Movie reviews: Hollywood and Indie, specializing in independent comedies, dramas, thrillers and romance.
Tuesday, December 2, 2025
Oh. What. Fun.: Movie Review
A family of chaos without the comedy.
Oh. What. Fun. is for the unsung moms as stated in the opening scene highlighting all the many classic Christmas movies led by men with barely a mention of the wife/mother. But what undermines this point is that this is directed by a man, and they conveniently left out the (admittedly) few female-led Christmas movies like The Family Stone or the more recent The Best Christmas Pageant Ever both of which are better than this.
2025
Directed by: Michael Showalter
Screenplay by: Chandler Baker, Michael Showalter
Starring: Michelle Pfeiffer, Denis Leary
The first third of the movie is character introductions. And with a half-dozen main characters and a further half-dozen supporting characters, who eventually all need their mini journeys and resolutions, a lot of time is designated towards meeting the entire Clauster clan. Michelle Pfeiffer stars as mom Claire, the tired mom who is exhausted from being perfect all the time, and yet she’s the one who has put that own pressure on herself; Denis Leary is dad Nick, the sweet well-meaning dad who doesn’t realize the imbalance in their family duties; Felicity Jones is the eldest daughter Channing, married to Doug (Jason Schwartzman) with two kids and ready to take on mom Christmas duties; son Sammy (Dominic Sessa) is the incompetent child who can’t hold down a job, an apartment or a relationship; and youngest daughter Taylor (Chloe Grace Moretz) is a serial-dater who brings home a new serious relationship every single year.
If that sounds a little boring, that’s because it is. There is a whole lot of set-up for very little plot. After Claire has had enough of her uncaring family, she snaps and runs away. This finally gives the movie some much needed structure, but it’s still boring. It’s supposed to be a comedy, so it’s probably supposed to feel more frenzied, chaotic or crazy than it actually comes across.
The third act is the resolution, each character realizing their lot in life and the whole family coming together to help mom Claire feel more appreciated. Those emotions would hit a lot better if there actually was comedy in the previous act or if there wasn’t so much set-up leading to a boring movie.
Part of the problem is that one of the sub-plots leading to Claire’s frustrations is a passive aggressive one-upmanship that she has with her neighbour. That’s an older generation problem. I don’t think the younger generations care that much about what their neighbours think to the point that they will give themselves a nervous breakdown. This need to appear to be perfect is stupid not funny.
Oh. What. Fun. is well-meaning and has the often-popular large family with multiple mini chaotic inter-relationships, but it’s not very enjoyable since the plot never leads to anything funny.
Want a different Christmas movie or just more holiday-themed movies?Holiday Movies
