"Fred Claus"
I've been trying to avoid dealing with Fred Claus (Warner Bros., 11.9), an obviously broad and garishly commercial family comedy starring Vince Vaughan, Paul Giamatti and Rachel Weisz, but it's been made, it opens a month from now, and we may as well stand up like adults and face it. Every November somebody releases a right-down-the- middle family holiday film, and this seems to be a semi-misanthropic 2007 version. An upbeat Bad Santa without the booze and set in a Polar Express-ian Santa's village?
I was with the trailer until those ninja elves turned up. That was it. Check-out time. I'll be out in the lobby.
The story is an appropriately snide and smart-ass spiritual redemption tale. Fred Claus (Vaughn) is the embittered brother of Nicholas "Santa" Claus (Giamatti). A repo man sent to the slammer for stealing, Fred is bailed out by Nick on the condition that he return home to the North Pole and enter the family business. And you know the rest.
The trailer strongly suggests this was a straight paycheck job for everyone concerned -- Vaughan, Giamatti, Weisz, director David Dobkin (The Wedding Crashers), producer Joel Silver and senior costars Kathy Bates, Kevin Spacey and Miranda Richardson.
Sometimes you just have to suck it in, hold your nose, make the movie and cash the check. And the family audience is happy because they have no taste as a rule and will scarf down anything you put in front of them.
A friend saw a preview and had nice things to say about Giamatti's Santa Claus ("wonderful...exuded great warmth") and applauded Weisz for making her part play much better than written. She feels that the script by Dan Fogelman (Cars) is...uhm, how should I put this? I don't want to hurt anyone's feelings. Okay, the word she used was "terrible." She also feels that Fred Claus belongs more or less in the same category as Ilya Salkind's Santa Claus ('85), but that's a horrible thing to say. I'm sure she didn't mean it.
Her final thought: "I thought I'd be seeing another Elf and what I got was something that made those Tim Allen Santa Clause movies seem like Kubrick." That's a little blunt. Too abrupt and dismissive. Something tells me this may turn out to be half-tolerable. I can't accept that Vaughn, who co-produced, would star in something as bad as she's described here. There must be more to it....no?
Posted by Jeffrey Wells on October 9, 2007 at 1:52 PM
comment #1
lazarus
says ...
Here's how depressing this really is:
Weisz: Oscar Winner
Bates: Oscar Winner
Kevin Spacey: Oscar Winner
Richardson: Oscar Nom
Giamatti: Oscar Nom
Posted by lazarus
at October 9, 2007 3:33 PM
comment #2
Hopscotch
says ...
I had the exact same reaction to the trailer. It seemed passable, then the CGI ninja moves....
so long.
Posted by Hopscotch
at October 9, 2007 3:36 PM
comment #3
King's Thursday
says ...
In my college film society we used to give one of the paycheck roles each year our "James Mason Memorial Wheelchair Award"--wheel me in, I'll say a few lines, have a few reaction shots and hand me my paycheck.
Posted by King's Thursday
at October 9, 2007 3:38 PM
comment #4
Edward
says ...
The Trailer got some chuckles at the Harry Potter showing this past weekend. Does that mean I'll like it, because I enjoyed the Harry Potter film?
Posted by Edward
at October 9, 2007 3:49 PM
comment #5
Craig Kennedy
says ...
Just be glad that Thomas Kinkade's The Christmas Cottage got pushed back until next year.
We'll still be treated to Christmas in Wonderland and This Christmas however.
Posted by Craig Kennedy
at October 9, 2007 3:49 PM
comment #6
arch451
says ...
In the trailer, Giamatti looks old enough to be the father of Vaughn. You must be mistaken in saying that Vaughn plays the older brother of Giamatti.
Posted by arch451
at October 9, 2007 3:54 PM
comment #7
malibugigolo
says ...
Totally stoked to see it. Looks fun.
Posted by malibugigolo
at October 9, 2007 3:56 PM
comment #8
Edward
says ...
Thomas Kincaid's "The Christmas Cottage!" Will the torture never stop? Painter of light, my a*#! He has no idea how light works.
Posted by Edward
at October 9, 2007 4:04 PM
comment #9
malibugigolo
says ...
Thomas Kinkade is the anti-Christ.
