a good script, fabulous cinematography and a cast that gels perfectly to create a classic romance movie works. Most impressive was her usage of smaller character roles to bring subtle truths to support the value of building solid relationships which question the art of romance: The picture of romance for Iris and Amanda takes a paradigm shift which enchants the audience. (Karen Pecota)