‘Christmas in the Spotlight’: Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce Lifetime Movie Is Good
When Theresa (Zoë Saldaña) brings fiancé Simon Green (Ashton Kutcher) home for her parents 25th wedding anniversary, she’s neglected to mention one tiny detail – he’s white. Determined to break his daughter’s engagement, Percy Jones (Bernie Mac) does everything he can to make Simon feel apart of the family, from running his credit report to locking him in the basement at night. But when Percy gleefully exposes Simon’s most embarrassing secret, it leads to an outrageous series of comic complications that only goes to prove that with a dad like Percy Jones, father doesn’t always know best. Is it, perhaps, because of the intense pressure we ourselves put upon these people—even more when they just happen to be romantically involved?
The next morning, Percy and Simon find Marilyn and Theresa at Marilyn’s sister’s house to apologize. While Marilyn and Percy reconcile, Simon and Theresa break up and he leaves. On the day of his anniversary, Theresa tells her father that she and Simon were intending to marry. After wondering why a man intending to get married would quit his job, Percy realizes that Simon quit his job due to his boss’ disapproval of interracial relationships.
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Instead, Percy allows Simon to sleep in his basement on the couch, where Percy also sleeps so he can keep an eye on him even though the pull-out bed hurts his back.
Zoe Saldana
But you know they’ll find an Ebony-and-Ivory bond by the big party at the end. Interracial relationships may be an area where the daily experience of many people is better-informed and more comfortable than the movies are ready to admit. Certainly after the first few dates any relationship is based more on love, respect and mutual care than it is on appearances. I think the couple in “Guess Who” has figured that out, but if they haven’t, I predict they’ll have a wonderful starter marriage.
Bernie Mac, who often cheerfully goes over the top in his roles, here provides a focused and effective performance as a father who would subject a boyfriend of any race to merciless scrutiny. He has a moment of sudden intuition about Simon that is perfectly realized and timed. Ashton Kutcher is not the actor Sidney Poitier was, but the movie doesn’t require him to be; his assignment is to be acceptable and sympathetic in a situation where he is coached through the hazards by his girlfriend.
Nearly 40 years ago, Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner was a serious, even a little heavy-handed, but endearingly earnest drama. It was considered a provocative, even daring, statement about what we used to call “civil rights” issues. But times have changed, and Guess Who is closer to a remake of Meet the Parents than it is to its purported original source. Guess Who is a 2005 American romantic comedy film directed by Kevin Rodney Sullivan. A loose remake of the 1967 film Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner, the film follows a white man (Ashton Kutcher) meeting the parents (Bernie Mac and Judith Scott) of his black fiancée (Zoë Saldaña). The movie ends with the requisite “any resemblance to real persons is purely coincidental” disclaimer, but of course we all know where Christmas in the Spotlight got its story beats from.
We have surveyed the experts to come up with a list of 15 of the likeliest Best Picture nominees among all films released in 2024. Find a list of new movie and TV releases on DVD and Blu-ray (updated weekly) as well as a calendar of upcoming releases on home video. Despite the chemistry of its stars, Guess Who, a loose remake of Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner, lacks the political relevance of the original. By creating an account, you agree to the Privacy Policy and the Terms and Policies , and to receive email from Rotten Tomatoes. By creating an account, you agree to the Privacy Policy and the Terms and Policies, and to receive email from Rotten Tomatoes and to receive email from the Fandango Media Brands. After catching Theresa and Simon in the bedroom, Percy tries to force Simon into a hotel, but all the hotels in town are booked.
Furious that he did not tell her the truth, Theresa leaves while Percy’s spying and plagiarism of his vows temporarily strains his relationship with his wife, Marilyn. A universe away, in football world, Drew “Gonzo” Gonville (Laith Wallschleger) is the star wide receiver of the Bombers, yet for the last few games he’s been distracted, and doesn’t feel as in love with the sport as he used to. Drew and Bowyn have a chance meeting when Drew takes his young niece to see her in concert. (Sadly, it doesn’t turn into a Trap scenario.) Drew asks her out via a public social media post.
Instead, we got unfunny scenes at a go-cart track (they go off the track!) and at an all-women party (they get tipsy and trash men!). The movie focuses on the two men, to such a degree that the story synopsis on the movie’s Web site literally never even mentions any of the women characters — not Theresa, not her mother Marilyn, not her feisty sister Keisha (Kellee Stewart). If we heard a lot about strong black women after “Diary of a Mad Black Woman,” here we have a movie about a strong black man and about male bonding that has more to do with corporate than racial politics. Zoe Saldana, a true beauty, is lovable and charming as Theresa, but in her home, she’s upstaged by her father.
And it was crucial that the parents were played not merely by white actors, but by the icons Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn, whose screen presence carried great authority. Find a schedule of release dates for every movie coming to theaters, VOD, and streaming throughout 2024 and 2025, updated daily. This movie feels like generic slapstick rather than social commentary.
Even the snippets of Bowyn’s songs have that unmistakable Jack Antonoff synth beat. Common Sense is dedicated to improving the lives of kids and families by providing the trustworthy information, education, and independent voice they need to thrive. The majority of the film was filmed in Cranford, New Jersey.[1] The film received mixed reviews from critics and grossed $103 million. Here’s a comedy premised on racial unease, and it’s too timid to uncork actual racial humor.
Percy pursues Simon and brings him back to Theresa, and they reconcile at Percy and Marilyn’s anniversary party. With manga quiz the help of his personal assistant Reggie, Percy tries to learn as much information about Simon as he can as well as creating the ideal black boyfriend for Theresa instead of revealing her boyfriend is white. Reggie manages to convince Simon to reveal that he lied about being a NASCAR pit crew member and also that he needs a $50,000 loan. Simon discovers Percy’s lies just as Reggie reveals that Simon quit his job. Immediately, Percy goes to tell Theresa this new information; however, Simon claims he was not fired and instead quit.
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He is also not to be trusted with Theresa’s body, at least not under Percy’s roof; her father insists that Simon sleep on the sofa-bed in the basement, and to be sure he stays there, Percy sleeps in the same bed with him. This leads to several scenes which are intended to be funny, but sit there uncomfortably on the screen, because the humor comes from a different place than the real center of the film. No one does choleric better than Bernie Mac and it is always fun to see him get steamed. Kutcher manages to stay out of Mac’s way (and his own) and Zoe Saldana shows warmth and sweetness as Theresa. Kellee Stewart as Theresa’s sister gets to show more sass and sparkle, especially when she explains how Theresa’s relationship with Simon improved her own life. The movie would have been much more fun if she had been the fiancée, and perhaps if we got a look at Simon’s family as well.