Tim Allen Movie:

		List Price: $14.94		Label: Sony Pictures Salesrank: 42853 Released: November 8, 2005
		Our Price: $7.40
		Used Price: $5.99
		MPAA Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested) Media: UMD for PSP

Editorial Review:
When their only daughter Blair leaves the family nest Luther and Nora Krank (Tim Allen and Jamie Lee Curtis) decide to book an island cruise to beat the yuletide blues and just skip the holidays. But their decision to boycott tradition has the whole neighborhood in an uproar and when Blair calls on Christmas Eve to announce a surprise visit with her new fianc e the Kranks have just twelve hours to perform a miracle and pull themselves and their neighbors together to throw the best celebration ever! With fast-paced energy and support from Dan Aykroyd Cheech Marin Jake Busey and M. Emmet Walsh this hilarious adaptation of John Grisham's best-selling novel "Skipping Christmas" has become "an instant family classic!" (Gorman Woodfin CBN)System Requirements: Running Time 99 MinFormat: UMD Genre: COMEDY Rating: PG UPC: 043396125452 Manufacturer No: 12545

Description of Christmas with the Kranks [UMD for PSP]:
Slapstick humor gets a full-body workout in Christmas with the Kranks. Critics were unanimous in their derision, and John Grisham must have gnashed his teeth over what studio-boss-turned-director Joe Roth did to his bestselling novel Skipping Christmas, to which this broad-stroked comedy bears little or no resemblance. The title characters are played by Tim Allen and Jamie Lee Curtis, who decide to skip Christmas because their daughter's in Peru with the Peace Corps. Thus begins a rabid program of enforced conformity when their neighbors (led by Dan Aykroyd) coerce the Kranks into changing their holiday attitude--a change that comes easily when the daughter announces she'll be home for Christmas after all. Imagine if a suburban lynch mob said "Have a Merry Christmas or we'll kill you," and you'll get some idea of what spending Christmas with the Kranks is really like. And if you laughed at the frozen cat, you're probably on Santa's "naughty" list. --Jeff Shannon

Christmas with the Kranks [UMD for PSP] Reviews:
Total Holiday Pleasure - another Christmas Trandition for me!
2009-12-21 - Christmas with the Kranks was a chuckle from beginning to end. Almost everyone has wanted to skip Christmas, has hidden in the house from Christmas Carolers and felt the pressure of neighbors to "keep up with the Jones" with Christmas decorations. All I had to do was LOOK at Jamie Lee Curtis and the frumpy hair and Christmas Vest and I had to laugh. While Tim Allen was hysterical as the husband preparing for Carribbean Cruise by getting botox injections. I watched the movie 3 times and everytime I belly laughed at Tim Allen trying to eat in a restuarant with his face frozen by the botox. Jamie Lee was perfect as the suburban housewife, hiding in her home one day from the neighbors demanding that Jamie give them the huge 15 foot snowman in their basement, so that they may decorate the Kranks roof with it - like every year.
Anyone who appreciates Jamie Lee, frumping down into a great performance, espeically as she fights a shopper for the last Honey Ham in the grocery store, will chuckle at this movie, and laugh out loud in some places.
There is sentiment too.
I totally enjoyed Christmas with the Kranks and will be sure to bring the movie out every December for pleasant Christmas viewing.

Funny movie, but sends a bad message
2009-12-20 - Gotta love a movie with Tim Allen and Dan Akroyd. Christmas With the Kranks stands out in a crowded sea of Christmas movies. Tim Allen tries to boycott Christmas. However, his neighbors and friends, led by Dan Akroyd, succeed in stopping him. Along the way, Tim Allen and his wife suffer from hilarious antics.

As much as I like the movie, I gave it a slightly lower rating because I think it sends the wrong message to people. It essentially advocates giving into the commercialism of the "Christmas-industrial complex." Everybody shuns Tim Allen because he wants to take a vacation rather than host a Christmas party for his neighbors and decorate his house. Tim Allen never did anything truly Grinch-like - he just wanted a vacation for himself and wife. The morale of Christmas With the Kranks seems to to be buy a lot of Christmas paraphernalia and give into peer pressure. If you can get around that, you can appreciate the humor in Christmas With the Kranks.

Cute family movie/ Could have been a classic Christmas Movie
2009-12-19 - Cute family movie based on John Greshams heartwarming book(Skipping Christmas)
about one man's plan to eliminate the stress of Christmas...
Positives:
1. Its more a family movie and or its nice to be a kid at heart
to enjoy it...
2.neighbors helping neighbors in time of need...and
miracles can happen...when people come together in
a positive way
3. Luther Krank's kindness to a sick friend.....
4. Points out that Christmas finances and expectations
brings out the good and bad in us....
5. Good laughs at times..

Just a few Negatives:

1.After I read the book I envisioned Kevin Spacey
as Luther Krank

2. The studio copped out and changed the name..so most people
probably didn't know it was based John Gresham's book..
(The book was a surprisingly good departure for him)

3. While it was a pleasant movie and God knows there aren't
many out there today...the script writing could have been
better... it coulda been a classic.....I just keep thinking
"what if" (I know people enjoyed it as is and I did too)

The above negatives in my opinion reduced it from a 5 star to 3 star
review...having said that I did like it and would reccommend it.

The review is for the movie only....

Painful But Sweet
2009-12-08 - My biggest complaint about the movie is the title. "Skipping Christmas" is a much better one and I don't understand why the change to "Christmas With the Kranks". However, having said that, I still thought this film version of Grisham's book was pretty well done. There are always changes from the book in the film versions, but I thought this one stayed true to the spirit of the original story.

There are some great comic bits when Tim Allen and Jamie Leigh are getting ready for their cruise (i.e. the tanning booth, Allen's botox injections). But the comedy is not the point of the story. The overall message of the book and this film comes through very nicely and sweetly - faith, family, friends, community, and giving of ourselves is what the true spirit of Christmas is about. Tim Allen's character transforms from practical, to stubborn, to selfish, to redemptive (by the end of the film). If you put yourself in his shoes, you can definitely relate to his sense of dismay when you take into account all he endured to overcome his misunderstanding neighbors, when his well-laid and practical (even ingenious) plans came unraveled at his daughter's unexpected call on Christmas Eve that she would be home for Christmas.

Yes, the neighbors are annoying, but even they become endearing when, for Allen's daughter's sake, they come together to help them prepare for her homecoming. For me, though, the whole film comes together in that final scene when Allen's character, in spite of his disappointment and resentment, allows his heart (and I believe - his God) to move him to do something unselfish, sacrifical and loving for someone else. This act redeems his character and the story.

I think if you just watch the film and let it carry you through the story through Allen's character's eyes - you will enjoy the film and especially the ending. Definitely worth watching.



Predictable but Entertaining
2009-12-04 - I was prepared to really hate this movie, but upon catching it on TV one day, I found it to be funny and entertaining. The film isn't all "peace on earth; goodwill toward men". The negativity of the neighbors when the Kranks decide not to decorate is definitely not in keeping with the Christmas spirit, but OK, maybe that's how life is. But I found it to be somewhat of a turn-off. Why my four stars? Well, there were plenty of heartwarming moments...especially those involving the neighbor with cancer. AND there were plenty of hilarious moments too...such as the canned ham sequence. The neighbors redeem themselves when they all pull together when the Kranks need them. I know...that's not how it is in real life, but hey, it's Christmas! Normally, this kind of film would not be my cup of eggnog but I found it to have enough substance to make it worthwhile.