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Movies / On DVD / Surviving Christmas
Surviving Christmas

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Surviving Christmas (2004)

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Reviews Counted:108

Fresh:8

Rotten:100

Average Rating:3/10

Consensus: Surviving Christmas is unpleasant characters attacking each other for 90 minutes before delivering a typical, hollow anti-consumerist message

Rated: PG-13 [See Full Rating] for sexual content, language and a brief drug reference

Runtime: 2 hrs 10 mins

Genre: Comedies

Theatrical Release:Oct 22, 2004 Wide

Box Office: $11,198,345

Synopsis: Academy Award® winner Ben Affleck ("Good Will Hunting"), Emmy winner James Gandolfini (TV’s "The Sopranos") and Christina Applegate ("View From the Top," TV’s "Married With Children") star in the... Academy Award® winner Ben Affleck ("Good Will Hunting"), Emmy winner James Gandolfini (TV’s "The Sopranos") and Christina Applegate ("View From the Top," TV’s "Married With Children") star in the comedy "Surviving Christmas." Facing another Christmas alone, Drew Latham (Ben Affleck) decides to go back to his idyllic childhood home to spend the holidays with family. There is, however, one problem: the people living there now are not Drew’s family. Nevertheless, Drew has his mind set on an old-fashioned family Christmas, and the fact that the "family" in question, the Valcos, are complete strangers, isn’t about to put a crimp in his plans. Offering them a small fortune, Drew bribes his newfound "parents" (James Gandolfini and Catherine O’Hara) to let him spend Christmas in their home, pretending to be part of the family. Just when the Valcos begin to question if any amount of money is worth being dragged all over town on such traditional family holiday excursions as Christmas shopping and the requisite choosing of the Christmas tree, their eldest daughter Alicia (Christina Applegate) comes home for the holidays, with no intention of adopting a new "brother." "Surviving Christmas" is directed by Mike Mitchell from a screenplay by Deborah Kaplan & Harry Elfont and Jeffrey Ventimilia & Joshua Sternin, from a story by Deborah Kaplan & Harry Elfont. The film is produced by Jenno Topping and Betty Thomas, with Patricia Whitcher serving as executive producer. [More]

Starring: Ben Affleck, James Gandolfini, Christina Applegate, Catherine O'Hara

Starring: Ben Affleck, James Gandolfini, Christina Applegate, Catherine O'Hara, Josh Zuckerman, Bill Macy

Director: Mike Mitchell

Director: Mike Mitchell
Screenwriter: Deborah Kaplan, Harry Elfont
Producer: Betty Thomas, Jenno Topping
Composer: Randy Edelman
Studio: DreamWorks Distribution LLC

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Release:

Dec 21, 2004

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Reviews for Surviving Christmas

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1 - 20 (sorted by date)
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Ben Affleck needs to stop making movies.

Full Review Source: Cinema Crazed | comment Comment
04/29/09
Felix Vasquez Jr.
Felix Vasquez Jr.
Cinema Crazed

Pique on earth and ill will toward men permeate this mirthless comedy.

Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment Comment
03/05/07
J. R. Jones
J. R. Jones
Chicago Reader
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The movie is dead from the outset given the artificiality of the premise about a lonely rich guy who hires the folks living in his boyhood home to be his family for the holidays.

Full Review Source: Associated Press | comment Comment
03/05/07
David Germain
David Germain
Associated Press
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

You may not survive watching it.

Full Review Source: 3BlackChicks Review | comment Comment
12/30/06
Kamal  'The Diva' Larsuel
Kamal 'The Diva' Larsuel
3BlackChicks Review

The moral is that money can indeed buy happiness.

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
06/24/06
Jessica Winter
Jessica Winter
Time Out
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Despite the talent involved, this fails to raise so much as a smile, let alone laughs and Christmas cheer.

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment Comment
04/01/06
Empire Magazine

If you thought the Ron Howard Grinch movie was the worst excuse for a holiday movie in recent memory, then look out: this one’s worse.

Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com | comment Comment
01/15/05
David Cornelius
David Cornelius
eFilmCritic.com

A colossal turkey.

