Underrated Christmas Movies: “Four Christmases”

“Four Christmases” is one of the most underrated Christmas movies ever made.

Anyone who watches Christmas movies before Thanksgiving or after New Year’s Day is a total weirdo. With that said, we’re firmly in the time period where it’s acceptable to watch Home Alone, Christmas Vacation, and the rest of the holiday staples. But there are more days between now and Christmas than the number of agreed-upon classics which means we’ve gotta dig deep into the crates a bit for hidden gems.

On the top of the hidden gem list is Four Christmases, the 2008 holiday comedy starring Vince Vaughn and Reese Witherspoon. And while there are issues that hold the film back — like an uninspired performance from Witherspoon and iffy chemistry between the two stars — there are a ton of scenes that will have you laughing your ass off and it’s far better than the 24-percent Rotten Tomatoes score it carries.

Specifically, Four Christmases kills when they’re making their rounds to different family events; the supporting cast of family members is an asset to the film and the source of all the best scenes. From Katy Mixon to Robert Duvall to Gram-Gram and beyond, the 40-minute stretch where the role players are featured will have you laughing so hard it hurts.

As good as the supporting cast is on their own, the way they lift up Vaughn is what makes the film. Instead of playing off a stuffy Reese Witherspoon as seen in the beginning and end of Four Christmases, Vaughn is at his best with the one-liners and classic fast-talk banter he became legendary for in the mid-2000s. See below:

Overall, Four Christmases isn’t great but deserves to be watched because the middle is so hilarious. If you have an HBO subscription, you can watch it on HBO Go or HBO Now right now. Yule laugh your ass off, I promise.