“Christmas with the Kranks” is one of those holiday classics that we can watch over and over again without becoming bored. It’s a delightfully funny movie with a great storyline. It also has some embedded messages to make us think of what Christmas is all about.

“Christmas with the Kranks” features Luther Krank (Tim Allen) and his wife Nora Krank (Jamie Lee Curtis) whose only child, daughter 22-year-old Blaire (Julie Gonzalo), has left for Peru to work for the Peace Corps and will not be home for Christmas for the first time in her life. To take his and his wife’s mind off of missing their only child during the holiday season, accountant Luther does the calculations and figures out that for half the price of their usual Christmas expenses, they can retreat to a 10-day luxury Caribbean cruise. As a result, Mr. and Mrs. Krank skip this years’ Christmas. 

The climax of the movie occurs when the Kranks announce to their co-workers and neighbors that they are skipping Christmas, a declaration that sparks a massive uproar. 

Although this movie is a classic and is sure to get you in the holiday spirit, it does have its faults. Luther is quite rude to his colleagues when telling them that he is not accepting or giving anything this year due to skipping Christmas entirely. He hands out letters to everyone very dramatically and is then surprised when met with controversy. 

Not to mention the neighbors. One neighbor in particular, Vic Frohmyer (Dan Akyrod), is the “unelected ward boss of the street” as Nora Krank puts it. Frohmyer is annoyingly adamant that the Kranks at least decorate their home for Christmas to match everyone else’s house on the street. Though, if the movie was trying to convey an annoying neighbor to the viewers, they certainly did a good job of making me dislike Frohmyer because of his stubbornness. 

Near the end of the film, the Kranks learn the true meaning of Christmas; coming together with family and friends, being appreciative of all that you have, and lending a hand to someone in need. These underlying messages might be what sets this movie from all the rest. But overall, “Christmas with the Kranks” is a satirical Christmas movie that is sure to get you in the holiday spirit.