The Holiday

December 16, 2007 - Kate Winslet and Cameron Diaz swap homes and find love in this holiday-themed rom-com from 2006. Jack Black and Jude Law are the lucky guys, and look for cameos from Lindsay Lohan, Dustin Hoffman and others.

Winslet plays Iris, who works at a newspaper in London. She's hung-up on a co-worker and is devastated when he announces his engagement to another co-worker. Diaz plays Amanda. She lives in LA and owns a business that produces movie trailers. Right before Christmas, she kicks out her lying, cheating boyfriend and decides to take a vacation.

Through the magic of the Internet, she contacts Iris and the two quickly agree to swap homes for 10 days. So, Iris heads for LA and Amanda heads to Surrey. Iris busies herself with helping out an elderly neighbor, while Amada tries unsuccessfully not to fall for Iris's brother.

Overall review: *** I can't really say why I liked this movie but, on the day that I watched it, it held my interest when nothing else would. The cast is attractive, the script isn't overly corny, the plot isn't overly contrived (Ok, maybe it is), and the actors seem to have fun. So, what's not to like?