O Vôo Mágico

The Christmas Secret was touted as a wonderful film, but I was truly disappointed. They even sold VHS and DVD copies of the film when it was over, which leads me to think the producers were really proud of this project. As a screen actor myself I felt most of the performances were phoned in, although Beau Bridges, as Nick, did have a moment or two. If I were Richard Thomas I would not put this film on my otherwise fine resume. It was an embarrassment. I had been a fan since his Waltons days, but have found myself untempted to watch any of his subsequent work, so poor was this offering.

In defence of the actors, the directing was stilted, mechanical, and thoroughly amateurish.

I hope this is not considered a spiteful review and negative assumptions made about my qualifications as a critic. I turned the movie on because it had a good cast and I was prepared to enjoy the film. However I would challenge any one out there to watch this film and not wish for their money back, even though it was on T.V.

I love this movie. I love it because it's different from all the other Christmas movies. Every Christmas movie you see these days is about how a jaded business executive travels to a town in the mountains to buy it out to make it a giant ski resort, with no regards for the townsfolk of said town. He/she bumps into someone who's got more Christmas spirit than my mother (which is impossible), and he/she makes the jaded exec see the error of his/her ways, and in the end saves the town from his/her evil company and gets the girl/guy. I just spoiled every Christmas movie out there, except for this one. So grab a cup of hot chocolate (put whipped cream on it for Pete's sake) sit back and enjoy this movie. It's fun, entertaining, and you'll find yourself saying "Hey, I know who that actor is!" more than once. Enjoy and Merry Christmas.

I was thoroughly enjoying "The Christmas Secret" until the explanation came up as to why Santa Clause distributed gifts. The story became so erroneous as to be offensive to me. Saint Nicholas was no legend, he was a real Bishop named Nicholas Klaas who was born of wealthy Christian parents in 270 A.D. in Turkey. His parents died in an epidemic while he was still a youth, he gave his life to Jesus and used his entire inheritance to care for children, the sick and the suffering as long as he lived. He wore the red robe of a holy Bishop and a black belt to keep it closed. He became known throughout Europe for his love, concern and generosity towards children and young adults. He also became the patron saint of sailors and voyagers. There is wonderful moral material that Bishop Klaas stands for. He performed many, many acts in secret, expecting nothing in return. Here in America, we call him Santa Clause which is our version of the Dutch Sinterklaas. He was single all his life and folklore has been added by every country. There is a real moral point to gift giving, by his example of giving to people in need, especially children and young adults, not to those already wealthy and greatly possessed. Saint Nicholas continues to be a model of compassion, love and concern as modeled by his teacher. He died on December 6, 343 A.D.

"Christmas Secret" was one of the most delightful Christmas specials aired on television for the 2000 holiday season. It is a production that the whole family can really enjoy and will please anyone except a confirmed Scrooge.

Without giving away too much of the plot, a college professor is given a book showing that reindeer can really fly. He sets out to discover if this is actually true. He ends up at Santa's workshop and becomes involved in a number of delightful situations.

Richard Thomas is wonderful as the professor grounding the fantasy elements in reality with his performance. Beau Bridges may seem to be an unusual choice for Santa, but as the story unfolds, he proves to be exactly right. Each of the characters fits their role like the proverbial glove.

CBS offered the production on tape during the telecast and I could not wait for mine to arrive. I have watched it numerous times during the year and find it more enjoyable with each viewing. There are wonderful sequences for children and many humorous ones for adults. It is a film for the entire family. I only wish it was also available on DVD. Currently it is only available directly from CBS.

For a delightful, magical holiday production, "Christmas Secret" really fills the bill.

What the previous reviewer neglected to mention is that the sets used for the film were magical, in particular Santa's village, perfect. just how you would imagine an old time Christmas village to be. The script wasn't great, the plot was a cute premise, but the sets were a triumph.