Well its Christmas again and this movie is about good old Santa himself. This film covers the origins of the great fella and then tells another story. Starring Dudley Moore, John Lithgow & David Huddleston it was released way back in 1985 and flopped at the box office as people didn’t want to believe in the tag line of seeing is believing. I have to confess here that the 70% score comes from the first half of the movie rather than the second. Ok so let’s get into it then shall we...
Way back even further than 1984 was the 14th Century a carpenter and his wife who used to deliver gifts to the local village children. Randomly one night he and his wife along with their two Donner and Blitzen are caught in a blizzard and are struggling against the cold weather. They are rescued by non-other than elves and are taken to top of the world (can you see where this is going?). Their arrival is expected by the elves and they are very welcomed. They are told (by the elves) that they are legends and its destiny to be delivering toys to all the children of the world which the elves will make in their large workshop. The reindeers were rescued as well and are now joined by the others. If you don’t know their names then shame on you coz I ain’t saying here!
Many hundreds of years pass without any major incidents and Santa is becoming exhausted by all the extra work that has come his way over the centuries. Patch the elf has invented a radical machine which wins him the position of Mrs Claus’ assistant. Unfortunately, his wonderful machines start producing shoddy work and the toys start falling about and being completely ashamed he quits his job and leaves. He goes to New York where Santa was showing off to some home kid the night before. Believing that some dodgy toy makers are in fact great toy makers Patch (did I mention that Patch is Dudley Moore yet – wh-oops sorry!!) [Patch is played by Dudley Moore] and decides to join them. In an attempt to secretly impress Santa patch works with BJ erm BZ the evil business owner to build a hover craft flying kids and reindeers to make a Christmas 2 in March. BZ is wanting to be the new Santa not to be kind but to be famous. With everything going against the big guy and the big day how will he compete with the Patchmobile super-craft and all-purpose high-tech modern factory how will Santa & Christmas be saved?
Well I have tried to hype this up and I have inflated the score based on nostalgia and the whole beginning of the film and this is one of the movies that plays Father Christmas with a straight bat he isn’t lazy, crazy or a drug addicted wreck of a man desperately trying to cling to reality – sorry I must watched some pretty weird shit! Sorry I digress. This is a nice warm cosy blanket to wrap around you on a mid-December weekend morning. Unfortunately the end is a typical 80’s kids movie with good v’s evil and the bad seeing the errors of their ways and everyone living happily ever after which is probably why this is not the classic movie it should be and why kids don’t flock to it each year but get bored about the same point I did and they drift off to play on their phones or Pitch or Swindendo.
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