Posted by malibugigolo
at October 9, 2007 4:09 PM
comment #10
PerfectTommy
says ...
It is more painful to see people who've done work you respected in something like this rather than Tim Allen again. It's like seeing your favorite cheese and a choice cut of meat mixed in with the Alpo.
Posted by PerfectTommy
at October 9, 2007 4:21 PM
comment #11
Bocephus
says ...
"She also feels that Fred Claus belongs more or less in the same category as Ilya Salkind's Santa Claus ('85), but that's a horrible thing to say. I'm sure she didn't mean it."
That was hilarious, I think I just peed a little.
I saw that movie for the first time when I was 7 years old, it was one of the first movies I ever hated.
If the Kinkaide movie is true, I'm thinking about gouging out my eyes so I never have to see a trailer or poster or accidentally catch a second of it while flipping past the Hallmark channel.
Posted by Bocephus
at October 9, 2007 4:46 PM
comment #12
Craig Kennedy
says ...
It's true. It looks like they've changed the name to Thomas Kinkade's Home for Christmas, but a sphincter by any other name...
Posted by Craig Kennedy
at October 9, 2007 5:06 PM
comment #13
Jeff
says ...
Saw this a few months ago and it is just as bad as your friend described. I am a pretty big Vaughn fan but this was hands down the worst movie he has ever made. The plot deals with an efficiency expert going to the north pole to make sure Santa Claus and his elves are working fast enough and will be on time for Christmas. If not he is going to close down the North Pole and cancel Christmas. This is what passes for a plot for a kids movies. Efficiency experts? Reminds me of the first Flinstones movie that dealt with embezzlement.
I am sure this movie will do decently but look for Enchanted to be the real kids winner for the end of the year before The Golden Compass. Mr. Magorium will most likely be the big kids failure. There's one every year during this time.
Posted by Jeff
at October 9, 2007 5:29 PM
comment #14
Gabriel
says ...
I was with this film until a couple months ago, under the impression that it would be rated R. The PG changes everything.
I love the shit out of Vaughn, but he flounders when his language is restricted.
Posted by Gabriel
at October 9, 2007 7:40 PM
comment #15
MarkVH
says ...
Not to go all Jack-Black-as-Barry-in-High-Fidelity on your ass, but the name of the movie is Wedding Crashers. There is no "The" in the title.
And yeah, this looks like ass on a stick.
Posted by MarkVH
at October 9, 2007 8:11 PM
comment #16
Geoff
says ...
Me too Gabriel.
"Well, the proper girl in the hat just eye-fucked the shit out of me."
I'm waiting Vince.
Posted by Geoff
at October 10, 2007 12:32 AM
comment #17
BurmaShave
says ...
Rachel Weisz is too good for THE MUMMY 3(poor Maria Bello) but she does this? I guess I can't be too mad, if this is what it takes to get more FOUNTAINS made.
Posted by BurmaShave
at October 10, 2007 1:16 AM
comment #18
tistis
says ...
Rachel Weisz did the right thing not doing Mummy 3, that film will in fact be awful.
Posted by tistis
at October 10, 2007 3:16 AM
comment #19
BurmaShave
says ...
Right. I think you misunderstood my emphasis. The only thing that would save MUMMY 3 is if Maria Bello plays it like she did in HISTORY OF VIOLENCE, though that'd be kind of hard in a PG movie. But to come in and replace a standing character in a crappy franchise, that's just rough. I guess that's what happens when you come close to getting nominated twice but don't actually get it. When you win an Oscar on the other hand, you get to do a Christmas comedy with Vince Vaughn.
Posted by BurmaShave
at October 10, 2007 11:09 AM
comment #20
thatmovieguy
says ...
And yet Warner Bros. will probably have no reservations about screening this for critics while JESSE JAMES slowly twists in the wind. I admittedly wasn't the biggest JESSE fan in the world, but how do these "brilliant" execs ever expect to get halfway-intelligent audiences in to see a film like that without critical support? Doesn't anyone in Hollywood know how to market movies anymore? And, if what I'm hearing about ENCHANTED is even halfway true, FRED CLAUS may be in the sub-run houses by Christmas Day.
Posted by thatmovieguy
at October 10, 2007 2:48 PM