THE SANTA CLAUSE
A film review by Andrew Hicks
Copyright 1996 Andrew Hicks / Fatboy Productions
(1994) **1/2 (out of four)
Tim Allen of "Home Improvement" stars in this winter's big family Christmas movie. At the beginning, jolly old St. Nick falls off Allen's roof on Christmas Eve. Santa agrees not to sue if Allen tries on his clothes and jumps in his sleigh. Sound like innocent family fun to you or a night at the all-male cinema? Just asking. Allen puts on the suit and is whisked away to the North Pole, where he meets the elves, who are actually just a bunch of kids who never grew up. In other words, the Hollywood script- writers responsible for this childish movie.
After a night of toy delivery, he turns up back in his own bed, convinced the whole thing was a dream brought on by some bad eggnog. However, he soons beginning gaining weight rapidly and sporting a thick gray mane and beard (so is this guy supposed to be metamorphosing into Santa Claus or Kenny Rogers?). The people around him think maybe it's a little weird that he's gained sixty pounds in a week and it doesn't help matters much when Allen's kid starts telling everyone his dad is the big S.
But Allen eventually comes to grips with his Santahood and convinces his ex-wife and her live-in psychiatrist boyfriend (this may be the first Disney movie where two characters are "shacked up," if you don't count those dwarves from SNOW WHITES, also reminiscent of a night at the all-male cinema) that he's not really insane. Sure, people ride around in sleighs driven by flying reindeer and slide down people's chimneys all the time. What, don't tell me I'm the only one!
At least in this movie the writers try to explain exactly how fat old Santa gets down all those chimneys and delivers all those toys in one night... even if it is a really stupid explanation. Thrown in a typical formulaic sappy and happy Michael Eisner ending and you've got a decent Christmas movie for the entire (dysfunctional) family.
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This review written December 1994.
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