Tim Allen plays Scott Calvin; a successful advertising executive for a toy company, but he’s also a divorced workaholic Father who neglects his only son Charlie (Eric Lloyd). As Charlie's Mother Laura (Wendy Crewson) and his step-Dad Neil (Judge Reinhold) go out to spend Christmas Eve with Neil's family, Charlie is left to spend Christmas Eve with his Father. In the middle of the night, Scott and Charlie are awaken by sounds on the roof, and as Scott goes out to investigate he accidentally startles the man on his roof who is dressed up as Santa Claus which causes him to fall off the roof and kill himself (or most likely knocked-out or pretending to be dead, since he does move later on in the scene). It turns out that the guy who fell off the roof really was Santa, but as Scott is in denial of everything he sees, he decides to put on the Santa Suit, drive the sleigh, and finish the job at delivering presents to the children all around the world (or just the children in the city of Chicago, since we never see him fly anywhere else, unless if Chicago was Santa’s last stop) at the request of his son to make him feel better. But after arriving at the North Pole with his son, Scott finds out from the head Elf Bernard (David Krumholtz) that ever since Scott put on the suit and started driving the sleigh to deliver the presents, he has accepted the "Santa Clause" (yes with an E) and has to from now on take on the role as Santa, but is given 11 Months time to get his affairs in order before reporting back. On Christmas morning Scott awakens in his own bed, and denies everything that he saw and witnessed by claiming it all to be a dream. But as the year progresses, Scott slowly finds himself turning into Santa Claus by having a craving for Milk and Cookies, gaining some weight over night, discovering that his hair is suddenly turning white, and grows a beard that will just keeping growing back no matter how many times he shaves it off! As all this is going on, Charlie being a witness to the whole situation that Scott gets himself into, tries to convince everybody that he's Santa (including his Dad) and that everything was true, but of course nobody believes him and since Scott can't change his look no matter how hard he tries, Laura and Neil think that Scott has gone insane and find it to be unhealthy for Charlie to hang around with his Father. Ok so aside from this creative and interesting set-up; we all are familiar with this plot and know how it's going to end and what we are going to learn from it that previous Christmas stories, films, and Specials have (and even still to this day) already taught us. However, despite how cliche and predictable the film's plot is, is there enough good material to make you go along with it's cliched plot; ON WITH THE REVIEW!
The choice of casting Tim Allen as the lead was a choice that people were very iffy about when going into this movie at the time of its release. They knew that he can carry out a TV sitcom fine, but for a full length feature film that's goes above the half hour mark for an episode of a TV show, where the comedy in the film is there, but is being played more on fantasy and emotional sentimentality instead of laughs; nobody was sure if Allen could entertain them for a full hour and 30 minutes and carry out the comedy, innocence, and emotions that Disney as well as Christmas films in general are usually known for successfully carrying out, especially when considering that he’s going to be Santa Claus in this movie. It was also weird for Disney to even consider hiring Allen to play the part as the lead since Allen has a criminal record for possessing cocaine, in which the Disney Company has a firm policy against hiring ex-cons, and yet they made the exception to star him in the movie anyway. So the idea of Disney breaking a policy that they have been strict about until this point for a Sitcom actor who hasn't starred in a film yet and has to convey both comedy and emotion, for many people at the time seemed that the Disney Company have either lost their minds, or that they just don't give a crap about the movie. But as it turns out, Tim Allen and Disney did prove to audiences that Allen was the perfect casting choice for this movie and that he can carry out a whole hour and a half movie that involves emotional investment.
In my personal opinion, just like the many of you that probably watch this movie every year, I agree wholeheartedly that Allen can not only prove that he can carry out a whole entire movie in his film debut, but without him the film probably wouldn't be as enjoyable. He does carry a charm and presence that matches the film's whimsical and comical nature flawlessly. While Allen is a lot of fun to watch, especially in the earlier scenes of the movie like when he's failing to provide his son a nice Christmas Dinner, or the whole entire sequence when he has to fill in for the Santa that just fell off his roof for example, the scenes that really impress me the most are when he fully becomes Santa. Granted he still comes across as his old Tim Allen self instead of portraying a man who's now acting and behaving like Jolly Old Saint Nick (seriously, he hardly ever Ho-Ho-Hos), but he still does make for a really charming Santa. You sense how much he cares for the children. He has the subtlety of the Santa that we all know and love in a few scenes, especially in the scene when he greets the little girl who he previously encountered when he first took on the job. And every time I look at him, even though I see Allen's personality underneath the Make-Up and suit, I still can't help but see him as the big man himself.
