Frère Noël

Probablement la comédie la plus faible avec Vince Vaughn, sans compter Old School. Il y a tout de même quelques points positifs : le dîner romantique dans le restaurant fraîchement ouvert, la ville magique pleine d’adorables elfes au pôle Nord, un Paul Giamatti horriblement gros et, comme toujours, une Rachel Weisz à croquer et des blagues de Vaughn sur sa mère. (13/03/2010)

After the excellent comedy Wedding Crashers, I was willing to defend Vince Vaughn at all costs because that film was a success. However, with every subsequent film I've seen him in, I realized that seeing this actor once is enough. Simply put, after the second time, you'll wonder why you actually liked him; by the third or fourth time, you’ll struggle to get through his performances. You’ll realize he has no acting range and is even more annoying than Sandler, as he’s just incredibly stiff. The Break-Up!, Couples Retreat, The Dilemma, and finally Fred Claus (I’m listing them in the order I saw them) only confirmed for me that he’s not an actor suited for good leading roles and is better suited for supporting ones, as he perfectly demonstrated in Into the Wild. Fred Claus is a comedy that will benefit from the fact that people love Christmas and Christmas movies. Santa Claus is one of the most beloved figures in America; in recent years, he has overshadowed the president. Paul Giamatti is an actor I could never picture as Santa, yet he does an excellent job. Vince Vaughn plays his rude brother, who simply suffers because his brother is so popular. He lives an ordinary life, which suits him just fine. Unfortunately, he has to come into contact with his brother again, which leads to him struggling to keep his nerves in check. What’s it about? Well, of course, it’s about how a jerk becomes a loving brother. It’s a two-hour film where everything is predetermined. You’ll want to cry, you’ll want to laugh, but all just because that’s simply how it’s laid out; that’s how it’s meant to be. Everything follows a predictable path, using exactly the twists you expect, so you’re even instructed on how to behave at certain moments. Why put heart into a film when it’s enough to just do something that’s been done before, simply fitting a slightly different story into a fairly grand North Pole? One can hardly be surprised that a group—well, perhaps a sizable group—of people has emerged to denounce American filmmaking and instead gravitate towards European or Japanese films. When you watch too many movies, you simply have to realize how clichéd they are, lacking originality, and primarily aimed at making money. Where is the art? Where is the effort to impact the viewer differently than just through spectacle? Is Hollywood trying to kill art? (02/03/2013)

Finally, an American holiday movie on TV this year that actually made me happy! I was expecting the usual Home Alone or Christmas Vacation, but surprisingly, they didn’t make the cut. Instead, this goofy little comedy stepped in to save the day, with a solid cast to back it up—Vince Vaughn, Paul Giamatti, Kevin Spacey, and Rachel Weisz all bring their charm. (29/12/2011)

An average Christmas affair with an above-average cast, wrapped in a layer of clichés. In short, a film that doesn't impress but doesn't offend either. (23/12/2010)