"Why did Saint Nick get all the credit?"
The holidays are often fun. They can also be quite stressful. While the end of the year brings a wealth of traditions, it also carries a mountain of expectations. Many will never know the stressful events that take place behind closed doors. Mothers undoubtedly do. Michael Showalter's Oh. What. Fun. is for them.
Michelle Pfeiffer leads an absolutely stacked cast as Claire, a Houston-based mom who is equally obsessed with her family and Christmas. Claire is our narrator. It is her perspective we get throughout. And though the film spends the first several minutes explaining this decision while pointing out the absurdity that most holiday films center on male characters, we do eventually get to meet her family.
For much of the film, her husband Nick (Denis Leary) is a background player. Occasionally chiming in on conversation, he spends most of his time assembling a dollhouse for his granddaughters. It's a passive responsibility, really. And one we are never fully attached to, even if it does bring a chuckle at the frustration and exhaustion that goes into such a task.
As her kids arrive in age order, we get a bit of background on their lives. Channing (Felicity Jones) is a novelist from nearby Austin who comes with her husband and kids. Sammy (Dominic Sessa), fresh off a breakup, is a seasonal camp counselor in Portland, still struggling for direction. Taylor (Chloë Grace Moretz), a now-resident of Minneapolis, brings home a different girl each year, creating a carousel of associations that tests her family's willingness to accept and adapt.
Together they form a family. And while Claire pushes for perfection, working to create an indisputable sense of holiday magic, she is also constantly comparing her crew to that of her flawless neighbor, Jeanne (Joan Chen), whose family is the epitome of Christmas spirit.
But behind the red velvet curtain, there are always issues. And as Claire's obsession with being the best continues to consume her, viewers embark on a well-intentioned but ultimately bland adventure that details a series of relatively minor inconveniences, acknowledged and handled with mediocre effectiveness.
Though every character is heavily flawed, and to a certain degree, downright unlikable, Oh. What. Fun. primarily struggles due to its inability to connect. Characters, painfully underdeveloped and, in a larger sense, bitterly boring, go through the tropes and cliches of an unrealistic Christmas holiday. As Showalter races through the plot points, it's surprising that a film centered on such a festive time of year can be so drab.
A lot of time is spent on Claire's relationship with Channing. Their connection, stuffy and at times disconnected, takes center stage when the two head to the mall to buy a multi-wick monochromatic candle. There, as the pair navigate the obscene number of last-minute shoppers, Channing opts to have a conversation that has been weighing heavily on her mind. The beat comes and goes with little flair, overshadowed by Claire's ridiculous decision that sees them both running through the now more comfortably congested corridors, a pair of mall cops in hot pursuit.
But even that moment, showcasing a vulnerable Claire, is short-lived. When the two break free from the parking lot and return home, there is hardly any mention of the incident. A potential bonding experience lost to the hectic schedule of the holidays, which quickly leads to a Home Alone-style miscount that sends the film, arms flailing, into its third act.
Credit Pfeiffer for a truly heartfelt performance. Embodying the stress and exhaustion that comes with planning a family holiday, she encapsulates the emotional fragility with perfection. Though many of Claire's issues stem from her own doing, she means well. And her kids, unable to communicate, aren't helping.
Claire's fascination with Zazzy Tims' morning talk show is both annoying and endearing. Its resurgence in the film's final act seems fitting, even if the reality of how Claire gets to Burbank (from Houston) in ten hours is questionable, at best. And let's not dive into the fact that she begins her voyage surrounded by snow—an absurd visual to anyone with common knowledge of Texas's typical winter weather. But you can't have a Christmas movie without snow. Just ask Jim Varney.
Ultimately, Oh. What. Fun. fails to deliver the film Claire blatantly promises during her long-winded introduction. Co-written by director Showalter and Chandler Baker, the story, though slightly tweaked, is unoriginal and uninspiring, proving that you can't hide a terrible script behind a slew of great actors. Pfeiffer (and moms everywhere) deserve better.
