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Four Christmases

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Four Christmases (2008)

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Reviews Counted:137

Fresh:35

Rotten:102

Average Rating:4.3/10

Consensus: Despite a strong cast, this sour holiday comedy suffers from a hackneyed script.

Runtime: 82 mins

Genre: Comedies

US Box Office: $120,136,047

Synopsis: Documentarian Seth Gordon (THE KING OF KONG: A FISTFUL OF QUARTERS) makes his feature film directorial debut with FOUR CHRISTMASES. Kate (Reese Witherspoon) and Brad (Vince Vaughn) are a happily... Documentarian Seth Gordon (THE KING OF KONG: A FISTFUL OF QUARTERS) makes his feature film directorial debut with FOUR CHRISTMASES. Kate (Reese Witherspoon) and Brad (Vince Vaughn) are a happily unmarried couple who avoid spending Christmas with their families at all costs and instead travel to exotic locales. But when they find themselves fogged in at the San Francisco airport and their flight to Fiji cancelled, they have no choice but to spend the holiday with their divorced parents and the rest of their dysfunctional relatives. From his wrestling brothers and cradle-robbing mother to her oversexed grandmother and perfect sister, the couple is forced to face their worst nightmare head-on. Kate and Brad's greatest fears are realized as their families share their most personal secrets. This film addresses broader themes of how people really know each other and the importance of connecting with family, no matter how crazy they might be. Vaughn and Witherspoon have nice chemistry as a couple that thought they had everything they wanted, improvising and playing off of each other well. Robert Duvall and Sissy Spacek appear as Brad's parents, while Jon Voight and Mary Steenburgen play Kate's parents. Jon Favreau and Tim McGraw are a hoot as Brad's tormenting brothers, and Kristen Chenoweth fits the bill as Kate's sister. Parents should be aware that the film includes adult language and themes, and some comments about Santa that may upset young children. [More]

Starring: Vince Vaughn, Reese Witherspoon, Robert Duvall, Jon Favreau

Starring: Vince Vaughn, Reese Witherspoon, Robert Duvall, Jon Favreau, Mary Steenburgen, Dwight Yoakam, Tim McGraw, Kristin Chenoweth, Jon Voight, Sissy Spacek

Director: Seth Gordon

Director: Seth Gordon
Screenwriter: Matt Allen, Caleb Wilson
Producer: Gary Barber, Roger Birnbaum, Jon Glickman, Vince Vaughn, Reese Witherspoon
Composer: Alex Wurman
Studio: New Line Cinema

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1 - 4 of 5

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Reviews for Four Christmases

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1 - 20 (sorted by date; Australian critics are listed first)
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Projectile baby vomiting is a recurring gag. I cried mistletoe well before the film was halfway through.

Full Review Source: The Australian | comment Comment
12/12/08
Evan Williams
Evan Williams
The Australian
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

You can see most of the big slapstick set-pieces looming long before they hit but there are a few smaller routines that pack a punch just because they have an unexpectedly manic tilt to them.

Full Review Source: Sydney Morning Herald | comment Comment
12/08/08
Sandra Hall
Sandra Hall
Sydney Morning Herald
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Filled with 'hilarious' scenes of people being vomited on and falling off roofs, Four Holidays tries to meld nasty, black-hued comedy with warm sentiment, resulting in a sick melange of treacle and malice.

Full Review Source: FILMINK (Australia) | comment 1 Comment
12/04/08
Erin Free
Erin Free
FILMINK (Australia)
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

An imperfect storm of horrible writing, awkward casting and questionable taste gathers soon after the opening credits and dumps downpours of buzz-killing humour at depressingly regular intervals.

Full Review Source: Daily Telegraph (Australia) | comment Comment
12/04/08
Leigh Paatsch
Leigh Paatsch
Daily Telegraph (Australia)
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

A top cast just manages to keep Four Holidays afloat but the script offers too few laughs, and slapstick turns to schmaltz before we've had enough Christmas Cheer.

Full Review Source: Urban Cinefile | comment Comment
12/01/08
Louise Keller
Louise Keller
Urban Cinefile
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Although not a yuletide classic, Four Christmases is better than most of the holiday-oriented slop put out in recent years.

Full Review Source: Washington Times | comment Comment
08/30/09
Sonny Bunch
Sonny Bunch
Washington Times

For all of its snarky holiday/family bashing, Four Christmases wimps out in the third act and reaffirms all the traditional values it affects to mock.

