The Couch Critic
The Couch Critic is your laid-back guide to movies and TV shows that deserve your attention—or maybe don’t. Nathan dives deep into storytelling, character development, and cinematic style with a sharp eye and a wry sense of humor. Whether it’s a blockbuster hit, a hidden gem, or a cult classic, Nathan’s relatable approach ensures every episode feels like a cozy chat with a friend who just happens to love film. Perfect for casual watchers and cinephiles alike, The Couch Critic brings thoughtful critique without the fluff. Grab your favorite snack, settle in, and let Nathan guide you through the world of screen entertainment.
The Couch Critic
Santa Suit, Selfish Heart: Jonathan Taylor Thomas' Rocky Road to Family Reconciliation
Do Santa suits and Porsches mix? That's the question at the heart of our latest episode where we dive into the 1998 Disney holiday film "I'll Be Home for Christmas" starring 90s teen heartthrob Jonathan Taylor Thomas.
After a long-awaited reunion, hosts Nathan and Katy find themselves on opposite sides of the critical spectrum with this nostalgic Christmas journey. Nathan questions the film's confused audience targeting and unconvincing character arc, while Katy defends JTT's charming performance and the movie's emotional core. Their friendly debate unpacks everything from the bizarre desert abandonment scene (complete with a glued-on Santa beard) to Jessica Biel's role as the moral compass in what might be a surprisingly teen-oriented Disney production.
The discussion takes unexpected turns as we examine family grief beneath surface-level comedy, debate whether the romance subplot was necessary, and consider what makes an essential Christmas movie. With Nathan giving it a disappointing 1.5 stars while Katy awards it a generous 4, this episode highlights how subjective movie experiences can be – especially when JTT's 90s charisma might be influencing one host more than they're willing to admit! Whether you're a devoted Jonathan Taylor Thomas fan or just curious about this polarizing holiday film, our breakdown offers both nostalgic appreciation and critical analysis. Where will you land on the debate? Listen now and join the conversation about this Santa-suited desert adventure.
On the couch. We're laughing, crying, feeling it all, breaking down the big screen, the hits and the flaws. Grab your seat, press play. Let's take the pic. Lights camera action. Episode of the Couch Critic.
Speaker 2:I'm your host, Nathan, and with me today, for the first time in a while, is my good friend Katie. Hi Katie, how are you?
Speaker 3:I'm tired why are you so tired? I don't know. I was gone all weekend and it's been a long day. I teach youth fitness classes at the Y and I taught like three of them. No, four classes today, wow, so I think I'm just tired, but I am excited to be on this episode with you, because I missed you, buddy.
Speaker 2:I missed you too, but I bet you're not as tired as JTT walking through the desert trying to get home to get a new Porsche. Yes, which is exactly kind of the synopsis of the movie we're talking about today. It is I'll be home for christmas, which? Did they even play that song at all the entire movie? I was just thinking that I don't think so. I don't think they did. I don't even think they played like a modern version at the beginning of the movie or anything kind of disappointed. So that's one of the many things I did not like about this movie. But before I can talk about that, I have to talk about not the synopsis, because I basically just gave you one, but I'm going to tell you who starred in this movie and a little bit of trivia. So I'll be home for Christmas.
Speaker 2:Stars Jonathan Taylor Thomas, also known as JTT, as Jake, jessica Biel as Allie, adam LaVorgana as Eddie and Gary Cole as Jake's dad, which is not the first time he's ever played a dad in a movie. Gary Cole also was Mike Brady in the Brady Bunch movie and the very Brady Bunch sequel. That's probably not the exact titles and a little bit of trivia for this movie. This was actually Jessica Biel's first Disney movie, and also Jonathan Taylor Thomas is no stranger to Disney because he voiced young Simba in the animated version of the Lion King. So let's jump right into this movie. I did not like it. I didn't like this movie. The reason I didn't like this movie is because it has the most random lines, the most random bits of dialogue. Acting was not that great, jtt was just JTT, and I will say this movie, after thinking about it for a while, did not need a romance storyline. It could have just been about a guy trying to get home for a Porsche.
Speaker 2:It didn't need this whole side story and all that stuff. Didn't need it.
Speaker 3:Disagree, disagree. Okay, I feel like, like you know, behind every man is a wonderful woman and I feel like jessica beal kind of helped him see the light, like like she played a role in kind of calling him out, like she needed. She needed to be there to sort of put the fire in the room and and help to see like it was almost two relationships, because he was not just being selfish with his parents, he was also being selfish with her right. So he calls them out in the beginning of the movie. It was just like I think I don't know, I just think it adds to the character to show he's selfish in most relationships and then he does sort of turn things around. At the end he, you know, priorit prioritizes his family over the Porsche.
