Force Fed Films: Christmas with the Kranks (2004)

Puneet decided that to get me in the festive spirit, he would make me watch Christmas with the Kranks. I'm not entirely sure why I've never ended up seeing this at some point. I'm sure it's aired on TV somewhere every year, and Tim Allen certainly has a lot of Christmas movies under his belt. It has a cast of some great actors, so even though it looks like a pretty mediocre movie, I'm still kinda surprised I just haven't stumbled across it at some point. Will this movie get you in the Christmas spirit? I'll give my thoughts after the jump.


So the basic premise here is simple. Luther (Tim Allen) and Nora Krank (Jamie Lee Curtis) have just said goodbye to their daughter Blair (Julie Gonzalo) as she heads of on a Peace Corps mission just before Christmas. She's supposed to be gone for a full year, so this Christmas just won't be the same without her. Luther gets a great idea to instead head off on a Caribbean cruise vacation. The catch is that they will skip Christmas and save the thousands of dollars they usually spend on all the usual over-the-top festivities. There's only one problem, the neighbourhood community, lead by Vic Frohmeyer (Dan Aykroyd), takes Christmas very seriously, and they can't have one house being a Bahumbug stand-out.

Dan Aykroyd and M. Emmet Walsh play two neighbours that don't like the Krank's plans

It turns out that Christmas with the Kranks was pretty much what I expected. The trailers and ads I remember for it when it came out certainly didn't lie, unlike most movie trailers these days. Nope, this film is exactly the silly, embarrassing, dumb comedy it promised. The thing is, though, that that's kinda what Tim Allen is known for. That comedy style that is almost more for kids than adults, even though it's totally sold as a comedy for all ages. It's all slapstick, physical humour, like Allen getting botox injections in his face, and thus not being able to eat or chew, and spills food and water out of his mouth all over himself. Or how about spraying the front lawn (and the neighbour's cat) with a water hose so that Christmas carolers can't come up to the house without slipping and falling on the ground. Even though I complain though, it's so lighthearted and innocent that it's hard to be really offended or insulted. It's just harmlessly dumb.

Looks like the cat is frozen... haha... so funny...

The film really is about the Christmas spirit though. In the story, the Kranks get a call from their daughter on Christmas Eve to surprise them that she will be coming home after all. This sends them into a frenzied rush to prepare as best they can, but they can only get it done with the help of their neighbours who they have been shunning for the previous 6 weeks since American Thanksgiving. It was kind of cool seeing everyone come together and decorating the whole house, inside and outside, just in time for Blair's arrival, and she is none the wiser. It becomes really sappy and sweet, but I couldn't help but enjoy that part.

Everyone loves a white snowy Christmas

The heart warming ending, as sappy as it was, kinda saved this movie for me, but only just barely. I still can't forgive it for making me see botox'd Allen, or artificially tanned Jamie Lee Curtis and Tim Allen in skimpy bathing suits. Even so, almost all Christmas comedies are like this, and always play on the last minute panic or crazed shoppers to get the laughs. While it was nice to see a Christmas movie in the Christmas season, I kinda can't wait for the classic Christmas movies I have lined up for later!