Customer Reviews

Christmas with the Kranks

5 star:		(65)
4 star:		(28)
3 star:		(32)
2 star:		(29)
1 star:		(47)

 

 

Being a big fan of Christmas-themed movies and having read the John Grisham novel on which this was based, I was definitely looking forward to this movie. Therefore, despite Ebert's bad review, I convinced my family to see it after our Thanksgiving dinner. With two kids in college now, there aren't many chances for us to all go to a movie together. And maybe there's another reason for that----generational gap in taste. My husband and I enjoyed this alot, while our two offspring agreed it was probably the worst movie they had ever seen. There you have it, mixed reviews.

While it's true there is no earth-shaking revelation in this one (unless you count a reaffirmation of the true meaning of Christmas), no high-tech wizardry, no spectacular chase scenes, no lusty sex or mind-numbing profanity, I found this a most enjoyable way to spend an afternoon. What it did have was a look at the importance of family, friends, and community. What it did have was honest laughter and the realization that only an idiot would try to forego the most important holiday of all. The fact that the neighborhood looked more like one from 1954 instead of 2004 only added to the enjoyment for me. After all, nostalgia is a large part of the holiday, right?

For those unfamiliar with the story, Luther Krank (Tim Allen) is upset to realize that the cost of Christmas is about $6,000. A bit sad since his only child is now in the Peace Corps and will not be home for Christmas, he convinces his wife Nora (Jamie Lee Curtis) that it would be foolish to spend all that money on decorations, donations, gifts, and their annual Christmas Eve bash. For less money, they could take a Caribbean cruise and enjoy life in the islands. Skipping Christmas sounds, at first, like a brilliant idea. But the neighbors won't allow it. Led by neighborhood watchdog Vic Frohmeyer (Dan Aykroyd), they insist on upholding traditions (like putting a giant Frosty on every rooftop) and do not take at all kindly to the Kranks' breaking with the wishes of the neighborhood. The twist comes at the last minute when the daughter decides she can't miss the Christmas celebrations she has always loved and flies in from Peru with her fiance. How will the Kranks explain the darkened house, no tree, no Frosty, and the fact they are sailing at noon?

While it is not the greatest Christmas movie I've ever seen, I did enjoy this one and recommend it for those not jaded by recent Hollywood offerings. If you like good clean movies that leave you smiling, this one's for you.

Good for the whole family.

Nice to find a movie that is "safe" to watch around kids. not a "kid" movie, really, but, it's safe. Lighthearted, fun, a wee bit of slapstick humor.

Love Tim Allen, he was about the same guy that he is in all his movies. The father type that tries hard, but falls short, gets into a jam, and makes us laugh. Yup, that was him in this movie. but, he DID make me laugh. So, worth the price of a ticket. (or a dvd.)

Jamie Lee Curtis, can be annoying, but in this movie, she was sweet, a good complimentary wife to Tim. She is not as funny, but, did fine. She had some good lines too, actually.

The Daughter could have been played by any young 20 ish actress, she didn't get much airtime. Pleasant and cute though, as was the boyfriend that she brought home. He was adorable, but had a very small part.

A neighbor kid was played by Erik Per Sullivanrik, the little brother, Dewey, off Malcolm. Cute funny kid. The Boy Scout leader / nosey neighbor was a HOOT and done perfectly by Dan Aykroyd.

Me and my dear Norman popped some popcorn and cuddled on the sofa to watch this DVD, and we enjoyed it a lot. Not deep, by any means. Just a nice holiday fun.

You should buy it. Maybe buy from the nice sellers on Amazon that sell used, but perfect condition DVDs (shhhh... save some money that way!) a free tip from your Grandma Sally! ho ho ho!!

Christmas With the Kranks, based on the very amusing novel called "Skipping Christmas," by John Grisham is a hilarious and heartwarming film. It is surprising that the author of legal thrillers wrote such a humorous book.

Luther and Nora Krank (Tim Allen and Jamie Lee Curtis) have always gone all out for Christmas, with a Christmas Eve party, custom-made cards and invitations from the local stationer's, and of course a tree and dinner with Honey Roasted Hickory ham. But this year is different. Their twenty-three year old daughter Blair is off to spend a year in South America with the Peace Corps.

Rather than face Nora's empty nest syndrome and depression, Luther books them on a cruise. All they have to do is skip Christmas. It sounds easy - and liberating - but the neighbors are aghast. Led by the powerful Vic Frohmeyer (Dan Ackroyd), the residents begin an all-out assault of Christmas spirit on their supposedly Grinch-like neighbors. One of the funniest scenes is when a battalion of carolers dressed in Victorian clothes descends on the house, and the measures Luther takes to keep them away.

A twist at the end is one of the most heartwarming Christmas scenes I have ever seen.

I thought this movie was so bad it prompted me to write my first amazon review. I was very disappointed. I love Tim Allen, and I love Christmas, and I wanted to like this movie but I couldn't. It was dull. It felt as though it had been cut and pasted together. Each scene lacked substance. The characters remained throughout cardboard figures. And Tim allen and Jamie Lee Curtis seemed to be reading their lines. I have to admit I didn't think the book was that great either but I thought (hoped) the movie would be better. It was worse. (For those of you who, like me, love Ray Romano but thought "Welcome to Mooseport" was bad, well, this was worse)!

