When it comes to movies that involve family gatherings of any kind, whether it be while some family members are traveling together, getting together for the holidays, or some other event, it can only be a matter of time before something goes wrong. Usually, it’s because of one person that begins a cascading effect that turns said family gathering upside down.
Today, we’ll be looking at several characters from different movies that caused a family event to get messed up quite quickly.
When Violet Insults Everyone (August: Osage County)
August: Osage County is based on the play of the same name and is all about a family reunion that turns out wrong. While there are plenty of moments that you could pinpoint from this movie that turn the family gathering sour after their patriarch vanishes, I would point out that Violet insults and embarrasses every family member while under the influence, which later leads to several fights down the line.
When Christian Made Jokes At Helge’s Birthday Dinner (The Celebration)
The Celebration is a Danish film about a family gathering to celebrate their father’s 60th birthday, but most of these people do not fit well together. The moment from this film I’d point out is when Christian, the eldest son of the family, decides to make jokes during his toast to his father, some of which involve abuse, and many aren’t sure if they’re really jokes or not. Tensions rise not that long after.
Kym And Rachel’s Fight At The Rehearsal Dinner (Rachel Getting Married)
Rachel Getting Married is an excellent Anne Hathaway movie where movie lovers get to see her perform so well, and her scene with Rosemarie DeWitt is one of the most heated fight scenes I’ve seen between sisters. The film follows Kym and her sister, Rachel, who have a deep rift between them due to Kym’s self-destructive behavior, which comes to a head at the rehearsal dinner – and later leads to more issues for their family’s wedding.
Dan And Marie’s Kiss – Prior To Dan’s Family Appearing (Dan In Real Life)
Dan and Marie’s kiss in Dan in Real Life is arguably the moment that escalated the quickest. While viewers can see the building tension between Dan and Marie, when they finally kiss, all hell breaks loose when Dan’s entire family arrives to bowl at the same bowling alley they were at, and Mitch (Marie’s boyfriend and Dan’s brother) punches Dan.
Buzz Bullying Kevin – Which Leads To Kevin Pushing Buzz (Home Alone)
Home Alone is one of the best Christmas movies of all time, but it never would have started if not for this moment. When Kevin and his family are in the kitchen eating pizza the night before a big trip, Buzz bullies Kevin, saying he ate all of Kevin’s pizza. Kevin pushes him, which leads to drinks spilling on food, the plane tickets, and so much more.
Kevin Hitting Buzz After He Teases Him During A School Concert (Home Alone 2: Lost In New York)
Home Alone 2: Lost in New York features Buzz and Kevin in the same school choir – which is strange, considering Buzz seems considerably older than Kevin. Either way, Buzz teases Kevin mid-concert, and Kevin doesn’t put up with it and decides to push Buzz down – which starts a domino effect and knocks every choir member off the stands.
The Entirety Of Death At A Funeral
Death at a Funeral doesn’t just have a moment that ruins a family event – it is the moment—the entire movie. From the opening minutes, there are so many instances that ruin this family gathering, but if I had to pick one, I’d say the moment a literal body falls out of the coffin, and everyone freaks out about it.
Annie’s Tantrum At The Bridal Shower (Bridesmaids)
Bridesmaids is one of the best Paul Feig movies and is hilarious in many ways. Annie, played by Kristen Wiig, has been getting pretty upset throughout the film with Helen continuously upstaging her in preparing for Lillian’s wedding, and the luxurious bridal shower is the straw that breaks the camel’s back. Lillian ends their friendship afterward – for the time being. The movie still works so many years later.
When Jacob And Hannah Show Up At The Family Gathering (Crazy, Stupid Love)
Crazy, Stupid, Love is a great film showing how small the world can be sometimes. The moment when Jacob and Hannah arrive at a family gathering, and Cal realizes that Jacob (the person helping him try to pick up women) is dating his daughter, is hilarious. And from there, it all goes downhill in a comical fashion.
When The Brothers Fight On The Train (The Darjeeling Limited)
I’ve watched every Wes Anderson movie, and The Darjeeling Limited surprised me with how much I liked it, mainly because of the three brothers. Throughout the film, the tension rises between them as they travel until it ultimately breaks into a fight on a train. This, in turn, leads to them getting thrown off.
