Four Christmases 2008
This movie had real promise as a successful couple gets stuck visiting all of their divorced parents on Christmas instead of going on vacation and getting away from their families like they usually do. Having multiple Christmases has become part of life for many people, so a movie about that should work. With Reese Witherspoon and Vince Vaughn in the leads, although an odd couple, they certainly have some pretty good talent. Maybe it could be something like Wedding Crashers with Witherspoon taking over for Owen Wilson.
But it really doesn’t work. The slapstick humor is decent and it is fun to hear embarrassing stories from their childhoods, but most of it is over the top. It starts with the two main stars. Vaughn can do his motormouth thing, which Witherspoon can’t keep up with, and Witherspoon can do sassy and sweet which Vaughn can’t do. They’re even awkward visually as the 6'-5” Vaughn towers over 5'-2” Witherspoon (in 4-inch heels). Bad hair and makeup leave Witherspoon looking ordinary and maybe a little trashy.
The families are populated by some major stars, so it was fun seeing who would show up next, even as their talents are pretty much wasted as well. Vaughn’s family consists of rednecks in all but name (they’re from California, not the south). So there are a lot of white trash jokes that are more mean than funny. One neat cameo was Steve Wiebe, from the documentary The King of Kong, as Witherspoon’s sister’s husband, Jim. He didn’t have any lines (in his first scene he has a game controller in his hands), but it was neat for me at least to see the real-life Donkey Kong champion show up in a movie just a couple of weeks after I had seen the documentary (apparently he was added by the director who also did Kong).
So while there are a few laughs, this movie seems more like a missed opportunity than anything else. I can’t give it more than a C.
Written: 14 Dec 2008