Everybody's a critic - Surviving Christmas

One-and-a-half stars (out of four)

"Surviving Christmas" in October. This supposedly heartwarming flick turned out to be depressing because the joy of the holiday spirit is drowned out by the characters' family problems.

First off, there are the problems of Ben Affleck's character, Drew Latham.

Drew is lonely during the holiday, so he rents a family (who has problems of its own) for the Christmas season. The family he rents consists of salami-loving dad Tom Valco (James Gandolfini), frazzled mom Christine Valco (Catherine O'Hara), Internet-porn-addict brother Bryan Valco (Josh Zuckerman) and high-and-mighty sister Alicia Valco (Christina Applegate). Problems in their family seem to happen one right after another once Drew shows up.

The stupidity of the characters and the desperation of Drew are overwhelming. Drew is desperate to spend Christmas with some kind of family and please his girlfriend. The Valco family, on the other hand, is stupid enough to keep this three-ring circus going for Drew whenever he ups the price.

"Surviving Christmas" took away the innocence of family togetherness and joy during the holidays.

Somer Olson, student

Three stars (out of four)

It is Halloween weekend, so isn't it time for a Christmas movie?

In "Surviving Christmas," Ben Affleck stars as Drew Latham, a wealthy and overly excitable executive who suddenly longs for his childhood Chicago home at Christmastime. Since his friends are all with their families and his society girlfriend does not want to spend time in Fiji with him, he pays a middle class family living in his old house $250,000 to pretend to be his real family for the holidays.

Naturally, things do not go smoothly for the substitute family while they are trying to manufacture mounds of Christmas cheer to earn their big payday.

Drew drags them through the holiday rituals of Christmas shopping, getting the tree and even a special Christmas prayer in hopes of re-creating moments of seasonal bliss he never had, only to discover that money cannot buy happiness.

This movie has a wonderful story and is worth taking the whole family to see, for it will give you a different viewpoint of ways to help others at Christmas.

- Carl Appel, online sales

Three stars (out of four)

It is that time of the year when holiday movies are upon us. "Surviving Christmas" is a holiday movie starring Ben Affleck and James Gandolfini. I thought this movie was very funny and engaging and had real Christmas spirit.

Affleck plays Drew, a man experiencing loneliness as Christmas approaches. He decides to go back to his childhood home to try to recapture some lost Christmas memories. When he arrives, he finds the Valco family living there, a dysfunctional family in need of holiday cheer.

Drew offers the Valcos $250,000 to be his family for Christmas. In a series of events leading up to Christmas Day, Drew discovers love and the family he never had.

The movie somewhat resembles "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation" but is less dark. "Surviving Christmas" is a funny movie with a great cast, and I think this is one holiday film that is sure to bring plenty of laughs.

-- Brandi Farrow, student