Out of everything I just mentioned about Allen when he fully becomes Santa, the major reason that impresses me about his performance is how he carries out the film's the sad and sentimental moments. As predictable as the plot is, the emotional core does stand-out strong! It never once feels corny or phoned in to play out for tears, it actually does feel emotionally legit. Scenes like when he finds out that he can't see his son again, or when he has to say goodbye to his family to carry out his duty as the new Santa Claus, I never once felt like he was acting, I did feel sad for him, as well as the characters around him. Actually the actors that play his Family are just as good as Allen’s performance. They’re not as fun as Allen’s performance, but they too give their character an innocent likable charm that doesn't feel corny, as they convey their emotions just as effectively as Allen does. Wendy Crewson as the Mother does a great job with the emotional sentimentality, unlike her corny Soap Opera like performance in the last film that she was in. Eric Lloyd as the son Charlie is surprisingly a good actor, who hardly ever seems like that he's obviously acting like most child stars. And even Judge Reinhold, despite given almost little to no humor to work with (though his character is given a desperate bad sweater running gag) he still fits the role of Charlie's step-Dad perfectly, which the character himself is actually likable and does mean well, instead of being a forced one dimensional antagonist. The chemistry and interaction that they have together on-screen to me hardly ever feels that they're actors playing on the Disney friendly family element, or are forcing these dramatic moments. I actually feel like that they are a family that is going through issues, despite how unrealistic the film's set-up is. And when I see them actually being happy for one another, or feeling sad that they may part as a family for good, I actually do get a strong emotional attachment to how these characters are feeling.
Every time I watch this movie, the highlights in the film that I really enjoy and think where the magical and whimsical element of the film is at its best is every single scene that takes place at the North Pole. I’ll admit, much like how I felt about Neverland in the film "Hook", a part of me does wish that I saw more of the North Pole instead of being mostly limited to inside the Workshop which is obviously a set. But with that said, what we do see of the North Pole is honestly just how I would picture it to be. It looks as colorful as the auroras that you would see in the arctic. We get a beautiful view of what the rest of The North Pole looks like with some creative visuals that are blink and miss. The magical surprises that we do get to see at the North Pole are a lot fun. And the despite that everything is obviously a set, it's still a gigantic looking set that's given plenty of personality! What really makes the North Pole so charming and magical is the choice of casting kids to play the Elves. I do think little people can play the role of jolly Elves perfectly, but let’s be honest, as cute and jolly as little people can be as Elves, they can't capture it as sweet and innocent as a kid can. I mean just looking at them in their little Elf costumes with their cool pointy ears as they prance around the North Pole giggling, making toys, and having fun, is just too cute for you to not enjoy it. Even the kids themselves aren't bad actors either. Obviously the best and most memorable Elf out of all the Elves that the characters meet is David Krumholtz as the head Elf Bernard, who instead of being played by a kid, he is instead being played by a teenager, which must mean that his character is the oldest Elf out of all them, which is pretty clever if you ask me, and Krumholtz as the head Elf walks a very fine line of being tough, snarky, and aggressive, but yet still coming off as caring, nice, and humorous. Interesting enough, for those of you who've seen the movie multiple times, here's an Easter egg you may not have noticed. You may have noticed a few of the Elves standing with a group of people in Scott's neighborhood when the film is near it's end, but what you may not have noticed is all those Elves that appear in that scene were already seen in the background and sometimes in the foreground in earlier scenes throughout the movie that take place outside of the North Pole, who are undoubtedly on some kind of job (which is a mystery that has lead to many different theories by fans of the film). Be sure to keep a sharp eye out for them when you watch the film see again.