I agree with the reviewer who called this slap stick silly.
A couple sends their daughter off (I think to college or on a intership)so they decide since she is not going to be home for the traditional Christmas celebration that they would take the money that they would spend on Christmas and take a trip together. Well, OK there is certainly nothing wrong with that but what annoyed the heck out of me was why not just say you took the trip as a Christmas present instead of insisting your skipping Christmas. Taking a trip together shows courtship and compassion for one another, skipping Christmas on the other hand is not compassionate and grinch-like. So basically the whole movie is nothing other than the neighbors and co-workers highlighting how terrible the couple are for "skipping Christmas" and not carrying out the traditional celebration. The last 10 minutes or the ending if you will, was the only heart felt moment through the whole movie. Sorry, try again.

I rented and viewed this today, thinking it wouldn't be so bad. I was wrong. I was bored throughout almost the entire thing, especially the first 40 minutes. I even fell asleep before the movie ended. I wouldn't recommend this as a rental or to buy, there are plenty of movies more entertaining than this.

Based on the best-selling John Grisham novel titled Skipping Christmas, Christmas With The Kranks resembles the book in almost every facet save for the title. Starring Tim Allen and Jamie Lee Curtis, Christmas With The Kranks is an instant Christmas holiday classic. Although not in the same league of Yule tide comedy gems Christmas Vacation and A Christmas Story, this film ranks high on my list of holiday laughers. The supporting cast (led by perpetual funnyman Dan Aykroyd) turns in a superb performance, making Christmas With The Kranks an easy film to relate to and one you'll want to see many times in the years to come...

When the college-age daughter of the Kranks joins the Peace Corps and flies to South America for Christmas, her mother battles with a case of the empty nest blues. But her father, accountant Luther Krank (Tim Allen), takes advantage of the opportunity to shake things up a bit. Tallying all the money he and his wife Nora (Jamie Lee Curtis) spend on Christmas, he determines that if they skip Christmas this year, they can afford to go on a week-long cruise instead and still pocket three thousand dollars in savings at the end of the trip.

But skipping Christmas turns out to be more difficult than they thought - especially when it comes to participating in neighborhood traditions such as the mounting of the roof-bound 'Frosties' (giant snowmen all the neighbors plant on their roofs). The neighborhood struggle over the Kranks' reluctance to put up their Frosty leads to some memorable and quite funny scenes where the couple encounters Vic Frohmeyer (Dan Aykroyd), the de facto leader of the neighborhood Christmas celebration. The Kranks continue to avoid all things Christmas related, and having visiting the tanning salon, they're prepared to go on their cruise Christmas Eve.

But when their daughter Blair (Julie Gonzalo) calls with the announcement that she's getting married, and more importantly, that she's on a plane bound for home - the Kranks are forced to miss their cruise and recreate all the festivities of Christmas Past for Blair and her fiancée. But attempting to do a whole month's preparation in one evening proves to be a monumental task, and one filled with hilarious pitfalls and obstacles...

Offering hilarious scene after hilarious scene, Christmas With The Kranks is one of the funniest comedies in years, and certainly one of the top ten Christmas comedies of all time. At no time does the humor become outlandish or utterly ridiculous as so many such films tend to do. Overall, one of the more lovable aspects of this film is its ability to relate to so many American families. In fact, you might see a bit of your own family in Christmas With The Kranks... The fact that it's one of those rare holiday classics with the potential to be seen year after year makes Christmas With The Kranks a definite must-see movie...

The DVD Report

More like *1/2 stars. Tim Allen (Joe Somebody, Big Trouble) and Jamie Lee Curtis (Halloween, Trading Places) star as a married couple whose daughter leaves before Christmas. Allen books both him and Curtis on a vaction get away cruise. So both of them decide to skip Christmas in which the whole town is baffled by this. The Kranks almost get to go on their vaction when their daughter calls and tells them she is coming home for Christmas with her new boyfriend whose Euporpean. So, the two Kranks must give up their vaction cruise and get ready before time runs out. A family comedy that doesnt have any life. Allen in another Christmas themed movie...Curtis gets annoying after awhile screaming her lungs out on film (no wonder shes called one of the original scream queen) and shes unattractive in a bathing suit. Dan Aykroyd (Evolution, Ghostbusters) flibbles and flabbles in a un funny supporting role an Cheech Marin (From Dusk Till Dawn, Spy Kids) and Jake Busey (Identity, Starship Troopers) are wasted as well as a couple of cops. M. Emmett Walsh makes this worth watcing. Also starring Austin Pendelton as Marty..."It's Marty, everybody knows Marty"....Catherine Rhea (Tv's Sabrina The Teenaged Witch), Felicity Huffman and Erik Per Sullivan (Wendigo, Tv's Malcolm In The Middle). Directed by Joe Roth (Americas Sweethearts), written by Christopher Cloumbus (Home Alone and Harry Potter Director) who adapted it from John Grisham's "Skipping Christmas" There's also a corny end scene with a wide shot of all the buildings decortated and a flying car with reindeer...so corny.

Okay, 1st of all, this movie was intended for family viewing, not for the people who like such "fine viewing" as the viewers of "stacked" or "fat actress" and I use my sarcastic vioce, too. The only thing that was intended for this movie, was to have fun and just laugh at the sit-com style of comedy,its no I Love Lucy hilaridy,but still manages to hold its own as a fun family film. Oh, by the way Jamie has a "Halloween" inside joke for you parents out there. This a great movie for anybody who enjoys to laugh. No Scrooges alowed!!

Sure there may be areas where the plot is, shall we say, lacking. And it is definatly no "Christmas Vacation" and it's no "Christmas Story": few movies are (that's what makes these ones so special!). But it is an entertaining and fun holiday film. The effects are cheezy, and the plot tends toward the sickly sweet, but it is Christmas after all. If you're looking for a good giggle this holiday season in between Christmas classics, I would recommend giving this a chance.