Families' Tale All Too Familiar

Newcastle Herald

Friday December 5, 2008

By JAMES JOYCE

REVIEW

FOUR HOLIDAYS (M)

Director: Seth Gordon

Stars: Reese Witherspoon, Vince Vaughn, Robert Duvall, John Voight, Sissy Spacek, Mary Steenburgen

Screening: general release

Rating: * * *

HERE'S a serviceable little stocking stuffer if you like your romantic comedies with festive seasoning that's both sweet and sour.

Reese Witherspoon and Vince Vaughn play a couple whose three-year relationship has been thriving for the very reason it's about to fall apart: they have never met each other's family.

Kate and Brad have spent their Christmases on holiday together on one tropical island or another.

They happily fob off their folks with fibs - they're off to help feed/inoculate/teach starving children/pandas/et cetera in Burma/Somalia/et cetera.

"You can't spell families without lies," is Brad's justification.

But when their flight to Fiji is fogged in and a news camera crew interviewing passengers about the delays puts the couple on live TV, there's no escaping their Christmas obligation: Brad and Kate are off to see their parents, each of whom is divorced and dysfunctional.

Why the lovebirds have been so eager to avoid their families - and agreed never to start their own - soon becomes painfully clear.

Yes, it's Meet The Parents times four.

Brad's old man (Robert Duvall) is a redneck and his knucklehead siblings (Jon Favreau and Tim McGraw) still roughhouse their brother.

Kate's mum (Mary Steenburgen) is an embarrassing born-again Christian whose new boyfriend (Dwight Yoakam) is a rock-and-roll preacher.

Brad's hippie mum (Sissy Spacek) is shacked up with his childhood best friend, who's at least 20 years her junior.

Kate's dad (Jon Voight) is almost normal but, by the time we meet him, the strain of the day has already taken its toll on Brad.

Over these four, incident-packed, anxiety-filled Christmas family get-togethers, the previously happy couple has learnt way too much about each other and their relationship.

Perky Witherspoon and garrulous Vaughn create an appealing intimacy as they trade cute wisecracks.

Their rapport makes Four Holidays a cut above Hollywood's family-unfriendly Christmas disaster comedies of recent years, such as Christmas with the Kranks and Deck the Halls.

Their hell day with the rellies throws up laughs, winces and baby vomit gags, but the bile unfortunately gives way to the same old warm and fuzzies.

© 2008 Newcastle Herald

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