What I also give the film serious props for is answering the questions that we have with Santa such as how can he fit through chimneys; how he's able to visit people who don't have fire places; and how his sack manages to carry all those toys for children around the world. Sure there are many other Christmas films out there that explain how Santa does his job in many different ways that may have probably answered the questions before this film has, but either way the film's explanation for these things are still very smart and imaginative, as well as having a set-up that's (for the most part) a new and original take on the Santa Claus mythos. Now does this film finally explain the plot hole of the people who don't believe in Santa never questioning or never being shocked about finding presents underneath their tree on Christmas morning, which is a plot hole that's in every single story about people having trouble in believing in Santa? No, but it's one of those things that many of us overlook to get to the good stuff, even if that piece of logic doesn't make any sense. It's just suspension of disbelief at its finest, and I won't hold that plot hole against any of the films that involve Santa in the future. Though I would love to see a film or Christmas Special someday fill in this common plot hole that is if that plot hole hasn't already been answered. When it comes to Special Effects in the movie, they are for the most part good. The Make-Up on Allen is convincing. The pointy ears on the Elves blend in well. The puppetry effects for the reindeer when the actors are interacting with them up close look realistic (Unlike the cartoony CGI Reindeer in the later films). And the digital effects for when Allen goes down the chimney and when the reindeer are flying, despite that you can tell they were done by computers still look fun to look at as they wonderfully blend in with the film's magical look and feel fine. I also give the director credit for having the scenes with the reindeer flying to have them for the most part be shot a few distances away to make it less obvious that the Reindeers are in CG when they fly. Outside of the scenes that take place at The North Pole, the overall Christmas look that the film has does look beautiful and authentic. Though as beautiful as the film looks, I don't think that Christmas feel wouldn't be complete if it wasn't for the film's score. I love the film's opening Jazz instrumental of "Oh Christmas Tree" that's played during a party at the Office building where Scott works at, that's suddenly followed by a group of Carolers singing a beautiful rendition of "Carol Of The Bells" with wonderful Christmas visuals of the town and neighborhood where Scott lives. The choice of original recording of Christmas songs are good (especially the choice of playing "The Drifters" cover of "White Christmas" that's heard a few times in the film). The Christmas songs that were made for the film such as "Christmas Will Return" and "The Bells Of Christmas" are nice. The music for whenever Scott and Charlie are flying in the sleigh sounds big and exciting. And the use of chimes that's heard throughout the film really enhances the film's magical Christmas feel.
If I had any major problems with the film, I do have to say that the second act to the film is not as good or as fun as its first and third act. Once Scott and Charlie leave the North Pole that's when the film starts moving pretty slow. Sure it does have some good moments that me made laugh (like the mirror scene after when Allen shaves; his heart beating the tune of "Jingle Bells"; and the kids suddenly lining up to sit on Scott's lap to tell him what they want); and the stuff in the second act are needed to move the story forward. But most of the jokes in the second act fall flat and at times feel awkward instead of funny. The emotions that the characters have are there and you do feel bad for them but there's way too many scenes of dialogue about child separation and Charlie trying to tell everyone that Santa is real that move very slow for a Christmas film by Disney. And the overall look and feel during the middle of the film is pretty bland. Is the second act unwatchable, no but it's certainly not as fun, magical, or engaging as the beginning and end. Once Bernard appears to take Scott and Charlie back to the North Pole that's when things suddenly get good again where it's back to being delightfully entertaining, that still saves enough room for some sad and mystical moments.
I'll admit that the film is not a masterpiece because there are scenes that slow the film down that go on way too long. The jokes, while most of them are enjoyable, there are not only a good chunk of them that don't work, but the film's sense of humor really isn't all that funny, or as a die hard funny as you'd think it'd be. And as nice as the film's look and atmosphere is, is it just me or does the film look or feel like a film made for TV like ABC or Disney Channel just done with a bigger budge? But as weak as some aspects of the film are, which are at their weakest in the film's second act, the film overall still holds up. The casting is spot on (especially Tim Allen as our lead and casting kids as Elves). The premise as predictable as it is still has tons of imagination and heart put into it. The film's Christmas look and feel is solid. The effects are good. The humor while not all that funny its still good enough for it to be enjoyable enough to keep you entertained and give you a good occasional chuckle. And the scenes that take place at the North Pole get better and better by each viewing. Honestly, if the humor was a little funnier since you have a comedian as your lead, or if the middle of the film was just as solid as the first and last half of the movie, it would honestly get my 5/5 out of rating. But for the things that I did fault it for, it's going to have to settle for my second best rating.
RATING 4/5
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