This is going to disappoint certain members of my family. Sorry, guys.

I love Love Actually. I swear, I do. It’s the OG ensemble film, a classic Christmas movie, and a really great romantic comedy–uh, drama–with incredible actors and all the feels.

But my favorite holiday romantic comedy is, aptly named, The Holiday.

I don’t even remember how I first came across and saw this movie, yet I’ve loved it ever since. It’s my favorite film directed by Nancy Meyers, although not my favorite one she’s written; that award absolutely goes to Father of the Bride, which she produced as well. Anyway, I’m getting a little off-track here. But shout-out to that awesome movie!

Before we moved to Tucson, I went through my DVD collection and divided it into three groups: movies coming with us, movies going up in the attic at my in-laws’ house, and movies going to Goodwill. And I picked up the case for The Holiday, and I recall specifically thinking that I didn’t want to give it away, and I also didn’t want it sitting in a box, which was kind of shocking. I thought for sure that I would at least hang onto it but not watch it anytime soon.

So, with red wine poured and pasta prepared, I spent my Friday night staying in and watching this movie because A) it’s December and officially Christmastime, B) I was alone and ready to embarrass myself accordingly, and C) I wanted to remind myself of The Holiday and see if I still enjoyed it.

I’m happy to report that, yes, the slightly buzzed girly-girl romantic inside of me continues to love this film.

I won’t go too much into the plot, as the bare basics are laid out in the trailer above, and otherwise, I don’t want to spoil anything. So I’ll get straight to what I like. The Holiday centers on five characters total, which is already a plus. Fewer characters often equals more time spent with them and more development, and that’s what we get. The two main characters, Iris and Amanda, are both great for different reasons, although I like Iris more. Kate Winslet is always a delight, but Iris is an actual woman with a lot of mental and emotional depth. Unfortunately, I always feel like Cameron Diaz plays a very similar woman in all of her movies, yet Amanda has her moments.

Their love interests, Miles and Graham, are also great and rather surprising male characters. Before I first started watching The Holiday, I was already fawning over Jude Law (because who didn’t?), and during it, I somehow found myself low-key falling for Jack Black. Jack Black, of all people, being a handsome, charming, funny lead in a romantic comedy and knocking it out of the park? Hell yeah. As for Jude Law, I again don’t want to say too much due to spoilers, yet, wow. He goes for about half the movie doing his usual thing until a reveal happens, in which he sort of plays against type. It’s awesome, and it serves the story and his character so well.

I used to think that the plot was a bit far-fetched, yet you know what? It works. Amanda cuts movie trailers in L.A., while Iris writes for The Telegraph in London. Miles is a film composer in L.A., and Graham is a book editor. Maybe I’m biased, but personally, it’s cool that each of these characters has a profession involving two things I’m passionate about: writing and movies. And it’s plausible that each character would meet the way they do. I was pleased to find out that home exchange is actually a thing when I previously believed it wasn’t. Plus, the B-story with Arthur ties in well, and I’m a sucker for anything old Hollywood, so his involvement makes sense, too. On top of that, his friendship with Iris is sweet!

The Holiday is, ultimately, a cheese ball corn-fest with, no doubt, some cringe-worthy lines sprinkled throughout. However, one such line is delivered by Iris: “I like corny. I’m looking for corny in my life.” In the context of that scene and the movie as a whole, it still gives me warm fuzzies, damn it. I’m not made of stone. It’s been a few years since I’ve seen this movie, and I still shamelessly squeed and swooned throughout.

I’m wondering if it’s simply my favorite romantic comedy, yet given that it’s set around Christmas, I threw “holiday” in there just in case. A separate post might come along sometime. For now, though, my favorite holiday romantic comedy is The Holiday!