The Christmas Wife (1988)

Facing Christmas alone, a widower responds to a woman who is happy to celebrate the holidays with him. But can a secret change both their lives?

Christmas on Golden Pond

This is an excellent Christmas classic starring Jason Robards and Julie Harris, and brilliantly directed by David Hugh Jones. The story is about a widower named John Tanner (Jason Robards) who uses an escort service to find a Christmas companion with the stipulation that the woman must be about his age, and they sleep in different bedrooms, at a service fee of $500. The service provider (Don Francks), since his assistant is gone for the holidays, and he doesn't have access to the file, promises to provide him with a list of names to choose from. When John Tanner is called by the agency to meet the service provider at a hotel guest area, Tanner is reluctant but agrees, and then he learns that the woman named Iris (Julie Harris) wanted to see him incognito from a distance before she wants to go with him. Eventually the two meet and set a date and time to be picked up at a local bus stop and then drive to the secluded family cabin next to a lake.

Iris is beautiful, about the same age as John Tanner, nervous, quiet, and mysterious. She appears to be a reluctant participant in his company and refuses to answer any questions, which deepens the mystery. The Christmas eve is somewhat uneasy for both of them but the Christmas day gets better than expected. When John is getting to enjoy the company, she announces that the date is finished and would like to go home and she doesn't want to visit him again. It is at the end the viewers come to know that she is in fact married to the service provider and the idea behind this farce was to earn the badly needed service fee of $500 to pay their family bills. Both Julie Harris and Jason Robards offer brilliant performances as the two "older couples" trying to spend Christmas together. This movie is reminiscent, to a certain extent, of another great classic "On Golden Pond." This is an excellent movie for viewing on Christmas day with your family and it is very highly recommended.

1. On Golden Pond (Special Edition)
January 3, 2008

Great!

Thanks for making the gift search so easy! I'll be back for other great buys! December 28, 2007

Boring for the Under-20 crowd

Sweet,sentimental movie that intrigued my youngest three children and disappointed them at the end. They wanted the traditional happy ending. The mystery kept my husband and I curious and wondering,too. It is a well made film for people not jaded by video games and fast action flicks. It made me think quite a bit afterwards, about marriage, family, and loyalty. February 4, 2007

Worst movie ever!

This has remained the movie to laugh about. It's such a horrible movie with no plot. In the end, nothing happens. There is no action, no drama, and no comedy. What's left? Nothing. Watching grass grow would be more action filled than this sleeper. December 27, 2006

The Christmas Wife

The Christmas Wife has been one of my all time favorite movies for over 10 years now and I never get tired of watching it.
As a matter of fact I watch it at least 3 times every Christmas season and I highly recommend it to anyone who likes good sentimental movies. April 16, 2002

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