When Paige Tells Her Family She Doesn’t Want To Wrestle Anymore (Fighting With My Family)
Fighting With My Family is another underrated movie on this list, featuring Florence Pugh in a significant role. In this film, we mainly follow a family of wrestlers, and one of them, Paige, decides to quit because she doesn’t think the professional career is worth it. She decides to tell them this during a family dinner – and later, it leads to her older brother, Zak, facing her in the ring to fight her for that, causing more tensions to rise.
Micky And Dicky’s Spar (The Fighter)
Starring Mark Wahlberg and Christian Bale, The Fighter is all about fighting, but the one moment I point to is when Micky and Dicky, the prominent brothers we follow in the film, fight. It’s an arranged match, but it’s brutal and leads to a fight between Micky and his mother, saying that she always favored Dicky over him.
Uncle Lewis Burns Down The Christmas Tree (National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation)
National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation is another one of the best Christmas movies out there, and there are plenty of moments during that film I could point to that lead to family events turning disastrous. But I think the one we need to talk about is when Uncle Lewis accidentally burns down their Christmas tree – but I’ll say the cat getting electrocuted is a good runner-up.
Harlan’s Death (Knives Out)
Knives Out is another film that’s all about a family gathering, but this time, murder is involved. What starts this movie is Harlan’s death, the patriarch of the family, which is the moment that sends this family gathering into a tailspin – and introduces folks to the excellent Benoit Blanc.
Geun-sae Stabs Ki-jung (Parasite)
Parasite won the Academy Award for Best Picture in 2020, and it’s understandable as to why. This moment occurs at the movie’s end, when a family birthday party occurs. But at that moment, Geun-sae can leave the confines of the family’s basement, and he stabs Ki-jung in front of everyone. This leads to panic – and more murder later on.
The Fight At The Dinner Table (The Incredibles)
If you want to talk about the best Pixar films, The Incredibles ranks high, if not just for the family dynamic. While their dinner together isn’t necessarily an “event,” it’s a gathering that establishes how the family works. This dinner goes downhill fast when they discuss Dash’s powers at school – this, in turn, leads to a massive fight down the line where superpowers need to be used to calm people down.
When The Family Members Get Into A Fight About Money (Nebraska)
Filmed in black-and-white, Nebraska is the classic tale of what money will do to people when an elderly Montana man wins the lottery, and his family all want a piece of it. The film is slow to elevate its conflict, but once it gets there, it continues. The moment that really sets everything in motion is when several family members decide to pay Woody a visit because they believe he owes them money.
Krisha Arriving For Thanksgiving (Krisha)
Krisha is an example of a film where the main character really sends everything topsy-turvy. Played by Krisha Fairchild, the movie tells the story of a woman who tries to make amends with her family after years of addiction. Still, when she arrives for Thanksgiving Day, everything begins to trend downhill.
Dwayne Snapping At His Family (Little Miss Sunshine)
Little Miss Sunshine is a tragic movie about a family gathering in a van for a road trip to get across the country for a beauty pageant. Many moments in this film could make the list. However, Dwayne snapping at his family after everything they had been through on this trip (including the death of a family member) and screaming about how he hates them is undoubtedly one that causes the mood to shift dramatically and stands at the top.
Billi’s Disagreement (The Farewell)
The Farewell is one to watch if you like Awkwafina, featuring one of her best acting performances. In this, her character, Billi, is the person who messes up a lot of what is going on specifically because she does not believe that what they are doing to Na-Na (hiding her illness from her) is correct. This leads to clashing with family.
Eli Crashes His Car Into The House (The Royal Tenenbaums)
Plenty of moments in The Royal Tenenbaums could appear on this list since they are an exciting family. Still, we’d have to give it to the moment that Eli crashes his car into a house while under the influence, which leads to not only a dog getting killed but fights later on.
