Exactly one year after the death of their mother, a dysfunctional family gets to converge home for Christmas but it will truly be a miracle if they survive the next five days together under the same roof.
Aside from the traditional spaghetti set-up of conflicts that will unfurl and be resolved with good cheer around the turkey, David E Talbert's film has a rather moving backstory about the death of the family matriarch the previous year.
There is a bit of holiday charm in this film, and a story about family coming together after a big loss, but it is buried in a series of slapstick situations and heavy-handed holiday schmaltz.
You can't fault the film for its efficiency. Each of these idylls is threatened by a problem that will be solved within a reasonably tidy running time.
The movie takes a few calamitous turns at its climax, dangerously approaching broad slapstick and villainizing a character we've come to love. But mainly, it's a fun and boisterous countdown to the big meal.