Rating summary

Movie		1.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		0.0
Overall		2.5

I'll Be Home for Christmas Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman December 23, 2020

Being home is better than living on the road, particularly at Christmastime, but if being home means being subjected to I'll Be Home for Christmas, then maybe some time away from the living room television might actually be a good thing. Here's a film that's the celluloid equivalent of a lump of coal, an unfunny comedy and stagnant road trip film starring Home Improvement heartthrob Jonathan Taylor Thomas as a student trying to go cross-country on a deadline to receive a bribe -- a Porsche no less -- just to be at the dinner table on Christmas eve. Director Arlene Sanford, whose claim to fame may very well be her work on A Very Brady Sequel, takes the straightforward approach to a twisting-turning series of unfunny shenanigans as her camera follows JTT wearing a Santa suit because...there's no other tangible Christmas markers immediately apparent in the movie.

Jake Wilkinson (Jonathan Taylor Thomas) has not been home for the holidays since his mother passed away. His father (Gary Cole) and his new wife and Jake’s sister all want to see him, but rather than come home, he’s exchanged his airline tickets for a trip to Cabo with his girlfriend Allie (Jessica Biel). But when his father offers him a classic Porsche in exchange for coming home, he’s all over the offer. But he’s on a deadline: if he’s not at the dinner table by 6:00PM on Christmas Eve, all bets are off. Easy enough: swap the tickets out once again and be behind the wheel by morning. When Eddie (Adam LaVorgna), who also has the hots for Allie, dumps Jake in the desert with nothing but a Santa suit to wear and a beard and hat glued to his body, he has no choice but to hitchhike, finagle, lie, cheat, and steal his way back home, all across the country, all the while keeping up with Eddie who is taking Allie home and taking his chance to make some moves.

Jake has a lot to lose if he doesn't get home: the car for starters and possibly his girl, too. Unfortunately, the audience has a lot to lose by going on his adventure with him, namely its time. Beyond a few touching asides -- fleeting moments of heart in an otherwise rote movie -- there's no room for emotional investment in the story. "JTT" does nothing to build character, the script flounders about trying to gain traction, and the various misadventures leave the audience sitting with jaw agape rather than mouth curled into a smile. The film desperately wants to be a family friendly take on Planes, Trains & Automobiles, that Steve Martin/John Candy holiday classic get-back-home road trip film with actual wit, characterization, and heart at work. This is an empty vessel with dimwitted leads, forgettable secondary characters, and nonsensical coincidences.

I'll Be Home for Christmas Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

I'll Be Home for Christmas may be a forgettable film, but its 1080p Blu-ray transfer at least gives videophiles a reason to watch. The picture is excellent and in many scenes approaches flawless. Fine grain holds steady for the duration. It's very light and flattering and more than helpful in shaping a healthy, hearty film-quality presentation. Details are sharp and clear. Character faces and clothes are the obvious highlights, particularly Jake's Santa hat, beard, and suit. Location details are consistently well defined, too, capturing environmental complexities with ease. It's not so sharp as the best on the market, but for a lame catalogue release Disney has provided a picture approaching the film's best. Colors are well rounded. The red Santa suit lacks much finesse but there's no obvious bleeding and certainly no lack of punch. Location colors are plenty solid for depth and accuracy; one of the best examples comes at the Bavarian hotel seen later in the film. Low light scenes (nighttime travel in a car or a bus) are too dense and crush out some details. On the other end, snow appears as a crisp white. The picture shows only the very odd speckle and no encode issues.

I'll Be Home for Christmas Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

I'll Be Home for Christmas' DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack proves capable and it carries the film's basic audio cues well. Music is never shy about stretching far to the sides while maintaining both aggression and clarity for score and particularly for some energetic Rock music; a Santa sprint in chapter 11 is one of the best examples of musical detail, stage engagement, and the modest surround and subwoofer output. Scattered atmospherics find capable clarity and positioning. One prominent example is a quick burst of rolling thunder and driving rain at the 25-minute mark, offering a healthy sense of space and detail alike. Crowd din on a bus, a train, or in an airport enjoy balanced stage placement. Dialogue maintains good clarity and center positioning for the duration.

I'll Be Home for Christmas Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This Blu-ray release of I'll Be Home for Christmas contains no supplemental content. The main menu screen only offers "Play" and "Scene Selection" buttons. No DVD or digital copies are included with purchase. This release does not ship with a slipcover.

I'll Be Home for Christmas Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I'll Be Home For Christmas offers one cringe inducing scene and horribly scripted and performed character after another. The film often teeters on unwatchable, failing from the top down to gain traction and build a story with any redeemable qualities and barely any forward momentum. Disney's featureless Blu-ray, which is, at time of writing, exclusive to the studio's online movie club, does deliver high end video and audio presentations which fans will love. Newcomers are advised to seek out any number of films that offer vastly superior Holiday humor and heart.