Stephie Grob Plante

Whoever said that it’s better to give than to receive obviously never met our Holiday Gift Guide, because we’d be pumped to receive any of the perfect presents listed here. But! In the spirit of giving, feast your eyes on these goodies, and be prepared for your most streamlined and simple holiday shopping experience yet. We’ve got every member of your family, workplace, and friend-o-sphere covered.

For Thanksgiving I have two traditions: eating to the point of explosion, and watching movies where people eat to the point of explosion. I once felt alone in my voyeuristic inclination to annually supplement my family meal with a screening of ‘Stand By Me’ or ‘Willy Wonka.’ But why should I suffer this pain alone? This Thanksgiving I invite you to join me on a gastronomical journey, as I recount the best movie moments that feature: (1) people delighting in the visceral pleasures of transcendent culinary experience, and/or (2) stuffing their maws like the filthy mammals we human beings truly are.

High quality run-acting doesn’t get a lot of official recognition. There is no Academy Award — nor even a Golden Globe. The best I can offer from my static spot in the living room is a flattering list. It goes as follows.

It’s easy to find Halloween movies. A cursory Google-search yields a slew of time-honored terror, vetted by thousands of critics and fans. But for those weak-stomached folks who avoid horror flicks at all costs, this bounty of murder porn, slasher flicks, and Romero rip-offs are highway to bad dream city. There are, of course, plenty of happy Halloween movies that are safe for the squeamish. They just take a bit more effort than a Google search to uncover.