A Miser Brothers' Christmas

Maybe "Anyone Can Be Santa" but not anyone can be Rankin/Bass! Though it (very poorly) replicates characters and stop-motion animation style from a R/B special, it does not not reproduce their knack for warm storytelling, enchanting character and set designs or fanciful catchy songs. The scenes involving Heatmiser and Snowmiser, along with the rest of the Mother Nature family are actually quite tolerable and work the best. Even their newly introduced bad-guy brother, North Wind is kinda cool. It's everything outside of that that stinks and stinks hard. Why they chose to drastically change the look of every character (and not for the better) other than the Miser Brothers is beyond me! The new elves are particularly annoying and bland. They totally dissed Jingle and Jangle. And just who are these bland imposters posing as Mr and Mrs Claus?! Everything in this one looks cheap cheap cheap ... and sounds! ... like a cheese grater on your ears! The songs are the worst part - scratchy annoying kids voices akin to a kindergarten class en-un-ci-at-ing each syl-la-ble to a song they are forced to sing in a school play backed by cheap electronic music. You can't even compare that to the wonderful, lush orchestrations by Maury Laws and co that populated the R/B classics. Just stick with the original Year Without A Santa Claus (and avoid that poor live-action remake as well!) Though this may be tempting to those aching to see more Heatmiser and Snowmiser ,watching this sequel will leave you feeling as you do when you have that extra hunk of cake that you really did not need or want.

As with practically every TV show and movie, when you try to resurrect characters years later, the efforts are usually pretty pale imitations of the original. Some examples are the new Indiana Jones movie, the latest Star Wars films and attempts to revive the TV show "The Odd Couple". If I really thought about it, I am sure I could create a very long list of such misses--and you could as well.

Well, in this same tradition, two somewhat obscure characters from the Rankin-Bass special, THE YEAR WITHOUT A SANTA CLAUS (1974) debuted--the Heat Miser and Snow Miser. They were great characters for kids and when I recently saw this old TV special again, I still enjoyed their antics. When my daughter found out that these two guys were returning for a NEW special, she insisted we watch it.

The show is once again nominally about Santa Claus and through some intrigue that I could care less about, the evil North Wind is intent on destroying Santa and it's up to the two feuding Misers to make up and work together for the good of Christmas. In addition there are a whole host of immortals who control earthquakes, nature and head lice (I made that one up). This is all rather odd, I grant you. The problem is that not only are these new characters rather boring, but as a result of all this silly mumbo-jumbo, this hardly seems like a Christmas special at all! Additionally, the old Rankin-Bass stop-motion style has been replaced with a nice looking but noticeably different CG animation that is meant to mimic stop-motion. So, in other words, they deliberately made the characters move in a jerky fashion to imitate the old film. But, try as they might, it didn't look like the old film but this wasn't nearly the problem that the insipid story posed to the production.

As far as the voice talents go, most of the original cast had either died or perhaps weren't interested other than Mickey Rooney who once again plays Santa. You can't blame them for not getting Shirley Booth or Dick Shawn since they were dead, but it was terribly obviously different if you watched this immediately after seeing THE YEAR WITHOUT A SANTA CLAUS. Mrs. Claus, in addition to a different voice, has been replaced with a younger and sexier new Mrs. Claus! The bottom line is that a bad story and too many changes result in a movie that the kids might like but parents will find tough going. Watchable, but just barely.

BEWARE OF FALSE REVIEWS & REVIEWERS. SOME REVIEWERS HAVE ONLY ONE REVIEW TO THEIR NAME. NOW WHEN ITS A POSITIVE REVIEW THAT TELLS ME THEY WERE INVOLVED WITH THE MOVIE. IF ITS A NEGATIVE REVIEW THEN THEY MIGHT HAVE A GRUDGE AGAINST THE FILM . NOW I HAVE REVIEWED OVER 300 HOLIDAY FILMS & SPECIALS. I HAVE NO AGENDA.

