The Santa Clause

With great, funny holiday flicks like "The Christmas Story" and "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation", "The Santa Clause" is next on line to add laughs as the common sounds of Christmas other than jingling bells! Tim Allen is great in his movie debut as Scott, a toy salesman that owned the roof where Santa Claus fell from to his death! So in pleading cries from his young son, Scott puts on the late jolly-old-elf's suit and instantly becomes Santa, which insues problems to him, his ex-wife and her new boyfriend (played with annoying sarcasm by Judge Reinhold) and Scott's son. That's where the real chaos starts! > "The Santa Clause" is a great flick to watch on Christmas Eve. True, it can get too sentimental at times (Scott and his wife are battling for custody of their son. Remember "Kramer Vs Kramer" and "Over the Top"?!). But that surely fades away thanks to Tim Allen's antics. It'll make you wonder if Santa really is that clumsy!!

Tim Allen is a marvelous comic presence. But this all belongs to the producers and creators of this film. The script allows for an explanation why Allen becomes Santa Claus. He inadvertently causes the old guy to fall off the roof and the "clause" in the contract forces him to take over the job. He must put on the suit. What happens after this is the integration of Allen into the Santa Claus routine. He begins to get chubby. He gets rosy cheeks. The whole nine yards. He is taken to the North Pole after learning to drive the sleigh. He gets good at distributing presents. The hang up is parental rights to his son, Charley. Judge Reinholdt is the humorless new husband of Allen's former wife. The crazier Allen appears, the more it plays into Charley being kept from his father. An elf named Bernard (who has a Bronx accent) is Allen's right hand man, and he orchestrates things the way he wants them.

I remember the first time I saw the trailer for The Santa Clause. It was during the previews for The Lion King. As soon as the camera panned up from the snow globe to reveal Tim Allen, all the people in the theater began to laugh. This is a great, wholesome, funny flick that grown-ups and kidlets both can enjoy. Tim Allen was perfect to play the dad who becomes Santa, and I love when he burned the roast! I also thought the actor who played Bernard the elf was very funny and stole every scene he was in. And I especially enjoyed Judge Reinhold's turn as Neal Miller. I love the scene where he finally gets the hot dog whistle he'd wanted since he was a kid! Great holiday fun!

You have to believe, if you expect a Hollywood epic you're watching the wrong movie and would recommend a different movie. This is exactly the right movie for Christmas and fantasy, it's sincere and funny in all the right places. Fire up the fireplace make some popcorn curl up in front of the tv, you can't go wrong.

You are a Grinch of you don't like this movie. A true Christmas classic.