As the Christmas season rolls in once again, I thought I would pay tribute to one of my favorite Christmas movies of all time: The Family Stone. While this may not be considered a Christmas movie in the traditional sense of Santa Clause, reindeer, or talking snowmen, it does in fact take place during that magical time of year.

The movie centers around Meredith Morton (Sarah Jessica Parker) coming to spend Christmas with her boyfriend (Dermot Mulroney) at his family’s house. Now, let it be known that this is no ordinary family. The matriarch of the Stone household is none other than Diane Keaton, a sassy and prying practical joker who holds the household together. Rachel McAdams plays Amy Stone, a feisty and insecure young beauty. Luke Wilson is Ben Stone, the free spirited brother who eats pot brownies with dad and speaks in the manner of Jeff Spicoli, had he ever had time to distance himself from his teen years and mellow out a bit.

Of course, Meredith is the oddball. She is uptight, overly proper, and acts as if though a pantsuit is the appropriate attire for every occasion. She always says the wrong things, reacts the wrong way, and has an annoying habit of clearing her throat. Dermot Mulroney, Everett Stone, is effortlessly charming, laid back, and confident in social situations. So naturally, things go slightly downhill when the entire family wonders what they are doing together and why he would ever want to propose to her. And once Meredith calls her sister (Claire Danes) to come rescue her, the scales really tip in favor of promiscuity, hilarity, and sheer slapstick scenes of fighting brothers and kitchen mayhem.

This is indeed a comedy, but not on the level of Meet the Parents—hence, no one milks a cat. In fact, there are many tender, touching, and tear-inducing moments. Brothers switch lovers, mom has breast cancer, and dad (Craig T. Nelson) has an outburst at the dinner table that made me feel uncomfortable enough to turn away from the screen. However, the outburst wasn’t half as bad as what Meredith said to set things off. Talk about a dinner scene!

This is the type of movie that can really make you appreciate family and Christmas. Every time the credits roll, I feel a sort of bittersweet longing for Christmas shenanigans and holiday disasters. It’s as if I actually want my mom to embarrass me in front of my girlfriend. And, depending on how you look at it, the ending of this film is either uplifting or sad. Still, don’t let the possibility for one sad event scare you away from this quirky tale of a unique family.