Review of Last Holiday

I decided to watch Last Holiday after watching the original film with Alec Guinness. I saw the Alec Guinness Last Holiday as a child and was very moved by it. Watching it again a few months ago I still found it moving. I was curious to see how Hollywood remade it with an American setting. I was pleasantly surprised. Guinness' everyman travelling salesman George Bird is turned into Georgia Bird, a department store cookware saleswoman in New Orleans who pays for her groceries with coupons and cooks meals she doesn't allow herself to eat (slight quibble here with the script: if Georgia is scrimping why is she cooking gourmet meals that her young neighbour eats but she doesn't allow herself to eat, presumably because she's worried about her figure? How does she afford eating Lean Cuisine while buying the ingredients for the fancy dishes she sees on TV cooking shows?) Queen Latifah's performance is warm and along with the characters in the film I was utterly convinced by Georgia's full heart and her resolution to live life to the full. I cheered when she told off her repulsive self absorbed boss and flew to Europe to live out the dreams she kept in her private journal. Last Holiday is a charming holiday film that celebrates friendship and people being kind and compassionate to one another without being cloying or syrupy. The original film is telling in that its portrayals of what was luxury in post War Britain is dwarfed by Georgia's $4000 a night presidential suite in a hotel with crystal chandeliers, historic painted ceilings, internationally famous chefs and helicopter service. I would have liked to see Georgia help her new friends more like how Alec's George gave money to a couple to help them pay off their debts to a criminal gang and start a new honest life. Still, this is a great movie for a miserable winter afternoon or evening, full of beautiful scenery, stunning locations and delightful moments. I loved Georgia's shopping for a new wardrobe at the hoity toity boutique and I laughed when Georgia ordered all ten dishes on the menu. I thought of my parents who used to indulge themselves on cruises and order three desserts at dinner. I expected that Hollywood would change the bittersweet ending of the original film but I didn't mind. I was scared for Georgia at the end when she climbed out on the ledge to talk the tycoon out of jumping and I was terrified that she would fall or hit her head. I was relieved to see the happy ending the film gave her. Last Holiday may not be as revealing as social commentary and a portrait of an era as the original film, but stands up on its own as enjoyable entertainment.