I like seeing Chicago on film

102. "Fred Claus"
Vince Vaughn sure does like making money. Christmas flicks are destined to at least break even and this one did much better than break even. The gross had to be the reason this movie was made. It doesn't really appeal to children, Vaughn fans or film buffs. I think the target audience was families that couldn't agree on a film on Christmas day.

Vaughn plays the title character, the brother of Santa. He lives in Chicago and wants to open an OTB across the street from the Board of Trade. He dates Rachel Weisz and isn't the best boyfriend. He kinda looks out for a neighborhood kid. He goes to the North Pole so his brother will loan him money. It's not a very good story. None of the characters have any clear motives. Why wouldn't Santa, who has seemingly all the money in the world, just give the brother money or say no? Why would Vaughn call his brother for money is he 'hates' him as much as he says he does? Why would Kevin Spacey's (this is the B story) character want to shut down Santa's services? Why would Weisz continue to date Vaughn? Whatever. It's fine. Vaughn does have some monologues that are actually funny and he is charming, like always.

This film taught me two things. 1. Elizabeth Banks (in the C story) is the ideal girlfriend for filmmakers and, 2. Jon Favreau made a much better Christmas film in 2003.