Review of Deck the Halls (2006) by Eric S — 11 Dec 2007

Deck the Halls is not a bad movie. It is also not a great movie. In the overall horizon of holiday movies, it does very little to stand out. It's a Christmas movie and a buddy comedy, much like the even less impressive Jingle All The Way (starring the Governator and Sinbad).

While it doesn't stand out, Deck The Halls does at laest make an attempt to stand out. It tries to be different by not trying to be overly preachy in its overall message of friendship and family during the holidays.

This message is one that could be used in a movie for any time of year. This is the case in that Buddy (Danny DeVito) is a man who feels insignificant in his life. As a result, he brings his family along with him to every new job, and town when he gets tired of the last. The constant changes lead to the eventual buddy (no pun intended) comedy with co-star Matthew Broderick.

Kristin Chenoweth, who plays DeVito's wife, comes off at first as being a bimbo, but very quickly becomes the more thoughtful and sympathetic character in helping to lead Buddy to his realization that he should just be happy with who he is.

Again, while the message is obvious, at the movie's finale, it is not explained in a preachy manner, making for a movie that is at least fun and bearable.