For the last several years, there has been at least one new Christmas movie released every year. I do tend to like Christmas movies and have seen most of them. I was interested in seeing Deck the Halls after I first saw the trailer. National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation is one of my favorite Christmas movies, and the trailer made it seem like Deck the Halls could be really funny like that movie.
Steve Finch had been known as the Christmas guy around his town for several years. He was very focused on organizing every last detail of the Christmas season in his attempt to have perfect holidays. His wife Kelly and their children, Madison and Carter, didn’t really like the way Steve had to organize and plan everything. One night, Buddy and Tia Hall moved into the house across the street with their twin daughters Ashley and Emily. Tia and Kelly quickly became friends and the kids were getting along as well. Steve didn’t act like he was willing to give Buddy a chance when they first met. Buddy decided that he wanted to decorate his house with enough lights so it could be seen from space. As Buddy added to his display, Steve got more upset and started plotting how to disable the lights.
Deck the Halls had a fairly simple, straightforward plot. I wasn’t disappointed by that because I had been expecting that. The movie took a little time when it started to establish Steve before Buddy’s family moved in. After that, the movie focused in more on Buddy’s attempt to make his display bright enough to be seen from space and the conflicts that caused between him and Steve. There really weren’t any surprises, so the movie was predictable. That didn’t bother me because the movie did entertain me. The movie can be enjoyed if people don’t go into seeing it with high expectations.
Before seeing Deck the Halls, I thought it would be just a funny and perhaps silly Christmas movie. That’s what it was for the most part. There were a few more serious scenes added in at different points. Those scenes were used as an attempt to show the importance of family and the danger of taking a family for granted. A few scenes were a bit touching without getting sappy. The scenes dealing with the importance of family didn’t get preachy and did fit into the movie.
I was hoping that Deck the Halls would be a really funny Christmas movie. It was funny and made me laugh several times, but it wasn’t as funny as I had hoped it would be. National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation was a much funnier and more entertaining Christmas movie. There really wasn’t anything special about Deck the Halls. The plot really wasn’t that original. Buddy’s obsession with all the lights on his house reminded me of Clark in National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation. Buddy’s lights made Clark’s look like a night light in comparison. Steve sort of lost it later in the movie and that did remind me a little of Clark, though Clark lost it in a much bigger way and was a lot funnier. Some of the things that Buddy and Steve did were funny and people were laughing throughout the movie. A few things done for laughs were gross. There were a few somewhat suggestive jokes used once or twice that might concern some parents. The movie was rated PG, so there wasn’t anything too bad in the movie.
Buddy and Steve were the main characters and most developed in the movie. The men became obsessed without doing each other and they both did some extreme things. Steve was detailed oriented and felt the need to plan and organize everything related to Christmas. Matthew Broderick was good in the part. Buddy decided that he wanted to put enough lights on his house for it to be seen from space and he put accomplishing that above everything else. I did like Danny DeVito in the part.
Kelly tried to get Steve to relax more than once. She loved her husband, but she wasn’t happy with the way he was acting. Kristin Davis didn’t have that much to do. Tia was very supportive of Buddy and his plan to make their house seen from space. She did get frustrated with Buddy at times. Kristin Chenoweth was good in the part. Late in the movie, she did sing a Christmas song. Carter, Madison, Ashley and Emily had smaller parts and didn’t have as much to do.
Main Cast
Kelly Aldridge - Emily Hall
Sabrina Aldridge - Ashley Hall
Dylan Blue - Carter Finch
Matthew Broderick - Steve Finch
Kristin Chenoweth - Tia Hall
Kristin Davis - Kelly Finch
Danny DeVito - Buddy Hall
Alia Skawkat - Madison Finch
John Whitesell - Director
Deck the Halls was an entertaining Christmas movie that could be good for families. Children might find the movie funnier than adults. The movie was silly and predictable, but it can be entertaining.
A slapstick holiday heart-warmer in the tradition of HOME ALONE DECK THE HALLS boasts an excellent cast that includes both seasoned actors and promisi...More at Family Video
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