Tim Allen has built a surprising and successful Christmas movie career, beginning with his role as Scott Calvin in The Santa Clause. The actor has gone on to reprise that iconic role for two more films in the franchise to establish one of his most popular roles to date while also branching out into other holiday fare, including a Toy Story special and holiday-themed episodes. Not all of Allen’s holiday titles have been a hit, though, including his 5% critic-rated 2000s Christmas movies’ that is now a streaming success on HBO Max.
Videos by ComicBook.com
HBO Max users just can’t seem to stop streaming Christmas with the Kranks, Joe Roth’s 2004 comedy starring Allen as a dad attempting to skip Christmas in favor of a Caribbean cruise, leading to intense fallout from their neighbors and a last-minute attempt to celebrate the holiday. The movie, also starring Jamie Lee Curtis, started streaming on HBO Max on December 1st following its Netflix departure and has since climbed to the No. 2 spot on the streamer’s Top 10, only falling behind Elf. Despite its poor reception, the film has managed to beat out others like National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, The Polar Express, and The Conjuring: Last Rites, which round out the Top 5.
Christmas With the Kranks Is a Streaming Success Despite Being One of the Worst Christmas Movies Ever
There’s little love for Christmas with the Kranks. The movie was a massive bomb in just about every way, only pulling in a moderate box office gross of $96 million against a $60 million budget and earning rotten critic and audience scores on Rotten Tomatoes of just 5% and a better, but still rotten, 40%. The movie has even topped numerous lists of “worst Christmas movies ever,” even earning the No. 1 spot on Rotten Tomatoes’ list, and we can’t say that the ranking is wrong.
Christmas with the Kranks simply isn’t a good movie, and while it has the quintessential holiday setting, it lacks the heart of a true Christmas film. The characters are shallow, and most are completely unlikable, and the entire plot revolves around the fear of missing out on the perfect Christmas rather than a genuine celebration and love for the season. The humor of the movie is set in the very premise of the town’s reaction to the Kranks skipping Christmas, but the violent overreaction of their neighbors feels far too extreme and forced rather than funny or relatable. Not even the star-studded cast could save the movie.
Christmas With the Kranks isn’t good, but its streaming success isn’t necessarily surprising. There is a nostalgic appeal to Christmas with the Kranks, and the film has developed a significant niche cult status, especially amid recent discussions reframing the story as a dark comedy or even a horror film involving a conformist Christmas cult. The movie also started streaming on HBO Max at the perfect time, with Christmas movie marathons now in full swing amid the holiday season.
What’s New on HBO Max?
There are plenty of new streaming titles on HBO Max this December. In addition to Christmas with the Kranks, movies like Miss Congeniality, The Goonies, and X-Men: First Class started streaming on December 1st.
What do you think? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!
Most Viewed
-
Image courtesy of Netflix -
Image Courtesy of Netflix -
Image Courtesy of Devolver Digital
