Don't Believe the Hype

There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.

It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

I happened upon this film this Christmas season and found it surprisingly funny. Now I will say that, dumb as parts of it were, I did enjoy the original with Arnold somewhat more than this one. But there were some funny scenes in this one, including some slapstick that will surely entertain young folks.Here we have a man named Larry, played by Larry the Cable Guy who is much like the character he plays elsewhere. In fact, one of the funnier bits was a sort of spoof of Larry's bit involving a doll that was too-familiar to the character in the film. Larry is seen having a wonderful time with his young daughter, Noel, who clearly loves her dad, but who also loves her mom and likes her new step-dad.In all the early scenes, Victor, the step-dad, appears to be a very nice man who is happy to have Larry around, sharing time with him even though they have little in common. The only conflict early-on comes from both dads wanting Noel to love them the most and both feeling like they cannot compete with each other.Larry reads Noel's letter to Santa, believing it to say that the one thing she wants is the year's "must-have" toy, a stuffed bear named Harrison that talks. The way the letter was written makes him question if that is what she wants, but this is never questioned for most of the film. I don't believe this is a spoiler because we get to read the letter too, and while we might not figure out what she wrote, the Harrison Bear seems the most plausible to us as well.So Larry goes to get one but finds the store out of stock. Unknown to him, Victor is so eager to become loved by Noel that he goes to great expense (he owns a big company) by sending his security head to go everywhere around and buy out all available Harrisons, just to keep Larry from giving one to Noel. His employee, Welling, goes to great pains to make sure Larry doesn't get one.Larry deals with a number of unfortunate incidents along the way, including some physical stuff that was comical and a scene where the police appear ready to ruin his Christmas. He dresses up like a hobo to get a bear from a charity Santa location but endures being spotted by an old friend who mistakes him for a homeless guy. It was funny that she recognized him, given the disguise he wore.He finally discovers Victor's role in the shortage of bears and confronts him, and the two wind up realizing they don't need to compete for Noel's attention so much.I know the plot was rather simple and the film lacked the wild finish the original had, but it was reasonably enjoyable. There was no language or nudity to make it objectionable. Larry's off-color humor was greatly reined in from most of his appearances. I cannot claim this to be a new perennial for each Christmas season. I just think it was reasonably funny.

Laid-back dad Larry is having an awful time finding the perfect Christmas gift for his eight- year-old daughter, Noel. The season's hottest toy, The Harrison Bear, is all sold out, and Noel's new stepfather wants to keep it that way, so he can be the one to make her wish come true. When Larry learns all Noel wants for Christmas is the bear, he'll stop at nothing to make his little girl happy and get her the toy of her dreams......Jingle All The Way was lambasted when first released, the reviews were terrible, and it was released at a time when Arnie's Star power was dwindling rapidly. But nearly twenty years on, it's become staple viewing for lots of families over the holidays, because it's not really that bad, and Arnie gets a deer drunk.This however is probably the most pointless sequels made since Hollow Man 2, and it has nothing to do with the original, apart from the last minute gift thing.Larry The Cable Guy, wow, here in England is unknown, spends the entirety of the film feeling sorry for himself in a diner, his home, or the one toy shop in his town, whilst the rich step dad spends the entirety of the film being bitter and miserable.They hate each other, but hey, it's Christmas, so let's smile through gritted teeth to each other.Its a miserable film, blatantly cashing in on a Christmas favourite just to get people to watch it.They may have well called it Scrooged 2, Fred Claus 2, because it doesn't really matter, the greedy studio couldn't care less...

The best actor in this train wreck was the wrestler and Larry the cable guy wasn't even the worst actor in the film! Never again. I should tell Redbox I want my free rental code back.The entire movie...Larry is being forced to accept the fact his ex-wife remarried (ok, I get it) but they're also forcing to have Larry accept his daughter now has 2 dads?! Really!? Hate to tell you one is a father and one is a STEPfather. I don't know that just did not sit well with me. I hated it. I can't stress enough. It was dull, boring, lacking. Had the whole entire plot pinned in about 5 minutes of the movie. I only laughed once.... and I don't even think the part was MEANT to be funny!

WWE Studios has had an abnormally prolific year, getting one of their films in theaters (Oculus), resulting in respectable box office numbers, and churning out three direct-to-DVD efforts, all of which sequels or some sort of continuation of another preexisting entity. In just a little over two months, WWE Studios has released a prequel to the Leprechaun franchise, a sequel to See No Evil, and, perhaps the strangest release in their catalog thus far, a sequel to the Arnold Schwarzenegger vehicle Jingle All the Way starring Larry the Cable Guy. One takes a look at the DVD cover art for the film and regards it with a certain disdain, as they see a thrown together, and slightly disturbing image of Larry the Cable Guy and Kennedi Clements, before cringing and, likely, passing by it with no further comment or thought. I simply couldn't leave it alone.For starters, I always hear the complaint about some actors never leaving their comfort zone or sticking to being typecast in certain roles, like Michael Cera in the awkward schoolboy roles and Channing Tatum in the man-candy ones. However, home come few address Larry the Cable Guy's inability to be anyone besides his one-note joke character in films? He has found ways to appear in a Madea film, a sequel to The Rock's Tooth Fairy, and two Cars films, plus an abundance of short films, playing no one other than his redneck archetype and consistently showing how a cute idea descends into tedium if not properly carried out. My personal problem with Larry the Cable Guy is a newfound one, for I used to find him amusing, is the fact that he is a man entirely made out of a joke that has been stretched threadbare for years and it was a joke that wasn't worth more than momentary amusement.Larry the Cable Guy plays none other than a character named Larry in Jingle All the Way 2, a ne'er-do-well father, who is desperately trying to be his daughter's favorite male figure now that, following what we can see was a fairly mild divorce brewed from minor inconvenience, Victor (Brian Stepanek), a wealthy businessman, has now entered in her life as her stepfather. Larry's daughter Noel (Kennedi Clements) is anticipating Christmas a lot this year because, judging from her private letter to Santa Claus, she wants a stuffed teddy bear named Harrison, which happens to be the season's hottest toy. Upon discovering this, Larry makes it his mission to not only give Noel a memorable Christmas but to find a Harrison Talking Bear, which proves difficult once Victor realizes his plan and begins to buy out each store's stock of Harrison bears.The original Jingle All the Way was never a holiday favorite of mine, as it offput me with its materialistic mindset and massively contentious story given it's a Christmas film, but Jingle All the Way 2 finds ways to be even more offputting given its lack of any redeemable characters and ridiculously overblown story. As we constantly see Larry being beaten by Victor seconds after he acquired an entire store's lot of Harrison bears, we question why he doesn't just order the bear online or ask the store manager to reserve one for him. In addition, watching two grown men fight like children for ninety minutes does not make for a good film whatsoever. If we're not seeing Larry breathlessly race around and passive-aggressively speak with Victor, we must endure the same kind of jokes that Larry the Cable Guy has made a career out of making, only this time, set in the context of a Christmas film.Jingle All the Way 2 isn't frustratingly bad, because, if you sit down to watch it, you've already questioned "why?" numerous times, regarding the film's production, existence, and thought-process, but it completely avoids any and all likability when you watch the year's frothiest ending conclude such an awful picture before your very eyes. If there's one thing Jingle All the Way 2 has going for it, at least it's consistently bad and has an ending that effectively lives up to the standards the film has set for itself.Starring: Larry the Cable Guy, Brian Stepanek, Kennedi Clements, Santino Marella, and Kristen Robek. Directed by: Alex Zamm.