Candy Cane Lane (2023) is a silly Christmas obsessed movie that is way too long, has way too many irrelevant story lines, and has way too many famous and funny people in the cast to be this disappointing.

 

Chris Carver (Eddie Murphy) lives in Southern California on a street that has a competitive decorations contest ever year. This year, however, the stakes are higher because of a $100k prize on the line. Chris, recently laid off, takes pride in his hand-crafted, wood-carved decorations and despises his rival defending champ neighbor, who has a yard full of inflatable lawn ornaments. 

 

This year, with pride and money on the line Chris decides to take his decorations to the next level. When he buys almost everything at the store, the elf store clerk ends up casting a magical spell that brings the 12 days of Christmas to life with Chris’ fate on the line; if he doesn’t collect the Five Golden Rings by a certain time, he will be turned into a glass figurine. Throughout the duration of the plot, family dynamics play a part: his wife, Carol (Tracee Ellis Ross) is up for a big promotion, the oldest daughter, Joy (Genneya Walton) is trying to get a scholarship for track at Notre Dame when Chris and Carol are pining for her to go to their beloved alma mater, USC, the middle child, their son, Nick (Thaddeus J, Mixson) is struggling with math and wants to pursue music, while their youngest daughter Holly (Madison Thomas) is still at the right age to be completely invested in the decorations contest. When the family finds out about Chris’ spell, they team up to defeat the elf and ensure Chris’ safety.

 

Overall, the movie could cut a good 30-40 minutes of fluff and lose nothing. I was disappointed in the lack of laughs it produced for me, and I just found myself waiting for the typical check marks in the story to pass and get resolved so it would end. Candy Cane Lane captures the whimsical energy of Christmas time, but that’s about all it succeeds at. Unless you are desperate for new holiday content, stick with the classic favorites instead of wasting your time with Candy Cane Lane.