Review of Jingle All the Way (1996) by Kevin P — 21 Dec 2017

Strengths: Regardless of how you feel about the story or the performances, the movie succeeds in one important aspect. It's fun. And isn't that what Christmas comedy is all about? When I watch this movie, I turn my brain off a bit and have a good time. Arnold Schwarzenegger (Howard) plays the dad and his acting here is one of those things that is so bad, it comes around and is good in a funny way. Sinbad (Myron) looks to be having a blast as the antagonist. He's part of some of the funniest scenes. I also got a kick out of seeing Arnold fight a bunch of crooked Santas, including one played by the Big Show during his WCW days. I do also like how it showed the commercialization of Christmas, as it tends to get passed over in other holiday films.

Weaknesses: As I said, this is a movie where turning your brain off works best. That's because a lot of the scenes are way over the top. While the Arnold/Sinbad stuff is usually fun, the Phil Hartman (Ted) and Rita Wilson (Liz) stuff drags the movie down. A few of the comedy things with it clicked, but it mostly missed the mark for me as a side plot. The running gag between Howard and the cop also wasn't as funny as it could've been.

Overall: While not a classic Christmas flick, this one has its charms. It's a silly movie with some fun scenes and hilarious sounding one-liners from Arnold. It's a ridiculous guilty pleasure and it works in that sense.