Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #7171 in DVD
• Released on: 2005-11-14
• Rating: Parental Guidance
• Aspect ratio: 2.40:1
• Formats: Anamorphic, PAL
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: Dutch, English, Hindi
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 95 minutes

Synopsis
The Kranks have always celebrated a picture-perfect Christmas. But with their only daughter, Blair (Julie Gonzalo), away from home on her Peace Corps assignment, Nora (Jamie Lee Curtis) and Luther (Tim Allen) are suffering from empty nest syndrome and decide to skip Christmas in favour of a Caribbean cruise. But their neighbours, led by Vic Frohmeyer (Dan Akroyd), take Christmas very seriously and are none too happy about the Kranks' boycott. In this neighbourhood where every house is decorated to the hilt and has a Frosty on the roof, skipping Christmas is virtually a crime. And just as the Kranks are preparing for their Christmas Day departure, they get a call from their daughter who announces that she is coming home for Christmas after all. Suddenly, all systems are go for their annual Christmas Eve party and a normal - highly festive - holiday. Will the Kranks be able to pull together a perfect Christmas for Blair in just a few hours, or will she discover their plan to skip Christmas? Directed by Joe Roth ('America's Sweethearts') and based on a John Grisham novel, this film also features appearances by Cheech Marin, Caroline Rhea, and Felicity Huffman.

Customer Reviews

Great family fun film
Really enjoyed this film, really funny. Will be on of my classic family christmas films to watch each year. One to watch with all the family.

A bit of festive fun
This is a reasonably watchable movie, perfect for the days leading up to Christmas when the madness starts to get to you!
It is well acted and you can sympathise with the characters' decision to escape for the festive season. Unfortunately, this decision doesn't go down too well with their neighbours who expect them to keep up the normal Christmas traditions.
There are the usual cringing and wincing moments -enough to keep the watcher entertained.
It is well worth a viewing, if only to enjoy the part where the Tim Allen character has botox. Classic! It made me cry with laughter!

A Very Creepy Film
This was a very creepy and disturbing film. Unlike many other Christmas movies there was no real lessons learned and no moments of redemption. What we get instead is a film where the main lesson seems to be: that in American surbubia you must follow what expected in the neighbourhood. You must do this or your nutcase neighbours will ritualistically hound you until you do so and repent your sins on the lawn.

We are introduced to the Mr and Mrs Krank (played by Tim Allen and Jaime Lee Curtis who are actually pretty good until they go all ga-ga happy Christmas again). They decide since their Barbie-esque daughter is jetting off for the year - they should skip Christmas and go on a cruise. Judging by the neighbours reaction you would think they were doing blood sacrifices on the lawn.

The neighbours are very strange indeed. The Kranks seek only to avoid Christmas. Unlike Scrooge who's behaviour hurt people - the Kranks aren't hurting anyone - yet they are actively hounded by the neighbours. Mrs Krank is stalked (best way to put it) by the owner of a greetings card company because she decides not to fork out hundred of dollars for cards. The local police develop a grudge because the Kranks dont want to buy their crummy calender. One neighbour stamps her feet because the Kranks don't want to have a Christmas Eve party. The local vicar even has a dig - saying that he hears the Kranks arent going to observe the festivaties. Yet the Kranks dontated to charity (very Christian) while avoiding the very un-Christian over indulgence. Even Mr Kranks work colleagues are openly rude and go begging to be fired.

A very special mention goes to the freaky carol singers. In one scene they are practically climbing through the window with their oh so cheery songs.

All in all a pretty bad film. Ultimately the main characters just wanted to skip Christmas - their actions hurted nobody. If anything its the Christmas spiritited neighbours that come off worse from this film. Underlying the whole affair is a sinister threat should you decide to do things differently. The very stress that Mrs Krank goes through emphasises this very point.

This neighbourhood is clearly intolerant and conservative - Senator McCain and Sarah Palin should get their votes no problem.