Speaker 2:I think they could have done that without Jessica Biel. The reason, I think that is because a little bit of a background of this character apparently his mother, I guess, passed away or something, and so his father remarries and he has like this really awkward relationship with his stepmom and I think that could have been the driving force behind his change of heart. I think they really should have just made this about his family and learning to just care about his family first, as opposed to just all about himself. I really think they could have done that without the love interest thing, especially since they introduced that little random moment where you know, know, she gets hitches, a ride with, I guess, jtt's rival guy, whatever, and ends up kind of liking him for like five seconds of the movie and they kiss under the mistletoe and there's that really awkward moment jtt rips off his towel and you see you, you don't see anything, obviously because it's a Disney movie, but you see like the outline of, like his abs and stuff, so like he's, like he's, he's naked, okay, and that's another thing about this movie that I didn't like how some of the lines were, just like it's one of those movies where you're watching it Like who, who is the audience here?
Speaker 2:Okay, obviously audience here. Okay, obviously, some of the audiences for those teenage girls who really like jtt because he was really, you know, big at that time. But, at the same time, who is the audience for when it comes to the dialogue? Some of the stuff they talk about in this movie, like jessica beal's character, has a love interest, but they also are trying to play her as, like this independent feminist character, because some of her dials said listen, this is not a concept for me it's just a very confusing movie to me I think it is a a teen movie.
Speaker 3:I think disney does not have to have movies for three and four year olds all the time you know like this this was a teenager movie.
Speaker 3:It's about call like the main character is college. I mean, oftentimes I base that on like how old's the main character? That's probably the age group that we're looking to be most entertained by this. So like the main character is a teenager and his teenage girlfriend and his kind of like teenage frenemy and yeah, then that's probably who they're appealing to. It's like mean girls. Mean girls is going to have way more sexual innuendos than younger kids would handle, but teenagers are definitely all well for this. I think this was a movie for teens and I think it knocked out of the park. Personally, I love jessica biel. I'd never seen this movie before and I thought she did a great job. This was like very young her I was. This was probably like her seventh heaven era, I think you know she was probably around the day or seventh heaven, because the guy who plays eddie.
Speaker 2:They both ended up on seventh heaven and he played her boyfriend in that the only reason I know that is because that's also one of the trivia things and I never watched seven but this movie so this movie came out in 1998.
Speaker 2:So I can understand you saying like this is a teen movie and some of the dialogue appeals to teens. I can understand that if this was released like now. Ok, I'm thinking this is a 90s live action Disney movie, and so that's why it just confused me because of the time it came out. And so that's why it just confused me because of the time it came out, and at that time Disney was a lot more quote, unquote, family friendly when it came to its content. I guess it was starting to like branch out and trying to be more broad in their audiences, I guess. But I honestly feel like this movie could have told the same exact messaging of what they were trying to go for, just focusing on Jake and I guess, I guess that it wouldn't be the movie the whole thing is like they they subtly kind of resolved his issue with his step mom, but I I was wanting more resolve in that and, yeah, I would agree, I want to do that away.
Speaker 3:They're just like. He's like hey, here's my shirt size. And it's like oh look, they've reconciled. He told her his shirt size.
Speaker 3:That was so like. The dialogue was so weird. That was a weird dialogue. I was expecting more. It's yours, you know, just in case. But see, I think I loved it. The reasons you're saying that or things that should change or the things I did like about it. And you didn't like the movie and I did. So I didn't think it was a teenage movie. I would agree with you that it's maybe like a little bit more adult than I'm used to from like a Disney Channel original movie. But it was very funny, I found myself, maybe because it was geared towards a little bit older. There was a lot of very clever and funny jokes. I thought he was very charming. You know, he's a kind of annoying charming. Right At first you're like, oh, this is funny, charming, and then you're like, wait, this guy's kind of a jerk. He wasn't charming at all.
Speaker 2:I think he was His transformation was way too quick.
Speaker 3:Hey, I'm a girl, I can tell you. Ok, his transformation was way too quick. At the end, I think I'm trying to figure out what his transformation was. Do you think it was the mayor? He like the mayor that donates money, and then I'm like what you won that race fair and square.
Speaker 2:Why did you give that money back Like?
Speaker 3:he felt bad. He was having a change of heart. That's why I was done.
Speaker 2:I thought that was dumb and I thought, like he just suddenly, suddenly realized that he did. It's not about the car anymore.
Speaker 3:I think it's cute and he was just so clever, right, she? And that's what Jessica Biel said she liked about him. He's just thinks of things on the fly. He creates like a fake organ, like it just goes over the top and he's got a fake organ and he tells the police officers he's going to be, he's Santa, and he's going to be Santa and he's going to have to bring toys to the sick children.
Speaker 2:He's really good at lying I do. I think he's such a good liar. That's what I love most about.
Speaker 3:Jake oh, my Nathan's very bitter. It sounds like that girls go after bad boys. I digress.
Speaker 2:I'm not bitter. I'm married, I have two kids. I'm not. I'm not bitter at all. There you go.
Speaker 3:He was definitely cute, as ever. I am 35 years old and he's probably 17 in this movie, so I couldn't think he's too hot no-transcript.
Speaker 2:It's interesting. It's normally the other way around yeah, I was thinking I did that's pretty funny.