Full Review Source: ViewLondon | comment Comment
12/04/04
Matthew Turner
Matthew Turner
ViewLondon

All that's vaguely funny or Christmassy about this are the sweaty beads of desperation which string together like fairy-lights across Affleck's forehead as he hammers out one lame gag after another.

Full Review Source: BBC | comment Comment
11/30/04
Stella Papamichael
Stella Papamichael
BBC

Surviving Christmas can’t decide whether it wants to be naughty or nice and the end result is a sometime funny story, but with a severe multiple personality disorder .

Full Review Source: Bangitout.com | comment Comment
11/30/04
Jordan Hiller
Jordan Hiller
Bangitout.com

Affleck gives one of the clammiest, most panicked performances I've ever seen. The movie is drenched in his flop-sweat.

Full Review Source: Philadelphia Weekly | comment Comment
11/08/04
Sean Burns
Sean Burns
Philadelphia Weekly

The premise has potential, as does the casting, but the script is so mind-numbingly lazy that it insults its audience at every turn.

Full Review Source: Shadows on the Wall | comment Comment
11/07/04
Rich Cline
Rich Cline
Shadows on the Wall

With the release of this wretched film, star Ben Affleck takes one more ragged step in what seems his death march from leading man to celebrity game show guest.

Full Review Source: Style Weekly (Richmond, VA) | comment Comment
11/05/04
Thomas Peyser
Thomas Peyser
Style Weekly (Richmond, VA)

Easily the worst Christmas movie of all time, and a surefire contender for the worst film of 2004.

Full Review Source: Combustible Celluloid | comment Comment
11/02/04
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Jeffrey M. Anderson
Combustible Celluloid

Ben Affleck's Christmas "comedy" is a misfire under the mistletoe, even with a germ of a classic tale hidden under the ugly wrapping.

Full Review Source: Netflix | comment Comment
11/01/04
James Rocchi
James Rocchi
Netflix

Watching this holiday dud is like opening a fantastic Christmas present -- a gift that is exactly what you wanted and that, shortly thereafter, unravels, breaks, or otherwise falls apart.

Full Review Source: Premiere Magazine | comment Comment
10/30/04
Angel Cohn
Angel Cohn
Premiere Magazine

Survive this movie and Christmas will be a breeze.

Full Review Source: Boston Phoenix | comment Comment
10/30/04
Brooke Holgerson
Brooke Holgerson
Boston Phoenix

The desperation apparent in Affleck's bug-eyed attempts at whimsy may be the most uncomfortable aspect of Surviving Christmas.

Full Review Source: Film Journal International | comment Comment
10/30/04
Daniel Eagan
Daniel Eagan
Film Journal International

Can’t decide whether it wants to be dark or merry, and it bungles nearly every attempt at doing either.

Full Review Source: EricDSnider.com | comment Comment
10/30/04
Eric D. Snider
Eric D. Snider
EricDSnider.com

Affleck may finally have found a use for his obnoxious personality, because Drew is amazingly annoying.

Full Review Source: Film Threat | comment Comment
10/30/04
Pete Vonder Haar
Pete Vonder Haar
Film Threat
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by date)
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Latest News for Surviving Christmas

October 17, 2007: Total Recall: Ben (Affleck's) Bits
In Gone Baby Gone, Ben Affleck directs younger brother Casey in a mystery surrounding the case of a missing Boston girl. In the spirit of Total Recall, we decided to take a look... More...

March 12, 2007: Ben Affleck Goes Straight to Video With "Man About Town"
Okay, we all knew Ben Affleck was having some problems, and earned a few Razzie nominations several years in a row, but he's still a movie star. Could it really have gotten to... More...

December 15, 2005: Critical Consensus: A Sly "Family Stone," A Towering "Kong"
This week at the movies, we have a giant ape {"King Kong"} and some yuletide dramedy ("The Family Stone"). Will the critics go bananas for these flicks? More...

October 25, 2005: "Sky High" Director to Helm "Claus" Comedy
The Hollywood Reporter brings news of a new holiday-themed comedy from Mike Mitchell, director of "Sky High." It's about Santa's disgruntled older brother, and it's... More...

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