From a producer of The Family Stone, the director of I Am Sam and the writer of Hope Floats (stop screaming at the back) comes this obligatory seasonal star-studded ensemble piece in which a bunch of A-listers plays out a string of intertwining plot threads, all in search of a heavily eggnogged family hug.
At the centre of the box-ticking maelstrom are Diane Keaton and John Goodman as the secretly collapsing couple struggling to give their disparate brood a last hurrah happy Christmas before finally splitting up. Ed Helms is the secretly out-of-work single father in desperate need of a job, Marisa Tomei is the secretly shoplifting sister trying to face up to sibling rivalry, and Olivia Wilde is the black sheep daughter, secretly trying to pass off Jake Lacy’s stranger as her boyfriend. So many secrets! Steve Martin provides heart-sinking shaggy dog narration, full of the kind of pithily whimsical observations that make you want to strangle yourself. Happy holidays!
