Co-writer and director Gurinder Chadha brings a sympathetic outsider's eye to the stories of the four families, emphasizing their similarities more than their differences. All four of the families love each other, keep secrets from each other, want acceptance from each other, and drive each other crazy, just like everyone else. As one character says, "I guess you can't call it a family if someone isn't speaking to someone else."
Chadha handles the multiple story lines and large cast with an expert hand, cutting back and forth to underscore the similarities and the differences. We see potatoes prepared by hand, mixer, spoon, and food processor and the assortment of turkey presentations is one of the movie's best treats. Chadha has a good feel for American diversity. The stories can get a bit melodramatic, especially a close encounter with a gun near the end of the movie, and the stories veer from archetype to stereotype at times. But there is much to enjoy in its situations, characters, and performances (especially by Woodard and Ruehl), and it holds a lot of promise for future projects by Chadha.