UNCLE NICK – The Review

I’m not sure what your holiday traditions are, but in my family, it’s not Christmas until you’ve watched at least one movie that makes you realize your family is not that bad, because it could always be worse. I joking, of course, but let’s say “hypothetically” that I’m not.

For me, ever since I first saw National Lampoon’s CHRISTMAS VACATION at an age probably too early to be watching the film, I’ve had a special place in my heart for Clark Griswold. A man with a good heart and no sense to navigate in the world. Year after year, I watch that film like a big eyed, innocent child all over again, and when Clark finally loses his shit in front of everyone, chugging back the adult egg nog, inside I’m saying “Amen, brother!”

What the Hell am I babbling on about, anyway? In the past, holiday movie traditions have consisted of goodie-two-shoes, proper family friendly classics in black and white and stop-motion animated TV shorts. That’s all well and good, and I even partake in these still, but in today’s jacked up world, we need a little reality in our fiction to keep our heads sane. Give it to us straight.

UNCLE NICK is not a perfect film, by any means, but screw perfection. Who needs that kind of pressure? Written by Mike Demski and directed by Chris Kasick, this is the average Joe’s Christmas movie. For those of us who can do without the do-gooders blowing smoke out their butts in an effort to be politically correct and all-inclusive, and prefer a little punch in our Christmas punch, UNCLE NICK offers a welcome reprieve from the G-rated holiday favorites.

Brian Posehn plays Nick, a middle-aged fat, balding drunk with scarce manners and a dead-end career keeping his late father’s fledgling landscape business afloat. When he’s invited to spend Christmas with his younger brother’s family, he goes instead as an opportunity to hopefully score with his step-niece, if I’m interpreting that complicated in-law familial jigsaw puzzle correctly.

Beau Ballinger plays Cody, Nick’s 31-year old younger brother, who is a failure in life, but gets by on his good looks. Cody married Sophie, played by Paget Brewster, and therefor married her money and big house as well. It’s a packaged deal, so Cody also acquired two step-children. Marcus, played wittily by Jacob Houston, and his older sister Valerie, played by Melia Renee. Valerie would be the 20-year old step-niece who holds Nick’s perverts creepy uncle affection.

Enough of the dilapidated family tree. UNCLE NICK is perhaps the most enjoyable anti-Christmas holiday movie since Billy Bob Thornton dawned the red suit in 2003 for BAD SANTA. It’s not necessarily the utmost best made film, but it’s certainly enjoyable, in it’s own humorously depraved ways. On some levels, the film is like a watered down live-action episode of Comedy Central’s South Park doing an homage to shows like All in the Family and Married With Children. Posehn’s dry, deadpan style plays in contrast to the rest of the cast and in turn works to set him apart as the odd uncle, which in turn plays into the ironic turn of events that occur in the film’s conclusion.

Melia Renee is effective at playing the seductive, rebellious harlot who plays into Nick’s inappropriate delusions, acting as a sort of succubus leading him into temptation. UNCLE NICK is a family-themed movie that is not family-friendly, complete with lewd humor, profanity, some nudity, sex, excessive consumption of alcohol, some expected and arguably warranted fisticuffs and ultimately, a nice little moral twist to the ending, just for the grown-ups who stuck it out to the end of the film, because chances are, we’re the ones who have lived, or perhaps still live, some facet of this holiday family life.

The chemistry and pacing of the performances in UNCLE NICK aren’t always spot-on, but the humor is well-written, snarky but realistic and just plain fun. Marcus doesn’t get much of the spotlight but makes us proud in his role and Cody is far from likable in any way, which is by design. Sophie, surprisingly enough, is the most sane of the family, thanks to Brewster’s level-headed performance, allowing her final revelation in the end of the film to carry more weight.

Documentary filmmaker Errol Morris executive produced the film, which may not mean much to most, but helped draw me into seeing the film. As it turns out, UNCLE NICK showcased an unexpected influence from and/or homage to the modern legend of non-fiction filmmaking, as it begins and ends in a minor portion as an interview with Nick, Errol Morris First Person-style. In addition, the creative placeholder sequences between the segments of the story are filled with baseball scenes depicting the infamous 10-cent beer game between the Cleveland Indians and the Texas Rangers.

Baseball, and more specifically the Cleveland Indians, serve as a running metaphor in the film and a connecting plot mechanism. There are nine segments in the film, as there are nine innings in a game of baseball. Each segment is chaptered as an inning and each of them carries a baseball-themed title that serves as a double entendre for the family’s hijinks. Nick’s sister Michelle, played by Missi Pyle, is equally ill-mannered as Nick but easier to look at and she’s married to Kevin, played by Scott Adsit, who runs and obsesses over his podcast that’s all about the Cleveland Indians.

Once you’ve had your fill of Rudolph and Frosty, but aren’t quite ready for A CHRISTMAS STORY, and you want a reality check instead of A MIRACLE ON 34TH STREET, allow UNCLE NICK into your home and prepare for inappropriate white elephant gifts and off-key Christmas karaoke.

UNCLE NICK opens in theaters on Friday, December 4th, 2015.

Overall Rating:  3 out of 5 stars