Deck the Halls – Film Review

Steve (Matthew Broderick), suburban dad and Christmas enthusiast, finds a wrinkle in his well-ordered existence with the arrival of his new neighbor Danny (Danny DeVito). Danny has big dreams and plans to illuminate his house with enough holiday lights to make it visible from space. Not to be outdone, Steve declares a war of one-upmanship with Danny that threatens to drag the Christmas spirit through the slush.

There are stupid Christmas movies and then there’s John Whitesell‘s Deck the Halls; a film that thinks its so incredibly hilarious when in reality, it’s one of the most cringeworthy holiday outings you can find that also runs on a story that’s not only predictable, but goofy.

The fact that basically, this entire film revolves around two neighbours hating each other and picking fights is outrageously dumb and it gets old impressively fast. It wouldn’t have been annoying had this only been a plot point early on in the film, but that’s sadly not the case. It’s just the entire film.

But that’s not to say the entire movie is a complete waste because there are some elements to enjoy throughout. For instance, Danny DeVito is absolutely delightful in the role of Buddy Hall. No matter what movie he’s in, you can always be assured that DeVito is going to deliver a truly wild performance and this film is no different.

Matthew Broderick is decent enough as Steve, although there a number of instances in which he honestly looked miserable, and I don’t think he was acting. I think it was because, in certain scenes, you can genuinely read his true facial expressions where he realizes the movie he’s acting in is quite bad.

The film also manages to have a beating heart at its core, even if the story is incredibly predictable and it’s nothing you haven’t seen before countless times. The real problem with Deck the Halls is, unfortunately, the script which just so happens to be the most important part of any movie.

If you don’t have a good story, you’re just not going to have a good movie as a result. Despite having a couple of well-timed jokes and a truly zany performance from Danny DeVito, there’s not much to recommend when it comes to Deck the Halls. If you haven’t seen this movie before, just don’t. Keep it that way, and stick to your holiday favorites.

Although it’s fun to see Danny DeVito in his prime, Deck the Halls is a gloriously unfunny mess of a holiday film with a story so stupid you’ll have to see it to believe it.