Mickey Rooney and George S. Irving reprises their respective roles as Santa Claus and Heat Miserat ages 88 and 86 Snow Miser, originally portrayed by Dick Shawn who died in 1987, was voiced by Juan Chioran, while Mrs. Claus, voiced by Shirley Booth in the original, was portrayed by Catherine Disher (because Booth had died in 1992). The movie aimed to emulate the Rankin/Bass animation style. This is the last Christmas special to feature Mickey Rooney as Santa Claus, as he died in 2014, as well as the last time George Irving voiced Heat Miser, as he died in 2016.

The plot is that the feuding Miser Brothers attend their family reunion with Mother Nature and their fellow siblings North Wind, Earthquake, Thunder and Lightning, and the Tides. North Wind passively asks Mother Nature what might happen if Santa would be unable to complete his duties on Christmas. She responds that North Wind would take control instead. Self-absorbed and vain, North Wind becomes fixated with the idea of replacing Santa Claus as a way to achieve personal glory.

This special was made because over the years the original "The Year without a Santa Claus" had become very popular. The original songs from that special "The Snow Miser Song" "The Heat Miser Song" are so popular that they were re-worked into this special.

Now this lacks the charm of the original. That film made the viewers that they were part of the plot. This special isolates the viewer so you have no connection to the outcome.

If you love the original then watch this but don't expect lighting to strike again.

My daughter loves it! Updated tale from the classic Year without a Santa Claus. Great lesson on cooperation! No matter what my brother says, this is a modern classic!

Finally, after 34 years, the brothers are BACK! Produced by Warner Brothers Animation, who hold the rights to the original Rankin/Bass classics, and Cuppa Coffee studios, this special turns the spotlight to the Misers, turning them into heroes. When Santa is outed with a bad back, the two brothers are forced to cooperate and deliver toys in the big man's place. While the Miser Brothers' mischief and constant bickering have been blamed for Mr. C's condition, this is truly the doing of the North Wind, a semi-dashing, conniving spirit who wants to take Christmas for himself. Now, the brothers must band together not only to do Santa's job, but save Christmas from their blustery windbag of a brother...pun GLADLY intended!

I must say I was ecstatic when I heard my favorite characters from The Year Without a Santa Claus would be getting the spotlight. While that is a good thing, I am kind of sad to say that it doesn't hold up as well as the original film from which they came. Granted there are some good things: George S. Irving and Mickey Rooney, both actors pushing 90 at the time, reprised their roles as Heat Miser and Santa Claus, respectively. Though sounding a bit aged, both held their own (Rooney and John Goodman have always been the best to portray The Big C, in my opinion), and that's pretty impressive. The new voice of Snow Miser, Juan Chiron, though different from the late Dick Shawn, was pretty darn good, maintaining Snowy's lighthearted demeanor. But, with every good thing, there must be a bad thing.

First of all, the plot is flimsy. We've seen it before, we'll probably see it again, but the writers could have been a little more original. Second, a lot of the voices are HORRIBLE. Mrs. Claus, for instance, was voiced by the late Shirley Booth in the original; and while I can't say that I particularly liked Booth's voice, at least it was tolerable. This version's Mrs. C was just ridiculous! The actress was just trying way too hard to impress the kiddies instead of the audience as a whole, which, to me, is what a family movie--or special, in this case--is truly about: finding something everyone can like. But, I digress. I also didn't really care for the North Wind. He was just a clichéd, full of himself villain, and while vanity is a good point for developing many villains, they could have made him a bit more threatening. Again, balance is essential for good family entertainment.

That being said, while the movie's condescending tone can grate on my nerves, I can say that the Misers themselves were still fun to watch and you should check it out. However, I do recommend the original 1974 movie, The Year Without a Santa Claus, being that it was a bit more enjoyable. You'll also understand the characters a little more after seeing it. But, still look at this special, as well. You'll still see that the brothers still got it!