Welcome to my last ‘80s Archive of the semester! We’re almost to break, and I can’t wait for the countless Zoom headaches to subside for a month. As we prepare for finals, I wanted to make sure I got in a Christmas film before signing off until January.
I’m a huge fan of The Brady Bunch. I watched it all the time when I was little and am happy whenever I get to revisit it. Last year, HGTV did A Very Brady Renovation, in which all the actors who played the Brady kids got together with HGTV hosts to remodel the house that served as the show’s exterior. When they finished, it looked just like the Brady house, inside and out. I will admit there were times that I cried while watching A Very Brady Renovation, so I can’t even imagine how it must have felt for the actors and The Brady Bunch’s original audience to see what they did with the place.
While The Brady Bunch ran from 1969 to 1974, there was a couple of related TV series in the later 1970s and a series of spinoff TV movies in the 1980s and 1990s. There were some cast changes on and off, but many of the original actors remained throughout. In A Very Brady Christmas, the only Brady kid not played by her original actress is Cindy (Susan Olsen in The Brady Bunch, Jennifer Runyon in A Very Brady Christmas). Here’s the Bitchin’ Bio on A Very Brady Christmas!
Synopsis: Your favorite ‘70s singing family (besides The Partridge Family) is back! It’s Christmas, and while Mike (Robert Reed) is planning a trip to Japan for him and Carol (Florence Henderson), Carol is planning the two of them a vacation to Greece. When the husband and wife cross paths at the same travel agency, their surprises are foiled. They instead decide to fly their six children, their children-in-law, and their grandchildren back home for the holiday. Little do they know, there are plenty of surprises in store for this bunch…
How I Watched It: Hulu… though we do have a couple of full series DVD sets and one has the disc with this movie and The Brady 500 on it, I couldn’t find it!
Come For: A look into the adult lives of the Brady children.
Stay For: A Very Brady round of life confessions at the Christmas dinner table.
Had I Seen It? Yes, many times.
Do I Like It? It can be sort of ridiculous, but yes. It’s melodramatic at times and funny at others, but it can also be heartwarming. This movie is just super fun for anyone who likes The Brady Bunch. And I, for one, can say, as sure as their song “Keep On” is a bop and a half, that I love The Brady Bunch.
I’ll leave you now with my favorite quote from this movie, which may come up in my day to day conversations too often. So, always remember: “Don’t be sorry. Just be Wally.” Catch you in 2021!
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