It’s honestly so hard to choose the best scenes from The Holiday. If you haven’t seen it, The Holiday is one of my absolute favorite Christmas movies. It’s underrated but truly amazing, and by the end of this article I think you’ll see why. Split between the U.K. and L.A., the movie has holiday charm, cozy scenes, and complicated love stories. It delivers all the lovely Christmas feelings and ends with the sweetest New Years Eve scene, which isn’t surprising coming from director Nancy Meyers. Here are a few of my other favorite scenes from the iconic movie.
First of all, Amanda’s house might as well be a character in the movie. It’s beautiful, and in this scene we get a full view of it as Amanda (Cameron Diaz) chases Ethan out of her house. This scene also shows us Amanda’s character, a stressed out woman in need of a break, which she’ll soon get in a lovely little town in England called Surrey.
I love this moment of instant connection between the two main characters because they are both desperately in need of change and a getaway for Christmas. They strike up conversation instantly and have a laugh. My favorite part though, is the fact that they agree to switch houses the next day. So fly to another country with one day’s notice. Maybe not the most realistic but I love it.
This is exactly the kind of excitement I feel when I travel somewhere. I don’t usually lean my head out the window of the cab, but I love that Iris does in this scene. Plus the music makes it just feel so Christmas-y. The fact that Iris (Kate Winslet) then runs around the house like a kid makes this scene even better! I mean, that’s what I used to do as a kid when I arrived on vacation. And finally, she jumps face first on the bed. It’s one of the best scenes from The Holiday for sure.
This is such a holiday mood. Amanda buys all the things at the small grocery store, throwing pasta and chocolates into the cart while drinking out of a bottle of wine (this part is questionable, yes). Then she returns home to the cottage and is wearing a hat and scarf indoors, drinking wine and lighting a fire in the fireplace. So cozy!
Iris’ brother Graham comes over, not realizing that Iris is out. So then of course Graham and Amanda meet. He is very drunk from the pub and they have an interesting and rather entertaining conversation. It doesn’t hurt that Graham is played by the very handsome Jude Law. Amanda and Graham chat and then he kisses her, and she asks him to kiss her again. This leads to more snogging (they are in Britain, after all) and then he stays the night…
I don’t think I need to explain this one further. It’s obviously one of the best scenes from The Holiday.
When he sees her, and she sees him, it’s the cutest scene in a cozy pub. She’s sitting with a glass of wine, and the smile on his face when he sees her is so cute. What’s better than a cozy date in an English pub around Christmastime? Speaking as someone who has been in London around the holidays: nothing, absolutely nothing.
First of all, this restaurant looks like a place I would love to spend time in during the holiday season! After their self-described “meet-cute,” Iris invites Arthur to this dinner because the state of his house makes her feel bad for him. Iris ends up crying about her life to Arthur, who’s a good listener. Arthur tells him he’s a leading lady, which I think might just be one of the cutest lines of the whole movie.
I love this scene because it starts as a bit of an awkward first date, and then progresses to show their beautiful chemistry. I also love that Graham talks about how he cries all the time, which makes him the perfect match for Amanda who claims she never cries.
Miles stops by and ends up joining the Hanukkah party that Iris is hosting with Arthur and a friend. It looks like such a fun time! Miles and Iris have become good friends at this point, and when he leaves he gives Iris two kisses, lingering a little after the last one. He leaves and she shouts to him, “Don’t blow away!” which has become their cute tagline due to the Santa Anna winds. It’s a short scene but it’s the one of the best scenes from The Holiday.
Amanda stops by Graham’s house, only to realize that he has two little daughters. They kindly invite her in and their house is absolutely decked in Christmas décor. It warms my heart just to see it. They have hot cocoa and it’s one of the cutest scenes ever. My favorite, though, is when Graham puts the napkin over his face to be “Mr. Napkin Head.” Then there’s the adorable image of all four of them laying down in the tent, side by side. But the real gold in this scene, is when Graham and Amanda talk in the library and Graham tells her about how he’s a full-time dad, reading cookbooks and parenting books before he goes to bed. Things are complicated but their connection is very real.
The moment Iris realizes what was going on with Jasper and how much better she is. She gets it all out on the table after Miles finds out that Maggie was cheating on him. They talk about their failed relationships and agree to have a Christmas Eve dinner together. It’s comforting that they have each other and that Iris is finally seeing how terrible Jasper is.
She’s leaving in less than 24 hours and they are talking about what they’re going to do once she’s gone. All suggestions are out on the table when Graham admits that he loves her. She doesn’t say it back quite yet but it’s still a beautiful scene, which is why it makes this list of best scenes from The Holiday.
You go girl! I can just feel her relief as she yells at him.
Finally all of the characters are together and happy! This is my dream of a New Years Eve scene, it’s adorable. Everyone is dressed in their holiday best, with the people they love, in beautiful England. Amanda and Graham are together, Iris and Miles, with the girls dancing around. I couldn’t imagine a better end to this movie!
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