Christmas films have shown audiences that there's no limit to how a story can convey heart and togetherness during the most wonderful time of the year. But every so often, a film will release that could turn that notion on its head and deliver something totally unique without compromising the genre's core values. A great example of this was the film Christmas with the Kranks, which showed the chaos that could ensue when a neighborhood fixture chooses to skip Christmas over celebrating with the community.
In Christmas with the Kranks, Nora (Jamie Lee Curtis) and Luther Krank (Tim Allen) are two parents having their first Christmas without their daughter, who took a trip out of the country. To avoid the holiday blues and seize a rare moment, Luther decided to plan an island getaway and skip Christmas. While Nora was reluctantly on board, the rest of the neighborhood caught wind and found the breach of tradition rather unpleasant. As a result, as one Reddit theorist pointed out, the holiday film quickly turned into a horror story with a larger message at play.
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Christmas with the Kranks' Townsfolk Are Truly Terrifying
As user MustangGuy points out, the horror of Christmas with the Kranks is slow growing and comes largely in the form of Luther's neighbor Vic Frohmeyer. While he was seemingly the de facto leader of the neighborhood, he and his family also cared deeply for the holiday and the unity it brought. This culminated in a giant snowman decoration named Frosty that every house would put up. When it was clear Luther wasn't participating that year, Vic quickly grew inquisitive and did what he could to get the Kranks on board.
Luther and Nora were plagued by Vic's children chanting "Free Frosty" outside their home. Meanwhile, Nora was equally terrified when Vic jumped on the hood of her car, trying to get answers. Admittedly, these are small examples, but they spoke to a larger idea of the community and its commercialized need to participate in the holiday because that's what Christmas is all about. Negating the Kranks' privacy could also speak to people's larger fear regarding gang stalking and angry mobs. In essence, this aspect of the film was more realistic than supernatural horror.
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Santa Is a Stalking Entity Throughout the Film
Throughout the film, Christmas with the Kranks never gives off a fantasy element. But as it's revealed later in the film, Santa Claus was actually a part of the characters' journey the entire time. Under the disguise of Marty, the umbrella salesman, Santa was constantly present at the most random points in Luther and Nora's life and even invited himself to their home during their Christmas party. Ultimately, he left Luther with some kind words of wisdom and was a very courteous and fun-loving person, but it's hard not to acknowledge that he was also following one family over multiple days.
Films like Smile and It Follows showed how scary and dangerous supernatural stalking could be, and while Marty was nothing of the sort, he evoked an equally terrifying knack for always being where the Kranks were. To any unsuspecting person, this would be a little more than unnerving and add to the air of mystery surrounding Marty. While the reveal that he was Santa all along was sweet, it did little to negate that he had followed one family to seemingly make sure they still celebrated Christmas and made the right choices. In the end, while it's not a horror film, the theory was right to point out some of the more unsettling plot points of a Christmas classic like Christmas with the Kranks.
