Ah, the holiday season is again upon us. People are shopping, baking, decorating, spending time with loved ones and relaxing a little.
It’s the most wonderful time of the year.
And what do you do to celebrate this lovely season? You get Bill Murray to sing you a collection of Christmas classics sure to warm your heart.
“A Very Murray Christmas” is in the vein of those old holiday specials that used to be on television and featured a bunch of celebs wishing you happy holidays while having a grand old time onstage.
Murray, along with Paul Shaffer — you’ll know him as the bespectacled band leader from David Letterman’s “Late Show” — are supposed to be performing a live Christmas Eve television special when a massive blizzard leaves them stranded together in New York City’s Carlyle Hotel.
Luckily for Murray, the blizzard knocks out the electricity, so he and the ragtag group of blizzard refugees spend the night celebrating in the only way they can — drinking, eating and singing.
Maybe it’s just me, but this feels faintly like a sequel to another Murray Christmas flick, “Scrooged.” Murray is doing another live Christmas special, he’s dry, self-deprecating, sarcastic and angsty as hell for the first half of the show.
It’s like “Where Are They Now: Frank Cross Edition.”
After a duet of “Baby, It’s Cold Outside” with Jenny Lewis, which was as charming and flip as you would expect from Murray, guest performances and a few shots, he passes out, hitting his head and transporting himself into a pristine, live Christmas special with appearances by Miley Cyrus and George Clooney.
Cyrus’ vocal performances are not to be missed. I don’t usually consider myself a fan of hers, but if there’s anybody who slays while singing “Silent Night” on a white piano, it’s Miley.
Clooney steals the show during his duet of “Santa Claus Wants Some Lovin’” with Murray. I roared with laughter when Clooney peered around that Christmas tree and deadpanned the phrase “Santa Claus Wants Some Lovin’” into the camera.
The celeb lineup for this special is also staggering: the aforementioned Shaffer, Amy Poehler, Maya Rudolph, Rashida Jones, Chris Rock, Michael Cera and Jason Schwartzman are just a few of the folks that share the holiday with Murray.
Sure, there are a few plot holes — if the power is out, how is the sound system still working? — but, on the whole, it’s an hour of feel-good silliness complete with song, dance and cheer.
I love Christmas. I love Bill Murray. This special combined two of my favorite things and just made them better.
