Christmas With The Kranks review

John Grisham's crimes against cinema continue unchecked with a lame festive comedy whose only claim to fame is that it's slightly less terrible than Surviving Christmas. Still, if you have to see one limp farce this Yuletide, you'd be marginally better off making it this one.

Based on Grisham's novella Skipping Christmas, Kranks stars Tim Allen and Jamie Lee Curtis as middle-aged marrieds who opt out of a traditional family shindig in favour of a sunny Caribbean cruise. What's wrong with that? Plenty according to neighbourhood Nazi Dan Aykroyd, who initiates a shockingly malevolent campaign of emotional blackmail.

Naturally, our heroes come round in the end, depriving Joe Roth's witless romp of what little satirical bite it can smuggle in amidst all the sentimental gloop. On second thoughts, maybe Surviving Christmas wasn't that bad after all.