I love this movie, I have watched it every Christmas since I can remember. The first half of the movie is just amazing and magical. Unfortunately, when it switches to the 1980s and introduces B.Z. it just goes downhill with a cheesy tacked on plot that makes very little sense. It's almost as if the writers were making two different movies then mashed them together.
shareYou're probably right, but John Lithgow makes the second half worthwhile. He looks like he's having a ball!
shareI only saw the second half last night. Now I am intrigued to see the first half. I have to say, John Lithgow is perfectly OVER-THE-TOP in the part I saw. I couldn't stop laughing at his idea of the public demanding a sequel to Christmas. Very funny idea that was way ahead of its time - MARCH 25TH!!!
shareAgreed. With both you and the OP. The second half is indeed a bit of a letdown, but like you say Lithgow really makes the second half worth watching with his over the top performance.
Poorly Lived and Poorly Died, Poorly Buried and No One Criedshare
The whole movie is gold. The Salkinds knew their $hit and injected that Superman-esque wonder, fun and fantasy element into the story of Santa Clause and in the process made a unique movie. One of the great Christmas movies. Had a great time, as always, watching this movie on the 24th - really gets the childhood memories of Christmas (and overall excitement) going.
Thank f-k for movies like this concentrating on the magic and imagination of Christmas only. I get bored of those freakin Home Alone movies about a little scumbag brutally torturing some half assed thieves. Can't understand why they get all the credit for being the go to festive films - they suck. This one's way better.
What Flavor Icee You Got Today?
I was reading this thread and watching the movie right when it fast forwards to the 1980s. Im kind of interested in seeing the A Team van, but I'm not sure I want to keep on watching now.
~After enjoying that movie, I figured I'd drop by IMDB to read about all of its problems.
The first half of the film is pure magic and aways gets me into the Christmas mood. However, when Patch leaves the North Pole I usually stop and watch the first half again. The second just isn't that great.
shareThe whole movie is clearly modeled after Superman the Movie. The 1st half isn't bad but I don't think David Huddleston is a very good actor. The 2nd half turns in to a bad 80's movie especially with the 80's depiction of big business.
shareCame here to make the same complaint. First 40 minutes are perfect Christmas movie viewing. Then the movie hits the modern era, and the entire story goes down the toilet. It basically turns into Wall Street, kids edition.
Suffice it to say, once I hit the 40 minute mark, I switch the movie off.
I love this film, i watched it last night funny enough - its my favorite film for Christmas & i watch it every year! John lithgow is amazing, he cracks me up every time - hes perfect for the part i love him.
''For Freeeeeeeeeeeeee'' hahahahahaha hysterical & his ''Uh Hu, Uh hu'' lines hahahaha it wouldnt be the same without him. Thsi film is a classic & i love it
yes I agree I always loved the first half but not so much the second half
shareI agree. The opening holds up pretty well, and the scene with the "Ancient Elf" is quite magical.But the second half - yeeah.
I will say that even though the fake reindeer looked pretty bad, I'll watch this thing again solely for the Ancient Elf *and* for some truly beautiful shots of the live reindeer pulling that sleigh. Wish they'd used the real creatures the whole time and improvised according to what they did. It would have been worth it.