My Movie Review on I'll Be Home For Christmas (1998) · 4:33am Jul 17th, 2021

Yo, what's up, Kemosabes?

This is your friendly film, TV show, and episode reporter here with another review.

Today, for the first installment of this year's "Christmas in July" series, I'm gonna give you guys my take of "I'll Be Home For Christmas". The 1998 Disney film starring Jonathan Taylor Thomas, to be precise.

Here's the rundown of it:

Jake Wilkinson is an 18-year old college student who often smooth talks and lies his way through things. Ever since his mother died, he hasn't been going home to reunite with his father and sister for the holidays. But, when his Dad offers to give Jake his car if he comes home in time for Christmas, Jake decides that it's finally time to see his family again.

However, Jake's plans go awry when his rival, Eddie Taffet, kidnaps Jake and leaves him stranded in the desert. In a Santa Clause costume too.

With only three days to get to his house before Christmas Eve, Jake finds himself on a cross country road trip in a race against the clock. Along the way, he encounters a host of civilians who are having problems of their own.

In all honesty, the last time I saw this movie was last Christmas. I primarily saw it via Disney+ because I was looking for something to be entertained by in order to take a break from reviewing, so I didn't plan on giving it an analysis at all. Other than that time, I remembered catching a glimpse of the movie on TV when I was a kid, so I thought seeing the whole thing wouldn't hurt.

But, after I kept thinking back on my experiences with "I'll Be Home For Christmas" more and more, something popped inside of me. Constructive thoughts on the movie began building up in my head like crazy, and so I was inspired to review the movie as part of my "Christmas in July" series. It’s not only this year’s first installment, but also the only one.

So, what do I personally think of this movie in words?

Yay, I'm not gonna sugarcoat it. "I'll Be Home For Christmas" wasn't something I had fun with in the slightest. I don't downright hate this movie, but I also didn't find it worthwhile either.

Much of the blame goes to the direction by Arlene Sanford, the story by Michael Allin, and the screenplay by Tom Nursall and Harris Goldberg.

Now I will say that the movie isn't without its amusing moments. The scenes that stood out in terms of being amusing were the parts with the tumbleweed and vulture while Jake was in the desert, and the part where Max is trying to win back his wife by singing a song while Jake writes the lyrics.

Other than those very scenes, though, the film hardly had much in the ways of entertainment or laughs. Most of the comedy felt surprisingly flat, and the gags didn't have any sense of human creativity to help them be fun to watch. Whatever sort of emotion, heart, and morality the movie had also didn't resonate in terms of playing with one's feelings; the reasons for why are because either the filmmakers didn't put enough dedication into making them genuine or whatever efforts they made caused the elements of all three departments to feel forced. With the story being an apparent "redemption" arc for Jake, I often noted that everything about the plot was surprisingly predictable and uninspired. This kind of story has obviously been done before, but when filmmakers work hard on the concept in order to make it work regardless then they can really go places. Sadly, that isn't the case with this movie at all.

In addition to this, the performers were openly underused by the overall material. Granted, I liked that everyone onboard was at least trying to leave their mark and make the most out of their time involved in this project. But, in the end the cast seemed like they were unable to get the feel of who their characters were and how best to portray them. The characters themselves were pretty much forgettable as can be, and whatever sort of developments they had didn't help them stand out.

One thing's for sure, the character of Jake was basically the typical smart alec smooth-talker who often conned others. His focus wasn't something that got me engaged either, largely due to seeing other characters in many other movies who share a similar role as him. Characters that are much more compelling, if I may add. Jonathan Taylor Thomas also appeared to be miserable beyond others, because despite giving his all he didn't look like he was having a great time being there.

In conclusion, "I'll Be Home For Christmas (1998)" is a movie with a reputation that, for once, I can understand. In every way, it was basically a Christmas comedy with little in the ways of charm or merriment.

So, I rate "I'll Be Home For Christmas (1998)" two out of five stars.