The first theatrical Christmas thriller of the season is Christmas at the Kringles. My husband and I caught a showing late Halloween night. We were the only ones in the theater, which made the movie a little more chilling.
Mark (Ron Livingston) and Julie (Rachel Bilson) Severson are having marital troubles. Right before Christmas, they move, with their son Bobby (Jack Jewkes), to the suburbs in the hopes that a change will fix everything wrong with their lives. As they are moving in, they meet the neighbors, the Kringles: Nick (Thomas Lennon) and Carol (Arden Myrin) with their children Rudolph (Zeke Jones), Merry (Alexis Kemp), and Elf (Elliott Egler). But they have been warned by another neighbor, Daryl (Donald Faison), and a mall Santa (Rob Riggle) that the Kringles are dangerous people. If only Mark and Julie listened….
This movie is a mixed bag. The cast is phenomenal. If I was to be murdered by anyone, I just might pick Thomas Lennon. And the lead up to the actual murder parts was pretty good. I can see why someone feeling like an outsider or unhappy with their life might cling onto a family like the Kringles. They seem so perfect during the Christmas season.
However, once we get to the third act where the chase begins, the movie falls apart. I’m not sure if it’s the editing or the writing that did them dirty. There are a lot of quick cuts that make it a little difficult to keep track of what is going on and there are events that happen then are immediately forgotten. (For example, Mark gets a weapon at one point then gets into a fight almost immediately after but he doesn’t have or use the weapon.) I think the movie would have benefited a little more from less chase and more building on the reason the Kringles are doing what they do.
Christmas at the Kringles is a movie that would be fine for a late night at-home viewing. I’m not sure it was worth the price of a movie ticket. Though this does make me look forward to the Violent Night sequel coming out later this year.
Rating: Don’t dismiss the gamer. They’ll rarely want to actually kill you.