Cinepanettoni: Now Playing at a Theater Near You

It's the Christmas season, and that can mean only one thing in Italian movie theaters: cinepanettone—a genre denoting Italian Christmas comedy movies. The term is derived from cine, short for cinema, and panettone, a traditional Christmastime cake. A 1983 comedy, 'Vacanze di Natale' (Christmas Holidays), is considered the grandfather of the formula (puerile humor, pop soundtrack, facile jokes, and plenty of cleavage).