Now that Halloween is gone, holiday movies are already on heavy rotation. It's easy to remember holiday classics like
Miracle on 34th Street
,
It's a Wonderful Life
, and
A Christmas Carol
. However, if you want to check out holiday movies with a lil' color, this list is for you.
5.
Last Holiday
(2006)
There have been a string of Black holiday films (
Perfect Holiday
,
This Christmas
) in the past five years, but one could argue the success of
Queen Latifah
's
Last Holiday
rejuvenated the trend. The film is a remake from 1955 with Latifah playing a woman who finds out she only has weeks to live. She spends her last holiday doing all the things she never had a chance to do. Latifah's presence carries the film and her co-star,
LL Cool J
, adds some flavor.
4.
A Diva's Christmas Carol
(2000)
A fun, light-hearted film -- and any excuse to see
Vanessa Williams
on camera is a plus. Before Williams was a diva on
Desperate Wives
she played Ebony Scrooge (Ebenezer Scrooge - get it?) in the 2000 VH1 production,
A Diva's Christmas Carol, a
modern and divalicious remake of
Charles Dickens
'
A Christmas Carol
.
A Diva's Christmas Carol
is an amusing watch and includes appearances from
Brian McKnight
and
Chilli
of
TLC
.
3.
Holiday Heart
(2000)
Ving Rhames
in drag is more like a horror flick during Halloween; however, for better or worse,
Holiday Heart
is a classic. Rhames is a drag queen named Holiday who is a staunch Christian. Wanda (
Alfre Woodard
) is trying to care for her daughter while battling drugs. Rhames becomes a parental figure with the story's climax hitting on Christmas Eve.
2.
The Preacher's Wife
(1996)
The Preacher's Wife
would be
Whitney Houston
's last big screen film appearance and probably her best acting to date.
The Preacher's Wife
starred Oscar winner
Denzel Washington
and was a story about a preacher who prays for help with his struggling church. His prayers are answered with the help of an angel (Denzel Washington) who falls for the preacher's wife -- Whitney Houston's character. A great holiday film for the entire family. Plus, Nippy belts out her hit "I Believe in You and Me."
1.
The Kid Who Loved Christmas
(1990)
A made-for-television movie that was produced by
Eddie Murphy
Productions and starred
Cicely Tyson
,
Vanessa Williams
,
Della Resse
, and marks
Sammy Davis Jr.
's last film appearance.
The Kid Who Loved Christmas
is a touching story about a child whose only wish is to be with his father for Christmas. While not well known, one would think with all its star power that the movie would at some point make it to DVD.
Happy Holidays!
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