Review: If it wasn’t for Vince Vaughn’s rapid-fire comedy, this would be Four Christmases too many.

Story: Four Christmases sort of follows along the same lines as any holiday movie these days – dysfunctional families being dysfunctional until they realize how warm and fuzzy it is being dysfunctional. Yawn. In this case, unmarried, yuppie couple Brad (Vaughn) and Kate (Reese Witherspoon) have successfully avoided their crazy families during the holidays for a few years now, concocting some cockamamie goodwill story about saving babies in a third-world country, while they really go on an island adventure. But uh-oh, plans go awry this Christmas, and they are forced to indulge in a little family good cheer. Guess what, though? Brad and Kate learn something from their ordeal. They realize a) they love each other and might want a family of their own, but they need to get to know each other better and b) they still don’t want to spend the holidays with their families. Ever again.

Acting: While Witherspoon is no slouch in the comedy department and definitely holds her own with her co-star – even though he looks freakishly tall next to her tiny frame – Vaughn is the one who keeps things afloat for the most part. Honestly, he could read from the phone book in that quick-paced, stream of consciousness way he’s perfected and we’d still laugh. It’s Four Christmases long list of supporting players, however, that is rather alarming, starting with Robert Duvall as Brad’s no-nonsense dad to Sissy Spacek as Brad’s hippie mom. Sure, Mary Steenburgen and Jon Voight, who play Kate’s divorced parents, would do a movie like this, but Duvall and Spacek? They must have needed a paycheck. The one standout is Jon Favreau as Brad’s brother, a buffed out, Mohawk-ed extreme fighter. Old buddies Favreau and Vaughn may have needed to work out a little aggression.

Direction: Newbie director Seth Gordon, whose claim to fame is the little-seen but hilarious documentary King of Kong, unfortunately shows his lack of experience with Four Christmases. But maybe it isn’t Gordon’s fault – not completely. The real culprit may be the way this film follows the same, tired Christmas cookie cutter plot holiday movies seem to be about these days – in which the families are SO dysfunctional, the antics SO over the top, it makes you want to run out of the theater so you can get to your own defective family for a little normalcy. I’m not saying we can return to the It’s a Wonderful Life-type sugary fare, but it would be nice to see a holiday comedy about familial ties that isn’t always so mean spirited.

Bottom Line: Hollywood.com rated this film 2 stars.

Review: Milk is a moving and important film for our times with a tremendous performance by Sean Penn.

Story: In 1977, Harvey Milk (Penn) was elected to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. While this would not normally be an earth-shattering phenomenon, in this case, Milk became the first out-of-the-closet gay person to win a major public office in the United States – and was assassinated in 1978, along with San Francisco Mayor George Moscone. Based in part on the Academy Award-winning documentary The Life and Times of Harvey Milk, the film focuses on the last decade of his life as he moves from New York at age 40 to San Francisco with lover Scott Smith (James Franco). Using his experience as an entrepreneur as a catalyst, he suddenly becomes more politically involved, making a couple of runs for office and finally getting elected. With a new lover (Diego Luna) and agenda, Milk takes on some major issues – including lobbying against California’s controversial Prop 6, an initiative to fire gay schoolteachers. But his activities anger another supervisor, Dan White (Josh Brolin), and soon their destinies will collide.

Acting: It’s not an overstatement to say that Sean Penn’s performance here is a revelation. As Harvey Milk, he not only perfectly embodies the late politician but exudes a certain kind of warmness and humor we rarely see from the star. His immersion into the persona of Milk is truly remarkable and winning. A large supporting cast includes: standout performances from Franco, as Milk’s true love and friend Scott, who eventually can’t compete with Harvey’s increasing ambition; Diego Luna, hilarious and annoying as Milk’s lover later; and Emile Hirsch as Cleve Jones, a young activist and Milk protégé. Brolin, as the unlikeable White, perfectly captures the frustration and simmering jealousy the man he feels steals his job. It’s a risky role, and there is little room for audience empathy, but Brolin makes this loser understandable, if not acceptable. As the lone woman among the principal players, Alison Pill is bright and appealing, as Milk’s campaign manager Anne Kronenberg.

Direction: Gus Van Sant’s odd directorial career encompasses a series of ups and downs with the highlights being Drugstore Cowboy and his Oscar-nominated work on Good Will Hunting. The absolute nadir of Van Sant’s resume is undoubtedly his ill-advised shot-by-shot remake of Hitchcock’s untouchable Psycho. It’s nice to report he’s back in form now with the warm, funny and moving Milk, a film that doesn’t quite escape the clichés of the biopic genre but still finds its own beats, thanks in large part to the piercing performances. Getting such mature and joyful work from Penn, a brilliant but distant actor, is impressive indeed. He also imbues the movie with a documentary feel, appropriate since much of the source material comes from the Oscar-winning docu. Milk paints us a triumphant and inspiring life, one that won’t soon be forgotten, especially with its parallels to current California circumstances. The state’s recent anti-gay marriage initiative Prop 8 could not have come at a more significant time in making Harvey Milk’s crusade seem more relevant than ever.

Bottom Line: Hollywood.com rated this film 3 1/2 stars.