When the pumpkin pie is gone and the post-meal coffee has been
drunk, it’s an awkward point in any Thanksgiving meal.
Eventually the question will come, assuming everyone at your table
hasn’t fallen asleep from eating too much turkey: Now
what?
The question of a post-meal activity is always a taxing one. In
my family, it has always been answered by making it a Blockbuster
night. Or Blockbuster late afternoon, if you want to be
accurate.
When you think about it, renting a movie is perfect for the
situation. It’s relaxing. It doesn’t involve much
thinking. You can fall asleep and nobody will really care. And, if
done correctly, it keeps everyone together on a day designated for
enjoying each others’ company.
You just have to know what to rent, because it has to be
something that everyone will accept, regardless of age or taste. In
my Thanksgiving experience, there are three different categories of
films to choose from, each with their own advantages and
disadvantages. Here’s the rundown:
“¢bull; The New Release: This is the best bet if you don’t
really want to pay attention because, more often than not,
you’ve seen the movie recently enough to remember it.
However, walking the New Release aisles at a video store can be a
tricky game, especially around the holidays when the stores know a
lot of people will be renting movies.
Watch out for the easy traps. Avoid: direct-to-video sequels of
popular family movies, big movies that have been on the New Release
stand so long they’re actually collecting dust and brand-new
new releases that are only appealing because the store has about a
hundred copies. If you end up with “George of the Jungle
2,” “Spiderman,” or “Dumb and Dumberer:
When Harry Met Lloyd,” don’t blame me.
“¢bull; The Family Classic: If you want one of these, make sure
to go early. With the existence of week-long rentals, these movies
are usually the first to disappear around Thanksgiving week, mainly
because they’re such crowd-pleasers. If you can’t get
to the video store the weekend before the holiday, it may be
helpful to call before you head out, and if the store doesn’t
have what you’re looking for, try other less-used sources for
movie rentals.
Libraries can be good bets, as can the independent video store
near your house that everybody knows about but nobody actually
frequents. Still, if you’re looking for a copy of “Home
Alone” on Wednesday afternoon, may God have mercy on your
unfortunate soul.
“¢bull; The Surprise Pick: Part procrastination and part luck,
this is what you have to hope for when even “Homeward Bound
II: Lost in San Francisco” is checked out. At this point you
have two options. You can either take a step further down the
hierarchy of family films and subject everyone to
“Carpool,” or you can try to be creative. Depending on
what’s available, this may be the time to find a real classic
that the teenage members of your audience haven’t seen before
and the older members haven’t seen in at least a decade.
Think “To Catch a Thief.” Or you can try to find a
forgotten jewel at the video store, a movie that everyone
recognizes as entertaining, but nobody really wants to pay money to
watch again. Think “Get Shorty.”
But whatever you do, don’t go to the movie theater on
Thanksgiving night, because you’ll never find something that
everyone wants to see. The great thing about renting a movie is
that once it’s on, everyone will inevitably end up watching
together. Sure, it’s manipulative, but then again, so is
Thanksgiving. Like food, movies can force people into wanting to be
together.