Zampa 2 - I cuccioli di Natale

This is a lovely Christmas film, full of the Christmas spirit and magic.

Being Disney, there are some things that you expect, like a good story, with decent actors and actresses, and special effects that give Disney it's magical touch. You will not be disappointed in this movie. Unlike the lower budget movies where the animals talk without moving their mouths or even directing their speech, here you'll believe dogs and reindeer can speak. The voice actors carry the script and characterisation off very well

The secondary human actors also do a great job. To be honest I only watched this movie to see how Cheryl Ladd (Mrs. Clause) was doing, as she's a favourite actress of mine but I've not seen her in anything for a while. She's still beautiful - lucky Santa - and still a good actress. Her portrayal as the loving Mrs Clause was spot on.

Even though, this is a musical I found that the songs weren't too grating and the actress playing Sarah Reynolds, Kaitlyn Maher, has a wonderful voice.

I really enjoyed this tale and would recommend it to all, young and old alike.

Well, first - hallelujah! This is a Christmas movie that actually mentions, if only obliquely, the REAL reason for Christmas! No, not jolly family get-togethers and being nice to strangers and animals, but Christ! Although, as I say, the mentions are very oblique and shouldn't offend any atheists.

Second - oops! Kids and adults alike will be confused by this movie. Kids will be confused because the little girl playing the lead role, Sarah (who has a dad), is the same actor who played the lead in the first Santa Paws movie - only in that one, she played an orphan called Quinn. Sarah looks precisely the same as Quinn (perhaps a year or so older), and has an absolutely indistinguishable character from Quinn (naive and cuuuuuute).

Adults will be confused because one of the three erstwhile sexy Charlie's Angels, Cheryl Ladd, plays a relatively glamorous but unmistakably matronly Mrs Claus.

Otherwise - the plot is predictable and clichéd, but bearable. And the pups, of course, are gorgeous. Oh - and this time, the majority of them (three out of four) are ... prepare for a shock ... FEMALE. Disney must finally be learning. Took them long enough ...

When Mother Christmas travels to Pineville, the playful children run away from the sleigh. Taking the concept of mischief to a whole new level, they begin granting merry wishes to the boys and girls of Pineville, but something goes terribly wrong and the Christmas spirit begins to fade. Now the children and Mother Christmas must race to save Christmas around the world.

Much less interesting than the previous one, which at least involved three dramatic Christmas stories, including parental abandonment, abuse and adoption, here there is a lot of music, fluffy puppies, talking reindeer, but nothing contagious, quite the contrary, not very attractive and charming , despite the vibrant colors and cool Natalina theme... It reminded me a lot of the AirBubbies, I'm already tired of them...

Beyond ridiculous plot. Atrocious writing. Shamefully embarrassing acting. Fake sets and costumes. Silly and confusing additions to the Christmas mythology. How do these abominations get made? Everyone involved with this should be ashamed and deeply embarrassed to have been a part of it. Really great example of the vast chasm between good movies and bad. No kid should watch this.

This movie is all about some pups being taught some lessons since birth. Some of the lessons make them curious like the one about some magic crystals. They think that they are ready to be like their dad so they steal one from Eddie (the elf dog). At the same time Mrs. Claus is flying to town so they hitch a ride and want to try to grant wishes. They give some good wishes, but then they accidentally grant a very bad wish, and everyone starts to lose their Christmas spirit.

The main characters in the movie are Mrs. Claus, Eli (Santa's head Elf), The Reynolds family and the pups. My favorite character is Mrs. Claus because she cares a lot about others and loves all the Christmas spirit in the world. She is really good with kids and shows them all about Christmas spirit. I also really like the pups because they want to grant wishes, but it doesn't work out so well, so they have to help save Christmas for the world.

My favorite part in the movie is all the singing. I love movies that have a lot of music in them and I think that helps to make them more enjoyable to others too. The best musical number in the movie is when Mrs. Claus is in jail with some people she met and sings a really good song. It is so good it has been stuck in my head for three days! It makes me want to see the movie over and over again until I memorize the words.

I recommend this movie for all ages because it is a really good movie and I think everyone will like it. It has mostly singing that is all about Christmas, joy and cheer. I guess that there were some things that just might scare you but I think you will be alright. It is a really great holiday movie. Go out and buy this movie on DVD and Blu-ray now! Anthony Aranda, age 10, KIDS FIRST! Film Critic.

See Anthony's full review on video. http://www.youtube.com/watch? v=Vv5vimJ5b3g