Lump of coal
You probably have gotten a holiday gift that was so beautifully wrapped you knew that the contents just had to be magical. But once you opened it, what you found inside was dull, mundane and disappointing.
That's what it is like to see "Fred Claus."
On the outside, this film package has great potential. Vince Vaughn can certainly bring a wry sense of humor to a role. Kevin Spacey usually elevates a film just by being in it. And Paul Giamatti has turned in memorable performances in "Sideways" and "Cinderella Man." Toss in Kathy Bates, Amanda Richardson and Rachel Weisz and "Fred Claus" looks like a holiday treat.
All of the pretty casting is wasted. The heart of this movie is a one-joke script that fills in the rest of the long passages with material that was done better in previous holiday films such as "Elf," "The Santa Clause" and "Santa Claus."
What passes as the plot has Fred Claus (Vaughn) living in the shadow of his famous brother, Santa Claus (Giamatti). The brothers have not been close. That changes when Fred tries to borrow some money to start his own off-track betting business.
Santa will fork over the dough only if Fred helps out with the family business of making and delivering toys at Christmas. Fred doesn't have the knack for business or the holiday. He makes the Grinch look like a poster boy for Dec. 25. And Fred's failings could not have come at a worse time. An efficiency expert (Spacey) has arrived at the North Pole (that looks a lot like a mall courtyard). He represents some mysterious big conglomerate that oversees everything from Santa to the Easter Bunny.
Santa's yearly one-night trek around the globe is no longer cost efficient. The whole business will be shut down if Santa doesn't get things working better. This movie has all the tension of wet mistletoe when it comes to whether Fred can save the day.
The movie does have a few glimmers of being the dark comedy it should have been. There's a meeting of Siblings Anonymous that generates a few laughs. And Spacey turns in a super performance. You will have to see the movie to completely understand that reference.
These are the exceptions and not the comedy rule. There really isn't anything funny about seeing Fred sleeping in a bed made for elves. And speaking of the elves, Santa's Little Helper (Elizabeth Banks) is a full-size blond who has been stuffed into clothes meant for elves. It's difficult to tell if Santa has been naughty or nice with that costume.
Director David Dobkin has so little material to work with that he turns scenes that should be 15 seconds long into five-minute sequences. That means all life is beaten out of the material.
Nobody has really been naughty enough to be subjected to this holiday mishap.
TITLE: “Fred Claus”CAST: Vince Vaughn, Paul Giamatti, John Michael Higgins, Rachel Weisz, Miranda Richardson, Chris “Ludacris” Bridges and Elizabeth BanksDIRECTOR: David DobkinRATED: PG (mild language and some rude humor)GRADE: * * (out of 5)
