Oh. What. Fun. Review: Michelle Pfeiffer is great as an underappreciated mom at Christmas

Plot: Claire Clauster is the glue that holds her chaotic, lovable family together every holiday season. From perfectly frosted cookies to meticulously wrapped gifts, no one decks the halls quite like Claire. But this year, after planning a special outing for her family, they made a crucial mistake and left her home alone. Fed up and feeling underappreciated, she sets off on an impromptu adventure of her own. As her family scrambles to find her, Claire discovers the unexpected magic of a Christmas gone off-script.

Review: Christmas comedies tend to come in two flavors: light and breezy fare that are easily forgotten, and the solidly memorable ones you look forward to all year. The new comedy Oh. What. Fun. from director Michael Showalter is an ode to the underappreciated moms who do everything to bring their families together at the holidays, only to find themselves left to celebrate themselves. Christmas movie moms have taken a backseat in most holiday flicks. If you think back to your favorite yuletide movies, the mom is usually a supporting player rather than the protagonist. Oh. What. Fun. puts Michelle Pfeiffer right at the center of a story that gives matriarchs their due while also providing some satisfying family drama and humor. With a solid ensemble of actors, including Felicity Jones and Chloe Grace Moretz, Oh. What. Fun. lives up to its title.

Oh. What. Fun. follows Claire Clauster (Michelle Pfeiffer) as she prepares another family Christmas that brings her three kids back home after a year away. Eldest daughter Channing (Felicity Jones) is an author working on a new novel and brings her kids and husband, Doug (Jason Schwartzman). Middle daughter Taylor (Chloe Grace Moretz) comes home with her annual tradition of a new girlfriend, this time in the form of Donna (Devery Jacobs). Youngest child Sammy (Dominic Sessa) is unemployed and has recently been dumped by his girlfriend, Mae-bell (Maude Apatow). As the family reunites with Claire and Nick (Denis Leary) for a big Texas celebration, Claire wants nothing more than to be recognized as part of a contest for appreciating mothers on her favorite talk show hosted by the Oprah-esque Zazzy Tims (Eva Longoria). Claire also has a standing feud with neighbor Jeanne Wang-Wasserman (Joan Chen) that adds more stress to the already hectic days leading up to Christmas.

The first half of Oh. What. Fun. pulls every Christmas movie staple together, including last-minute shopping at the crowded mall, tensions between siblings and their spouses, decorating and cooking fails, and all sorts of expected speed bumps along the way to December 25th. The members of the family all seem to have forgotten their mom, who dotes on everyone and barely gets any time for herself. It comes to a head when they head to a concert Claire bought tickets for, and they fail to make sure she is with them. Fed up, Claire packs a bag and leaves on a mini-road trip that features its own mix of Planes, Trains, and Automobiles-style mishaps. During Claire’s personal journey, the rest of the Clausters face their own mistakes and pent-up frustrations with each other as Nick and the rest realize how much Claire did to keep Christmas on track year after year. Channing faces her desire to live up to her mother’s shadow, and Sammy reignites his crush with neighbor Lizzie Wang-Wasserman (Havana Rose Liu) while the rest of the family endures their own mini-breakdowns.

The back half of the movie sees Claire and the family reunite, and everyone finally comes clean with one another, restoring the Christmas season to a balanced state of pent-up animosity and familial love. Most of the cast get to stretch themselves a bit, but this is mainly a showcase for Michelle Pfeiffer to play a frazzled mom who has finally had enough. Unlike movies like Christmas Vacation or Elf, the dads are secondary, with Denis Leary getting to wax on how much he relies on and adores Claire and not much else. Chloe Grace Moretz’s Taylor has the least to do in the film, while Jason Schwartzman’s Doug is essentially comic relief. Felicity Jones and Pfeiffer get to share some emotional scenes that tie the movie together. At the same time, Dominic Sessa, who starred in the new Christmas classic The Holdovers, receives the next most substantial arc in the story. Many of the subplot elements, including shoplifting, a poorly assembled gift, and neighborly feuds, are not thoroughly explored and feel like they exist only to pad the story.

The best scenes in the film involve Eva Longoria’s Zazzy Tims, which gets to the crux of the message, Oh. What. Fun. is trying to convey that mothers are often overlooked throughout the year, but it stings the most during the holidays. Based on the Amazon Original Story of the same name by Chandler Baker, the movie benefits from director Michael Showalter’s experience with comedy films. Showalter has helmed some classics like Wet Hot American Summer and the acclaimed films The Big Sick and The Eyes of Tammy Faye, but this is his first foray into making a holiday movie. Showalter’s films have had an absurdity to them and really embrace the weirder elements of comedy, but Oh. What. Fun. is as straightforward as it comes. There are plenty of funny moments in the film, and it definitely struck a familiar chord with my own family holiday experiences. Still, the quality of the cast exceeds the material. Much of the dialogue feels like it could have been tightened up a bit with a tighter focus. Many of the holes in the plot are glossed over and hidden beneath one of the better compilation soundtracks in a while.

While it is not entirely light and breezy, Oh. What. Fun. remains a welcome addition to the holiday movie rotation. The message of appreciating moms is a long-overdue angle to telling a Christmas story from a perspective not often seen on screen, but it does not mean this is a movie bent on trashing dads, kids, siblings, or spouses. Moms will definitely relate to the core message in the film, while the rest of the family will be preparing solid gift ideas for next year’s celebration. Michelle Pfeiffer makes this movie work thanks to her performance, which is both fun and heartfelt. I enjoyed seeing the entire cast, especially Felicity Jones and Dominic Sessa, for a movie that has its heart in the right place. Oh. What. Fun. brings together a realistic blend of Christmas shenanigans into a film that will have you reminding yourself not to take anyone for granted at this time of year.

Oh. What. Fun. premieres on December 3rd on Prime Video.