The Fitzgerald Family Christmas
USA, 2012, 99 Minute Running Time
Genre/Subjects: Comedy, Drama
Program: Special Presentation
Language: English
Gerry (Edward Burns) is the mediator in an uncomfortable intersection of lives when his father, who walked out on the family 20 years ago, asks to share one last Christmas with them. A young man at the time of his father’s departure, Gerry became the Irish-American family’s father figure and is now in the position of securing everyone’s buy-in for the visit. It’s not an easy task—everyone is already dealing with major issues. Mom Josie is still bitter about Big Jim’s abandonment after all these years. Gerry’s married sister, Dottie, has taken her gardener to bed. His other sister, Erin, wants nothing to do with the family. Their brother, Quinn, is inadvisably bent on proposing to his much-younger girlfriend, and the widowed Gerry is in the middle of a flirtation with the plainspoken caretaker for his late wife’s ailing mother. Big Jim’s return dredges up old emotional baggage, which gets filtered through funny, insulting banter among the siblings.
Perhaps best known for his role in Saving Private Ryan, Burns has written, directed, and starred in several features, including She’s the One (with Jennifer Aniston and Cameron Diaz), Newlyweds, and The Brothers McMullen, which took the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance in 1995. The cast also features Connie Britton (Friday Night Lights) as Gerry’s potential love interest, and the venerable Ed Lauter (The Artist, Trouble With the Curve) as the miscreant dad.
-VAL MOSES
Post-Screening - Actor Ed Lauter in conversation with Variety's Joe Leydon
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DIRECTOR: Edward Burns
Producer: Edward Burns, Aaron Lubin, William Rexer
Editor: Janet Gaynor
Screenwriter: Edward Burns
Cinematographer: William Rexer
Principal Cast: Kerry Bishé, Connie Britton, Edward Burns, Ed Lauter, Heather Burns, Dara Coleman, Brian D'Arcy James, Marsha Dietlein Bennett, Noah Emmerich, Caitlin Fitzgerald
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