Episode #773: Deck the Halls
Added 2024-12-10 05:00:02 +0000 UTC“Christmas is a sexual kink for both of them!” - Chris, on DeVito and Chenoweth’s characters
On this special holiday episode of WHM, we’re chatting about the absolutely unhinged, abhorrent, mid-aughts Christmas comedy, Deck the Halls! Are Danny DeVito and his hot family actually aliens? Why is Broderick’s character free-balling outside in his bathrobe? Why doesn’t the film conclude with the big winter festival they keep yammering about? Who would’ve thought we would be missing Tim Allen and Jamie Lee Curtis and their KRANKS characters? And wouldn’t comedy legend Charles Grodin have absolutely crushed the straight man role in this movie? PLUS: Is this Broderick’s worst movie? DeVito’s?
Deck the Halls stars Matthew Broderick, Danny DeVito, Kristen Davis, Kristen Chenoweth, Alia Shawkat, Dylan Blue, Kelly Aldridge, Sabrina Aldridge, Jorge Garcia, Gillian Vigman, and Fred Armisen as Gustave; directed by John Whitesell.
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Original cover art by Felipe Sobreiro.
Comments
“I saw him once at a Kraftwerk concert.” Eric on Fred Armisen
RJ Cunningham
2025-01-01 20:59:06 +0000 UTCAnd why is the carpet all wet Todd?
jribs
2024-12-15 15:15:57 +0000 UTCA missed opportunity for Broderick is not producing and starring in the film adaptation of Toonces the Driving Cat, for obvious reasons.
CharlesGrodin'sToupee
2024-12-15 03:26:18 +0000 UTCI still love Shiny New Year because of how clear the writers were on a lot of drugs when it was written.
Dan sulin
2024-12-14 19:13:12 +0000 UTCEric Roberts Christmas, HELL YEAH
Tim O'Connor
2024-12-13 23:09:49 +0000 UTCThose Rankin and Bass Christmas specials are far more terrifying than anything in the Spooktacular. Looking forward to that episode 🤓
Tim O'Connor
2024-12-13 23:08:56 +0000 UTCDesperaux is one of the few movies I walked out of, after it introduced the tenth magical character with the plot nowhere in sight.
Jamie
2024-12-13 21:40:20 +0000 UTCGrodin’s 1 minute cameo in So I Married An Axe Murderer is funnier than this entire film.
HockeenightsCT
2024-12-12 19:47:39 +0000 UTCAnd, I mean, Michael Pena? Holy shit I did not see that coming.
Snooder87
2024-12-12 18:51:27 +0000 UTCEveryone should watch Landman. It’s exactly what you expect. Billy Bob is Billy Bobbin around, as if Bad Santa is spouting soliloquies about the machinations of the oil and gas industry. Jon Hamm comes around once in a while and Don Drapers it up. Billy Bob’s daughter is a hot blonde chick (every character points this out in case you missed it) who sunbathes with Crisco…(?) Ali Larter is actually pretty good. It’s oppressively yellow like Traffic. Watch it.
AlsoNamedB0rt
2024-12-12 13:25:45 +0000 UTCIiity
Boombox Cowboy
2024-12-11 21:09:32 +0000 UTCfunnily enough my girlfriend is in fact a step-twin, her stepdad has a kid born on the literal same day as her
TJ Guiney
2024-12-11 20:47:50 +0000 UTCAli Larter in Landman is pretty hot still.
Daryl Williams
2024-12-11 17:52:26 +0000 UTCOh wow! That's wild it's still referenced. So it's kinda like "pulling a Homer," that's amazing. - Andrew
We Hate Movies
2024-12-11 16:27:08 +0000 UTCOh wow, that sounds awful! - Andrew
We Hate Movies
2024-12-11 16:26:23 +0000 UTCKind of, when they flip the switch at the end the nerds looking at the satellite imaging basically get attacked by the light coming out of their screens
I.C. Weiner
2024-12-11 14:19:31 +0000 UTCIn my neighborhood there are 3 houses that decided to coordinate led light boards and news of it somehow spread, so, during the pandemic the line of cars went all the way to my street, blocking me from leaving my house. It sucked, but at least the music portion was a local radio broadcast so I wouldn't have to hear it myself. Before Christmas last year owners of one of the houses moved out, I thought it was the end of it, but sure enough all 3 houses participated again last year despite literally no one caring without the COVID madness. Anyway, turns out only the middle house owns the lights and thrusts them upon the houses on either side.
