Unfortunately this movie tries too hard to be a poor man's Coen brothers movie but doesn't hold a candle and goes nowhere. The low budget does not make up for an inadequate script that feels too much like an attempt to put as many oddball characters into this short movie as possible.
The story is about an estranged family going to visit their daughter/sister in New York and each is dreading the encounter because of all the past trauma. We don't really know too much about the past because it's only dealt with on a surface level and too many attempts at funny moments preoccupy the running time of this film. Katie Holmes plays the protagonist, a somewhat clueless bittersweet girl who needs to find a way to cook a reasonably good Thanksgiving dinner and hopefully to get her Turkey done in time to meet the family. Thus begins the long crazy nutty quest that will end when the twain shall meet.
This isn't to say that this movie doesn't have its moments. It really does have very good parts but it is as though the writer/director missed the boat entirely in spending so much time on the build-up and the climax ended far too quickly. Unfortunately the build-up is a bunch of comic moments with attempts at sweet humanity and a whole lot of obvious moments where the movie is merely a script where events just don't happen and people don't act a certain way. It's not natural. Like the Coen Brothers this film is all about the characters but unlike the Coen Brothers there is precious little real effort made to make sure that the characters act, say and do what the real characters would. Instead, the writing and direction goes more for over the top humor and an attempt at one punchline.
This film had a lot of promise. Some very good moments and Holmes does shine in her part, which actually doesn't delve very deep but saves the film. Most of the comments here are unfortunately shallow, the same people who just want a good Hollywood like feelgood movie with shallow "depth." The ending is predictable, preposterous and unfortunately resolves nothing and is a mere cheap tug at the heart strings which suckered in most of the reviewers here with "style" that isn't impressive. And they lived happily ever after. It's too bad this movie is completely forgettable and an opportunity missed.