Speaker 3:But yeah, yeah, I thought he was very attractive and I thought he was cute and I do feel like I want I would agree with you I wanted him to have a little more of a turnaround. At the end he didn't seem like he'd totally given, taken away his kind of like douchey, conniving charm stuff, like it might still be there a little bit. But then again jessica beal was kind of saying she liked that about him. Um, I thought the dad part was very sweet, like it just like broke my heart. It made me feel emotions right. I felt really bad for the dad, like I. They got me invested, even though he's not in the movie much. Like you said, the main movie is about that's showing.
Speaker 3:yeah, but I think I still felt for the emotional part with the family and they hardly touch anything about the thing thinks they're so cool and they're trying to get attention, and what's really going on underneath is this like steeply sad, insecure boy who's very upset and hurt by his mother's death and feels like you know he's oh, I'm going to go on vacation vacation because the reality is you're too hurt to go home for Christmas where you're sitting on. So it is very, I think, accurate to what we see teenagers going through, and so it was gratifying for me to have him start opening the door a little bit to recognize that in himself and like I said, I thought it was very funny and clever.
Speaker 3:The vulture scene at the beginning, like he gets sent out in the middle of nowhere in santa. It feels so random he's wearing a santa costume the entire movie. These guys are mad at him because he was helping them cheat and then he didn't. He like messed up at the test. So they are mad. So they send him out in the middle of the desert with a Santa costume that they have glued the beard to him and glued the hat to him.
Speaker 2:I feel like he should have freaked out more. Like if I woke up in the middle of nowhere with a Santa costume on and I realized that stuff was glued on me, I would have a bigger reaction like oh man, those guys I don't know. And again, I know it's Disney and I can't really complain too much about the acting in this movie. But yeah, I just didn't like it. I didn't like the movie. I texted you right after I watched it and I was like this is a very confusing movie. I didn't know who the audience was for and obviously it's for teens, again because of Jake, yeah. But I really think this movie could have done without the love interest. I think the focus should have been on the family and that aspect of the whole thing.
Speaker 3:Let's get into the Christmas part. I do want to rate this movie, and the first rating we always do is Christmas. So, first and foremost, Christmas is in it. It's called I Will Be Home, for what Christmas? And he's dressed as Santa Claus and there's snow and he's coming home for Christmas. Blah, blah, blah. But your test that you always tell me is will it not be Christmas? If I don't watch this, I would say this was very cute and I would watch it again, but it's not something that I need to happen at Christmas.
Speaker 2:Well, and also another aspect of this rating system is if you took Christmas out of it, could you still make a movie that's similar to it? And yes, you can. It could be, it could take place. I'll be home for Bar.
Speaker 2:Mitzvah, it could take place during Thanksgiving. I'll be home for Vacation. Eid, I'll be home for summer. So it could still be a coherent story without Christmas being involved, and if I didn't watch it during Christmas, I would be okay. So let's go ahead and rate this thing. I obviously didn't like it, you liked it, so let's start with the Christmas rating.
Speaker 3:One out of five stars. What would you give? I'll be home for christmas. Um, if we're, if the relative is movies like mean girls or die hard, then I'm gonna have to score it higher than those.
Speaker 2:So I'm gonna give it three out of five, okay yeah, I'm gonna give it a 2.5 out of 5 for Christmas and the general rating would be for you, katie.
Speaker 3:I would say a 4. It was enjoyable A 4. Oh my gosh, yeah, I had fun with it. I smiled.
Speaker 2:Well, I'm gonna give it a big ol' 1.5.
Speaker 3:Oof, sorry, jonathan Taylor Thomas. Maybe I, just maybe I'm being swayed by his charm myself.
Speaker 2:You know, like that, I know I know, you know the past couple movies you haven't reviewed with me, and then I mentioned I'm talking about this movie. You're like ooh JTT, I'll definitely be on that episode, that's fair, I think so for anything Little bias. Jonathan Taylor, taylor Thomas, thank you so much for giving Katie the boost that she needed to actually come on an episode and talk to me about a movie.
Speaker 3:I appreciate you. I'm specifically referring to Jonathan Taylor Thomas from the 90s because I was looking for him. If you Google him now, he's very, very much a hermit. So there's like only one photo of him from like the last five years and it's not a flattering one.
Speaker 2:This is home improvement. You know lion king, other disney movies he was in and I think this movie actually came out in theaters. I don't think it was a disney original movie, I don't know. Yeah, so that is our thoughts on on. I'll be home for Christmas. Yeah, that's what we thought. That is the first episode of July 2025. This coming Cinema Saturday. That's right, it's not Cinema Sunday because you know I'm rotating that whole thing. So Cinema Saturday will be F1 and Megan 2.0. And then next Tuesday is another movie that I'm like why is it on this list? Happy Feet. I don't know why it's on this Christmas list at all. I'm going to rewatch it and maybe I'll figure it out on the couch, where every movie gets its close up.
Speaker 1:It's not just a movie, it's a way of life. We'll watch it together, day or night, so settle in close and don't miss a flick. This is the moment for the couch critic.
