KAROL CABRERA: First, we’re going to talk about the live action movie, “How the Grinch Stole Christmas.”The movie was directed by Ron Howard, and it came out on November 17, 2000. Can you explain the storyline of it?

JOCELYN DIAZ: Yeah, so this character called the Grinch doesn’t like Christmas so he ruins it. He goes into Whoville and messes up the giant Christmas tree, steals presents, and more. But the Grinch has a change of heart after meeting Cindy Lou Who.

CABRERA: Do you guys know if there are any theories about the movie?

BRITO: Yeah, a theory is that Cindy Lou represents the spirit of Christmas. People believe this because Cindy was always kind to the Grinch.

DIAZ: Yeah, so people see Cindy as hopeful and innocent, which is the spirit of Christmas where children are innocent and believe in Santa.

CABRERA: Another theory we’ll go over is that the Grinch landed in the wrong village.

BRITO: At the beginning of the movie, we can see how the Grinch’s basket is hit by another and changes direction.

DIAZ: So the theory is that the Grinch was supposed to land in another village called Whoville but this village is the one from the movie “Horton Hears a Who” by Doctor Seuss.

CABRERA: Anyways, let’s get into the ratings! Jocelyn, what would you give the movie out of 10?

DIAZ: I would give it 8/10 because I like all the colors and all the details which brings the Christmas vibe to life. What would you give it, Guadalupe?

BRITO: I would rate this movie an 8/10. My favorite theory is that Cindy Lou represents Christmas; it’s cute and connects the movie with Christmas. What would you give it, Karol?

CABRERA: I’d give it a 7/10. I don’t really like this movie that much, and it’s not a movie I’d watch for the Christmasy vibe.

BRITO: The second movie that we’ll talk about is “Red One.” Me, Jocelyn, and Karol actually went to see this movie together on November 15. A special thank you to the Lounge for having a field trip to the theater when it came out; I really liked watching it! Can you explain what happens?

CABRERA: The “Red One” is about a witch called Gryla who kidnaps Santa Claus. Dwayne Johnson plays Santa’s bodyguard, Callum Drift, and has to track Gryla down with the help of Jack O’Malley, a guy who’s really good at finding unknown things.

DIAZ: As the movie barely came out, there aren’t any theories surrounding it, but something I really liked was the songs in the movie. One of the songs was “Christmas Magic” by Laufey, and it matches the Christmas mood of the movie.

BRITO: Something really cool is that Laufey made the song for the movie “Red One”! I love listening to her music, and I think it’s wonderful that she created a Christmas song that fits the vibe of the movie.

CABRERA: Another song that’s in the movie is “Jingle Bell Rock” by Brenda Lee. It’s a classic festive song for Christmas, and it fits well with the movie because it has to do with Christmas, Santa Claus, and a festive mood. Moving on to the ratings. What would you rate the movie Guadalupe?

BRITO: I would give this movie a 9/10. I loved that they had an original song by Laufey in the movie, and the story was interesting too. What about you Karol?

CABRERA: I’d rate this movie an 8/10 because I thought it was really funny although I thought it was kinda random sometimes, but I still enjoyed watching it. What would you rate the movie Jocelyn?

DIAZ: I also give this movie an 8/10 because I really enjoyed it, and also thought it was funny in some parts, but I feel like it could have been better organized because sometimes it was just random.

CABRERA: The last movie that we’ll talk about is “Home Alone.” The movie came out on November 16, 1990. It was written by John Hughes and directed by Chris Columbus. Jocelyn, can you say what happens in the movie?

DIAZ: Well “Home Alone” focuses on Kevin McCallister having to take care of himself when his parents accidentally leave him behind when they went on a holiday trip to France. He also has to protect the house from robbers by putting traps.

BRITO: A fun fact about “Home Alone” is that it was all filmed in a big gym where they recreated the setup of the house. The house we see in the movie was only used for the exterior shots. This was because the house was too small to film inside of. Moving on to theories though…

CABRERA: One of the theories is that Kevin is imagining the whole thing of robbers trying to get into the house. It’s a more sad theory because Kevin is trying to cope with his parents leaving him alone.

DIAZ: I think it shows that Kevin is a creative kid and he may just want to get away from the reality of being forgotten by his entire family. Moving on to the next theory.

DIAZ: The next theory is that Old Man Marley is Kevin’s guardian angel.

CABRERA: Many believe Old Man Marley was sent to protect Kevin. His timely intervention during the final battle with Harry and Marv supports the idea that he’s more than just a misunderstood neighbor.

CABRERA: The last theory in this movie is that Kevin is a criminal genius. They believe this because of the smart and useful traps that he creates to keep the robbers out.

DIAZ: This theory is connected to the idea that Kevin grows up to be the Jigsaw from the “Saw” franchise which is really interesting because it’s a dark idea coming from a Christmas movie. What do you guys rate the movies?
BRITO: I’d give this movie a 8/10. It’s a classic movie that I’ve watched a lot so I really like it, but I feel like the theories don’t really connect with the movie.What would you rate this movie Jocelyn?
DIAZ: I would give this movie a 9/10 because it’s a fun movie, and I have watched it a lot. What about you Karol?

CABRERA: I’d rate this Christmas movie a 10/10 because it’s one of my favorite Christmas movies, and I like how it’s funny plus the Christmas vibe it has.

CABRERA: Thank you Wizards for listening to our podcast! Make sure to listen to our next episode to hear about more holiday movies.