The Show: Sometimes you wonder if a film needs a proper definition of "going that extra mile." By my definition, a comedy that goes that extra mile is adding every joke possible. In this case, a movie similar to every "holiday seasons suck" movie you might have seen, attempts to "go that extra mile" by insulting not just the holidays, though marriage, religion, family, parenthood, childhood, and perhaps even a few jabs at the whole concept of comedy as well. That's not pushing the envelope in my book, though for the currently 25 percent of critics who actually liked this movie, hey...enjoy. If you can.

The brutal truth is: Four Christmases is a missed opportunity times infinity. The concept was there; it just wasn't executed properly. Romantic comedy veterans Reese Witherspoon and Vince Vaughn star as Brad and Kate; a pair of unmarried lovers who are accidentally filmed by the local news on their way to a luxurious getaway for the holidays. The problem: the news report was seen by each of their estranged parents, who now demand that they abandon their vacation and spend the holidays with each of them. The result is the titular "Four Christmases," with each of the two lovers' divorced parents.

We see the film's first problems when visiting the "first" Christmas, at the home of Brad's father (Robert Duvall). We learn that Brad not only had every reason to not want to spend the holidays with this motley crew; he should have left skid marks and never looked back. One of his brothers practically tries to break Brad's back as dad looks on. Another brother has a young wife who is present merely so Kate has something to do, which in this case is holding the baby and not knowing what to do when the baby cries. How surreal is this scene? What guy in his right mind lets his brother try to break his back...and what self respecting mother lets someone hold her newborn baby, sees her baby cry like a banshee, yet continues to just stand there as if nothing is wrong? This is not only humorless. It is unrealistic as well.

After nearly causing a small fire (don't ask), Brad and Kate go to Christmas number two, at the house of Kate's mom (Mary Steenburgen). Lots of additional (failed) attempts at humor here, ranging from a gaggle of clichéd lesbian jokes, to jokes about vomiting babies, incredibly obnoxious kids, and of course the obligatory need to refer to Kate's mom as a...wait for it..."cougar." Gee. Funny. Yet the jokes I particularly can't stand begin when we go to the so called "religious ceremony" of Kate's apparent stepdad to be, where Kate and Brad are forced to partake in a stage play about Jesus' birth, albeit with every anti-Christian joke you can possibly imagine. Allow me to be blunt: this is a Christmas movie. What utter simpleton moron thought it would be hip, cool, and happening to poke fun at the birth of Christ in a Christmas movie? Somehow, "politically incorrect" puts it mildly.

Third time's the charm? Not in this movie, it isn't "Christmas three" is in the form of Brad's mom (Sissy Spacek), who is dating Brad's best friend. Great; another cougar joke...or at least, an attempt at one. Talk about surreal; you wonder if Brad will try the same back breaking headlock he learned from his brother in the prior scene. Instead; he'd like to try and beat his buddy in a party game. Forget how unrealistic this is. Where is the humor here? Seriously; I had to be nudged awake by my fellow female "film critic" when watching this part of the movie. It's that bad.

Let's just state the obvious: the final Christmas with Kate's dad is the one that makes everything worthwhile...or so the film wants us to believe. Dear old dad sees through Kate's fake smiles. The obligatory boy-loses-girl angst is resolved when...take a wild guess...buy gets girl back. I could go on. I refuse to. End of story. Can I go home now?

The saddest part of this movie isn't the fact that I laughed barely once. Nor is it the horribly anti-Christian undertones during Christmas "two," in what by all accounts is a supposed "Christmas movie." No; the sad part is how many talented performers were forced to partake in a catastrophe. From Vaughn to Witherspoon and from Spacek to Duvall; how did someone get so many big names to agree to this...mess? There's even poor Kristin Chenoweth, who won a Tony nomination for her role in the Broadway hit, Wicked, yet is so misused here, it's almost criminal.

Directed by Seth Gordon, this movie is a very far cry from The King of Kong, the documentary that put Gordon on the map. However, that was a far simpler film about a nerd's quest to be the best player of a classic arcade game. It's one thing when a director pokes fun at nerds. Poking fun at holidays, religion, parenthood, and little kids is a whole different ball park...and in this film's case, not a funny one.

The DVD Extras: While I stand behind the above review, the honest truth is that this movie did admirably in theaters (an estimated 80 mil budget with an estimated 120 mil box office). So that means there was enough budget to cover a surprising list of extras on the DVD. "Holiday Moments" is a roughly 11 minute summary of the movie's biggest holiday moments as told by the lead cast members. An "HBO First Look" is also offered, showing various footage of the film behind the scenes. "Seven Layer Holiday Meals in a Flash" is a mockumentary of sorts, where Dan's quicky sister-in-law, Susan (Katy Mixon), is shown making one of the most peculiar "holiday meals" imaginable, in a mock morning show. To be honest; if the rest of the movie was as funny as this clip, perhaps it would've been, at least, passable.

In addition to the obligatory 2 and a half minute gag reel, there are over half a dozen deleted scenes. Stop me if any of these sound funny enough to describe in full. Kate and Brad's "Dueling Phone Calls." Susan's so-called "Seven Layer Salad." The "Mantel Photo" of Kate at her mom's house. Kate's grandma gets gas if she eats "Peppers." We get to "Meet Pastor Phil" who gives Kate's mom (golly!) a kiss. Don't stop me yet. I'm admittedly getting to two good deleted scenes here...

The final two deleted scenes almost make up for buying this DVD, if you erroneously didn't just rent the single-disc, "movie only" version. "Photo at Paula's" is an admittedly funny recreation of the typical madcap moment of trying to get a family photo, where every grandparent, parent and child is smiling correctly and all at once. This is a typical moment each holiday that all families can laugh at. Too bad it was left on the cutting room floor. "Family Reunion," one must imagine, is a planned alternate ending to the film, where we see the same "four Christmases" next year, albeit happier and with a family photo of all four families together and smiling happily. I'm guessing they chose not to leave this ending in because it left the viewer on a happy note. That alone should tell you how flawed this movie is...presuming it wasn't obvious already.