You hurt my heart, OP, because I have the same objection to As Good As It Gets, where Nicholson plays a person whose big problemo is NOT OCD, it's the fact that he's a total jerk who LOVES being mean as a junkyard dog. At the end of the movie, he undeservedly ends up with all good things.
But I love, love, love this movie because you do want some sentiment at Christmas and this movie--for me--delivers that without being schmaltzy. So the difference is maybe that Ben's character is not mean, though he is cold. Let's face it, he's alone at Christmas because, really, he's alone the other 364 (or 365 in a leap year!) days as well. He just covers it up better on the other days. And this Christmas, this family does bring him out of himself just as much as Tiny Tim's future death brings Scrooge out of himself.
The little throwaway scene at the end where they're all at the "pancake house" tears me up every time! That's healing, folks.
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