This year’s Thanksgiving may look a little different than last year–smaller gatherings, eating dinner over Zoom, etc. Nevertheless, we imagine most people are still celebrating in some form or another, whether that means having only immediate family or quarantining before seeing relatives. Whatever your plan, you will hopefully have some downtime after the meal to spend with family. For many, there is no better way to relax than with a good movie or no better way to bond with family than over a good board game.
In that spirit, we bring you our top three Thanksgiving themed movies, in addition to Merriam-Webster’s top 10 words that can help you win at Scrabble. If you have any Thanksgiving movie recommendations or rare words that can lead to Scrabble dominance, we’d love to hear from you!
Home for the Holidays
In this 1995 movie directed by Jodie Foster, a single mom flies home to Baltimore to spend Thanksgiving with her parents and an array of nutty family members. Unsurprisingly, hijinks ensue. While some have criticized this family dramedy as being too saccharine, the film won praise for Jodie Foster’s directing and for some excellent performances by the ensemble cast, including Holly Hunter, Robert Downey Jr., and a young Claire Danes. The movie also has a great soundtrack, and who can’t appreciate a feel good movie right about now?
Addams Family Values
This sequel to the original The Addams Family features a quintessentially wacky plot involving Uncle Fester getting engaged to a serial killer and the Addams children being shipped off to camp where they perform a Thanksgiving play turned coup against camp leadership. This black comedy has a great cast, including Christina Ricci, Anjelica Huston, and Joan Cusack, and is a perfect option for those that enjoy a bit of off beat satire!
Planes, Trains, and Automobiles
Planes, Trains, and Automobiles was written, produced, and directed by the beloved John Hughes–need we say more? The man behind one of the all time best holiday movies, Home Alone, also wrote, produced, and in some cases directed many of the most popular comedies of the 80s and 90s. Planes, Trains, and Automobiles came out in 1987 and centers around a marketing executive (played by Steve Martin) who is trying to get home for Thanksgiving and meets a good hearted but very annoying salesman (played by John Candy) along the way. The pair eventually make it to their destination, but of course there are many comical mishaps along the way. With Steve Martin and John Hughes, you can’t really go wrong!
Scrabble Master
If you want to mix it up with some games this Thanksgiving, there is always the classic Scrabble. For those who want a competitive edge over unsuspecting family members, we bring you the top 10 words that expert Scrabble players use to cinch a victory! From qi to xu, these words will guarantee you rack up the points by using tricky but high scoring letters. Plus, Webster offers a unique game strategy that you may not have thought to try.
We hope you enjoy time with family (even if it’s not your usual gathering) and we wish you a very happy Thanksgiving!
