Does this ever happen to you? You know this…where you have just seen a movie and you’ll be somewhere, and someone or something reminds you of the movie you have just seen? Sitting having pizza with the kids at a Christmas party, a grandfather sits down next to us with his two grandkids. “Derek” is mashing his fourth piece of cake with his fingers to the point where it would have to be baked again. “Sarah” runs up and down the aisles.
Once she decided to settle, she dipped her carrots into my son’s ranch dressing on his plate. Yuck. Amidst all that, Grandpa tells me that his wife has left him and is still living in his house with her new boyfriend somewhere out west.
The weird thing is these gentle folk aren’t even my family. If you've never experienced this then you need to go see more movies!Four Christmases will leave you laughing out loud. Brad (Vince Vaughn) and Kate (Reese Witherspoon) have avoided the family holidays for the past three years.
They usually spend their holiday vacations at exotic places where couples back massages and snorkeling replace the traditional family Christmas festivities.Upon arriving to the airport they learn their plane is cancelled, and their families discover their sudden availability for the holidays over the local news broadcast.
Now they must visit each of their parents separately, and we get to witness the hilarity of their family holiday gatherings.I enjoyed this film for its dialogue and its comedic performances by a stellar cast. Robert Duvall (Howard) plays Brad’s father.
There is a moment when even within the comedy, Mr. Duvall seems to weave the realness of a bitter man whose wife has left him. Sissy Spacek plays Brad’s eccentric mother, Paula. Mary Steenburgen plays Kate’s mom, Marilyn, and Jon Voight plays Kate’s father, Creighton. Also starring is Dwight Yoakam, Tim McGraw, Kristin Chenoweth, and Jon Favreau.
It has been a long time since I heard the sound of my own laughter inside a movie theatre. I think because Four Christmases does such a good job of touching the nerve that we all share. We all have bizarre family moments and phobias.
Sometimes the urge to flee back to the other world where family history doesn’t exist is strong. In all, the holidays are and will always be a time for us to reconnect to those we love, those who know us best, and somehow through them and those family moments we find ourselves again. We grow up just a little more than we did the last time we saw them. They are our family. Embrace yours this holiday season.