I.C. Weiner
2024-12-11 14:17:46 +0000 UTCThe speed skating thing is still well known to us weirdos in Australia, we actually have a saying called “pulling a Bradbury” which refers to the guy who wins. It’s essentially used when you suck at something but somehow win. Also, 10/10 episode
Nina
2024-12-11 08:57:33 +0000 UTCIs there a Lampoons Christmas vacation bright light blinding a neighbor joke like with Todd and Margo?
Darryl Bowen
2024-12-11 05:05:20 +0000 UTCUpdate from the Australian corner of WHM land The Winter Olympics speed skating fiasco is absolutely remembered 22 years later as "Doing as Bradbury" has become a colloquium here for finishing first/succeeding after the more competent individuals/sporting teams fall over in front of you
Stewart Ward
2024-12-11 02:27:29 +0000 UTCLongest 93 minutes of my life, and I've spent a night in jail
JK
2024-12-11 00:16:07 +0000 UTCThat Bronx Christmas House looks like something out of an Argento movie
JK
2024-12-10 23:40:58 +0000 UTCThis is the kind of movie I was talking about when I said I wanted them to do more comedys.
Mark D Myers
2024-12-10 20:13:36 +0000 UTCIt's two of my least favorite kinds of movies in one: The movie where (like you guys did on the episode) you can effortlessly write a better story and better jokes than they did in the movie, and also the kind of Christmas movie that chooses to focus on pessimistic aspects of the holidays because they think it's relatable and funny (when it isn't). That being said, I did laugh out loud when the guy said "hold my beer" because I had a strong feeling you guys would bring it up.
Busiris
2024-12-10 18:12:39 +0000 UTCCan say that about any movie tho. Put him a Time Machine and have the Lumière brothers cast him as the damn train. Better movie.
Jason
2024-12-10 18:05:41 +0000 UTCChris cabin. The world's greatest genius saying this movie is on par to 9/11. I think Pearl Harbor. It is a Christmas movie aftera all
Paterick Caddery
2024-12-10 17:41:35 +0000 UTCThis movie can Seck My Balls
Hard To Gwil
2024-12-10 17:33:18 +0000 UTCThe twisted thing is, Matthew Broderick would probably play an amazing serial killer / family annihilator in a movie, but he would probably never do that because, oops, he actually killed somebody.
Mark Ibarra
2024-12-10 17:20:06 +0000 UTCHe said step-twins. 💀
Rachel Morgan
2024-12-10 16:45:38 +0000 UTClegit thrilled to hear “Pope of Chilitown” make its grand return. welcome back, old friend.
Julien Schwab
2024-12-10 16:36:25 +0000 UTCJust a light Patreon suggestion for next year: a "List of 5" discussion about the Worst Characters in Holiday Films. The opening bits about what Christmas movies were worse than this one was almost as good as the whole episode. (I saw this in theaters. WOOF.)
Mark Ibarra
2024-12-10 14:55:24 +0000 UTCThis is at least the second mention of Calendar Girl- please stop teasing me!
FiddlersGreenDay
2024-12-10 14:23:05 +0000 UTCPersonally I've always thought "Just Friends" is the absolute nadir of mid aughts Christmas bullshit. This may dethrone the king.
Matt
2024-12-10 14:10:20 +0000 UTCThank you Eric. I almost spit out my drink on "Bulk of the series Dude". Chef's kiss.
Adam Ray
2024-12-10 12:57:24 +0000 UTCCackling at Chris saying that Matthew Broderick is going to do The Seventh Continent to his family
Tim O'Connor
2024-12-10 11:35:44 +0000 UTCThe only time I’ve ever seen someone reserving Xmas trees in advance is when my church going parents having to get the massive Xmas tree for the church every year. And that’s more of an under the table commercial deal than Broderick has in this film
PigeonTom
2024-12-10 11:20:32 +0000 UTCCabin is right to compare this to Haneke and Von Trier but I definitely got more of a Lanthimos vibe myself.
profondo robbo
2024-12-10 10:08:24 +0000 UTCI’m just stopping by to mention that I just logged on to Disney+ to be told on its homepage that the top 3 movies in Australia today are The Santa Clause 1, 2 and 3. Deck The Halls did not make the list.
Craig
2024-12-10 08:32:43 +0000 UTCI paused this and was absolutely devastated to see there were 30 minutes left.
John Zurkuhlen
2024-12-10 07:18:31 +0000 UTCHaven’t listened yet but I’m gonna predict Eric says “this is the worst movie we’ve ever covered” at the end of the episode
Exambolor
2024-12-10 06:20:25 +0000 UTCI actually think I saw this a long time ago but I barely remember anything beyond me not liking it. Probably for the best.
Voror
2024-12-10 05:05:57 +0000 UTCYes, Grodin would have most definitely crushed it in this film.
CharlesGrodin'sToupee
2024-12-10 05:04:29 +0000 UTC