Full Review Source: Miss FlickChick | comment Comment
03/02/09
Maitland McDonagh
Maitland McDonagh
Miss FlickChick

Maybe catch one of the other hundred holiday films to be offered over the next few weeks and wait for Four Christmases to come to your local Red Box.

Full Review Source: Entertainment Spectrum | comment Comment
01/04/09
Jolene Mendez
Jolene Mendez
Entertainment Spectrum

Grows tired long before the end credits start rolling at the 80-minute mark.

Full Review Source: TheMovieReport.com | comment Comment
12/27/08
Michael Dequina
Michael Dequina
TheMovieReport.com

There is no spark to the humor, there is no warmth to the drama. There is a tired plot that whips the essence of every Christmas movie ever made into a dreary slog

Full Review Source: Killer Movie Reviews | comment Comment
12/24/08
Andrea Chase
Andrea Chase
Killer Movie Reviews

Feels like they wanted to make 5 different holiday movies and couldn't decide which plot line was best, so they rolled them all together, glossing over everything.

Full Review Source: Cinerina | comment Comment
12/17/08
Karina Montgomery
Karina Montgomery
Cinerina

Feels both too cluttered and too safe.

Full Review Source: Combustible Celluloid | comment Comment
12/09/08
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Combustible Celluloid

This is marginally better than most, with a few offbeat comic ideas, a reliably droll performance from Vaughn, and, as the parents, four watchable old troupers in search of a fat paycheck.

Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment Comment
12/09/08
J. R. Jones
J. R. Jones
Chicago Reader

An embarassment for all involved.

Full Review Source: Illinois Times | comment Comment
12/06/08
Charles Koplinski
Charles Koplinski
Illinois Times

Four Christmases boasts one of the most impressive casts ever assembled to make a movie that is, at best, only mildly amusing.

Full Review Source: Aisle Seat | comment Comment
12/06/08
Mike McGranaghan
Mike McGranaghan
Aisle Seat

A good start to the holiday season.

Full Review Source: MovieTime, ABC Radio National | comment 3 Comments
12/05/08
Jason Di Rosso
Jason Di Rosso
MovieTime, ABC Radio National
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

There are worse holiday-related ways to spend your time than Four Christmases, I suppose. Making a three-hour drive to grandmother's house in pea-soup fog, for one.

Full Review Source: Fresno Bee | comment Comment
12/03/08
Donald Munro
Donald Munro
Fresno Bee

Four Christmases is the kind of film that you should only watch if you’re trapped on an airline and can’t fall asleep, the kind of holiday film that makes Jingle All the Way look like a cinematic tour de force.

Full Review Source: New York Press | comment Comment
12/03/08
Simon Abrams
Simon Abrams
New York Press

So monstrously awful that it will probably make a fortune, spawn sequels and cause a mania for gags involving projectile-vomiting babies.

Full Review Source: Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC) | comment 1 Comment
12/02/08
Ken Hanke
Ken Hanke
Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

Witherspoon and Vaughn play two characters who are totally unlikeable, and the movie as a whole is too.

Full Review Source: jackiekcooper.com | comment Comment
12/02/08
Jackie K. Cooper
Jackie K. Cooper
jackiekcooper.com
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by date; Australian critics are listed first)
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Latest News for Four Christmases

November 30, 2008: Box Office Guru Wrapup: Four Christmases has a lot to be thankful for this weekend
Four Christmases had a sensational Thanksgiving weekend in the number one spot. Bolt picked up the pace while the sun started to set on Twilight. More...

November 28, 2008: UK Critics Consensus: Local Critics Warm To Changeling; De Niro Delights But What Just Happened Doesn't
It's Friday, there's a new raft of movies in the UK cinemas this week, but are any of them any good? This week the UK film hacks give us their opinions on Clint Eastwood's... More...

November 26, 2008: Box Office Guru Preview: Vince & Reese Offer Holiday Cheer
The Thanksgiving holiday weekend sees a wide variety of films in the multiplexes giving all kinds of moviegoers something to see over the extended five-day session. Leading the... More...

November 25, 2008: Critics Consensus: Four Christmases Gets Coal
This week at the movies, we've got yuletide yucks (Four Christmases, starring Vince Vaughn and Reese Witherspoon), an epic from Down Under (Australia, starring Nicole Kidman and... More...

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