As far as holiday movies go, Christmas As Usual is one of the most singularly unpleasant ones I’ve watched. It’s ostensibly a culture clash rom-com where a Norwegian girl and Indian guy living in Los Angeles get engaged and head to Norway to celebrate the season (and introduce him to the fam).

Which basically means a line of unpleasant racism standing in for cultural misunderstandings. There are ways to make a culture clash movie funny or dramatic, but this flick doesn’t nail the balance. I spent the majority of the time feeling bad for Norwegians as a people since they are depicted as deeply unpleasant passive-aggressive racists in this film. Not KKK is knocking at the door racists, but ugly, smug, and judgmental about anything he introduces from his own culture.

And the sick, sad thing is, he doesn’t get along much better… and maybe it’s just meant to be reaction to the treatment he gets, but he winds up being just as judgmental at their “going to church” or “skiing everywhere” or “bathing in frozen water”… all apparently the only things Norwegians do for Christmas (not including slugging Santa Claus in front of a little girl… that’s only something Indians do).

Probably should also slide in here that the movie isn’t particularly romantic or funny… though that could be my awkward discomfort talking. Part of the problem is we learn vanishingly little about the happy couple… no idea why they were both in LA, what they do, what his family is like, or how long they were together. There’s very little to hang onto with them before things get ugly.

If I want to watch a holiday movie that represents the worst in humanity, I’ll watch Die Hard. Or, hell, any number of horror holiday movies. But watching a hamfisted rom-com that’s nothing but a slap in the face to two cultures is not my idea of a good time.

The good news is, the rest of the holiday movies have to be better. Or at least not this awkward and uncomfortable.

Score: 58