Christmas With the Kranks Review
by Bob Bloom (bob AT bloomink DOT com)November 30th, 2004
Christmas With the Kranks: 3 stars out of 4. Starring Tim Allen, Jamie Lee Curtis, Dan Aykroyd, Erik Per Sullivan, Cheech Marin, Jake Busey, M. Emmet Walsh and Austin Pendleton. Based on the book Skipping Christmas by John Grisham. Screenplay by Chris Columbus. Directed by Joe Roth. Rated PG. Running time: Approx. 100 mins.
For the first time in 23 years, the Kranks will be celebrating the holiday as empty nesters. Their daughter, Blair, has flown to Peru to work for the Peace Corps.
The Yuletide spirit seems to have flown along with her. To overcome the void, Luther and Nora Krank decide to ignore the holiday and take a 10-day Caribbean cruise instead. This resolution ignites an entertaining chain of events, which comprises Christmas With the Kranks.
The movie, based on the book Skipping Christmas by John Grisham, combines humorous social commentary, a bit of slapstick and sight gags as it chronicles the reverberations throughout the neighborhood created by the Kranks' refusal to participate in the festivities.
Under the direction of Joe Roth, working from a script by Chris Columbus, the movie takes a satirical roundhouse at the pressure people face to conform during the holidays. And the Kranks are no exception.
Luther and Nora's refusal to put up decorations, buy their annual tree from the Boy Scouts and host their annual Christmas Eve party creates a scandal rivaling Watergate.
The neighbors neither understand nor accept the Kranks position. The humor of the situation is recognizable to anyone living in a close-knit community.
Luther and Nora spend the first two-thirds of the film avoiding their neighbors and fending off the pressures placed upon them. Luther feels no guilt about skipping out. He goes shopping for skimpy tropical wear for himself and Nora; takes her to a tanning salon; and singularly focuses on getting away.
Nora feels guilty about leaving and, in her heart, would rather stay home, but the thought of spending the holiday without Blair propels her to follow Luther's lead.
Everything, though, works out for the best in the end in this sentimental holiday offering.
Jamie Lee Curtis, as Nora, is quickly becoming the reigning queen of slapstick. Like the late, great Carole Lombard she combines beauty, sexiness and comedic physicality.
Her facial expressions and movements as she tries to "escape" from her own house to meet Luther for lunch is priceless.
As Luther, Tim Allen's brand of humor is less demonstrative and more verbal, as he continually bolsters the flagging Nora. Allen plays his part as a man possessed, focused on one objective, who will not let anyone or anything deter him from his dream vacation.
A strong supporting cast, headed by Dan Aykroyd as neighborhood leader Vic Frohmeyer, also raises the laugh quotient. Whether demanding that the Kranks hand over their seven-foot-tall Frosty the Snowman or taking charge of the block's holiday decoration brigade, Aykroyd infuses his character with a military-like sense of authority.
Also deserving mention is young Erik Per Sullivan who plays Spike, Vic's precocious son, who later becomes a reluctant ally of Luther's.
Christmas With the Kranks is as sweet as a candy cane. With a running time of about 100 minutes, the action never sputters even as comedy yields to sentimentality. The feature is a warm-hearted exercise, tightly gift-wrapped in the holiday spirit.
You'd have to be a Scrooge not to crack a smile during this feature.
Bob Bloom is the film critic at the Journal and Courier in Lafayette, Ind. He can be reached by e-mail at [email protected] or at [email protected].
Bloom's reviews also can be found at the Journal and Courier Web site: www.jconline.com
Other reviews by Bloom can be found at the Rottentomatoes Web site: www.rottentomatoes.com or at the Internet Movie Database Web site:
www.imdb.com/M/reviews_by?Bob+Bloom
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