Junon’s Diagnosis, Which Leads To People Not Wanting To Take Blood Tests (A Christmas Tale)
A Christmas Tale is about a gathering during Christmas that turns sour when the matriarch reveals that she has blood cancer and will die unless she is given a bone marrow transplant. So, when she brings this up to her family, it causes turmoil very quickly, with secrets coming out not that long after about how they really feel about her, as well as this family unit.
Daniel Switching In And Out Of Mrs. Doubfire During The Dinner (Mrs. Doubtfire)
Mrs. Doubtfire is one of Robin Williams’ best movies. While it’s hilarious to see him switch out of character as Mrs. Doubtfire, it’s during the family birthday dinner that everything really goes downhill. Running back and forth causes strain on his disguise, and it melts off, revealing who is genuinely underneath the kind nanny’s face. Miranda is outraged.
Miguel Begins To Play Guitar (Coco)
Coco is one of my favorite Pixar movies, but no one can deny that this moment is truly what sent Miguel searching for a guitar and sending him to the other side. His playing of the guitar in front of his family, who had strictly banned music, led to his abuelita getting incredibly angry and smashing his guitar. El Día de los Muertos was effectively ruined after that.
Merida Shooting For Her Own Hand (Brave)
Brave doesn’t get enough love, and Merida is a great princess because she stands for what she believes in. But she does ruin these games when she decides to fight for her own hand in marriage – and knocks it out of the park with her archery skills. But in her mother’s eyes, she shamed the family at that moment, which led to tensions rising.
Ember’s Fiery Outburst, Which Ruins The Yearly Sale On Her Family’s Store (Elemental)
Ember from the Pixar film Elemental has a temper that is an integral part of her story, and in the beginning of the film, her getting overwhelmed by customers at her family’s annual sale is what leads to her letting her fiery temper out in the basement, away from everyone. But it’s this moment that leads to the pipes bursting – and later meeting Wade, but she did end up messing up the sale and the store.
Ralphie Curses (A Christmas Story)
I’m pretty sure every person who has seen A Christmas Story remembers this moment. The family of the iconic Christmas movie just got back from getting a tree, but when Ralphie goes out to help his father when the car blows a tire and he lets an F-bomb slip, the mood is ruined, and he is punished with soap in his mouth.
Nic Finds Traces Of Jule’s Hair In Paul’s Bedroom (The Kids Are All Right)
The Kids Are All Right is a great film that tells the story of two families colliding when a child wants to find their biological father after being conceived using a sperm donor. But when an affair begins, and Nic (Annette Bening) finds out about it from discovering Jule’s (Julianne Moore) hair (her wife) in Paul’s (Mark Ruffalo) bedroom, it leads to tensions rising and any nice dinner turning sour.
Wendy Forces Judd To Tell The Truth About His Wife’s Affair (This Is Where I Leave You)
This Is Where I Leave You is a film directed by Shawn Levy about a family gathering where siblings come back together when their father passes and are forced to reside in the same home. It’s during a family gathering that Wendy forces her brother to admit that an affair is happening with his wife and then everything goes downhill from there.
The Power Goes Out (The Humans)
The A24 film The Humans, is all about a family telling each other how they feel on Thanksgiving. Tensions rise even quicker once the power goes out, where bombshells are thrown. But plenty of moments before led to the family fighting against each other, too. I love the power going out, though.
Harper And Sloane’s Fight (Happiest Season)
Happiest Season is a tremendous modern-day Christmas movie with LGBTQ+ themes, and the moment that leads to things falling apart is when Harper and Sloane (two sisters) get into a fight. This later leads to Sloane outing Harper as a lesbian.
Jackson Confesses His Feelings At Thanksgiving (Holidate)
The worst time to confess feelings is at Thanksgiving dinner, and Jackson in Holidate does that to Sloane, which leads to a big, intense fight that ruins the dinner – even if they make up later in the film.
There are so many movies with crazy moments that ruin family events, but these are just some of the most memorable. I’m sure there will be even more to add to this list as time passes.
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Khushi Patel is a science fiction author who lives in Austin, Texas. She has published three novels, and her work has been praised for its originality and imagination. Khushi is a graduate of Rice University, and she has worked as a software engineer. She is a member of the Science Fiction Writers of America, and her books have been nominated for several awards.
