There’s a lot
of tenderness in this drama-comedy about parents and adult children spending
Christmas with the prim girlfriend of one of them, even if it winds up
predictably.
You could be forgiven, if you’ve
seen ads or the preview for this movie, for thinking it will be a hilarious
and/or stupid Christmas comedy with a lot of wacky happenings, like the one
where Sarah Jessica Parker, as the girlfriend trying to make a good impression,
spills her casserole dish all over the floor and everyone slips on it. As it
turns out, that scene isn’t representative. Despite the Meet the Parents premise,
it’s probably more drama than comedy. Parker’s character, about to be affianced to Dermot
Mulroney’s, has a big pole up her butt that doesn’t jibe with her looser would-be
in-laws, played by Diane Keaton (especially excellent), Craig T. Nelson, Rachel
McAdams, Luke Wilson, etc. I think the difference between this and a movie like
Yours, Mine, and Ours is the difference between a caricature of a
free-wheeling family and a portrait of one. It may be because, more like an
independent film, it has a single writer-director (Thomas Bezucha). Story-wise,
Family Stone is less assured; the way it aggressively pairs off all the
main characters, and the way Parker’s character suddenly becomes sympathetic,
is too obvious.
circulated via email 12/22/05 and posted online 9/20/13
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