Cast and Crew Talk Family, Comedy and Tradition in CANDY CANE LANE
By Movieguide® Staff
Veteran comic Eddie Murphy stars as Chris Carver in his latest Christmas comedy, CANDY CANE LANE.
Directed by Reginald Hudlin, the movie follows the holiday antics of the Carver family as they try to win a decorating contest.
A portion of Movieguide®’s review reads:
CANDY CANE LANE, a Christmas comedy on Netflix, stars Eddie Murphy as Chris Carver, a suddenly unemployed married father of three. His new free time inspires him to pursue his obsession with Christmas decorations. Chris is determined to beat his neighbor at their street’s Christmas decorating contest, which suddenly has a $100,000 prize. Chris and his youngest daughter stumble across a Christmas store under a freeway overpass. The elfish woman sells Chris a tall mechanical tree whose ornaments match the characters in “12 Days of Christmas.” However, Chris doesn’t read the fine print in the bill of sale.
The cast and crew recently talked about their new movie and the importance of family on and off screen.
“[There is] love, family and a message that’s at the center of it, which we have in this movie, that the family comes together to conquer a rogue elf, so to speak,” Tracee Ellis Ross, who plays the role of the mother Carol Carver, said. “I think the thing that’s special about this movie is it’s an adventure comedy Christmas movie. It’s a special story that has all these elements, and we hope that it becomes a holiday classic.”
“I thought the script was unique and I thought that it had all the elements that you’re supposed to have in a Christmas movie where you could watch it over and over again,” Murphy added. “The movies that I watched, the Christmas movies, we watch them every year and I thought this could be one of those kinds of movies that families can revisit.”
Director Reggie Hudlin commended Genneya Walton, Madison Thomas and Thaddeus J. Mixson for their performances as the Carver children.
“These young people down here were extraordinary,” he said. “I’m working with two of the best with Eddie and Tracee, so these kids have to play at that level.”
“We got the Dream Team here,” he added. “There’s a tremendous amount of improvisation. And, you know, I like to surround Eddie with the best, and we got the best.”
Writer Kelly Younger said that despite the fantastical elements of the movie, family was the focus.
“I wanted to bring in magic and mischief and to have a lot of fun, but it was really important to me that it was grounded in a real family,” he said. “I think especially with Eddie and Tracee, how they captured what felt like a very real relationship, this family felt very real.”
Movieguide® ‘s review of CANDY CANE LANE highlights its pro-family themes. However, the movie also comes with some caution. The review reads:
“CANDY CANE LANE starts out with poor pacing. Things pick up in the second half when Eddie Murphy’s character must save his family from the elf lady’s evil magic. The script achieves liftoff worthy of Santa’s sleigh. Murphy and the cast share a playful energy. Also, Director Reginald Hudlin stages several great action set pieces, and the special effects are terrific. CANDY CANE LANE has strong pro-marriage and pro-family values. A large sign proclaims, ‘Jesus Is the Reason for the Season.’ There’s some foul language, though.”
Check out the full review of CANDY CANE LANE at Movieguide.org!