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IMDbPro

Must Be Santa

  • TV Movie
  • 1999
  • G
  • 2h
IMDb RATING
4.3/10
263
YOUR RATING
Dabney Coleman, Deanna Milligan, and Arnold Pinnock in Must Be Santa (1999)
ComedyDramaFantasy

Through a cosmic mix-up, a shiftless but good-hearted man is accidentally tagged to be the new Santa Claus after the old Santa dies. The gruff, no-nonsense manager of the North Pole is decid... Read allThrough a cosmic mix-up, a shiftless but good-hearted man is accidentally tagged to be the new Santa Claus after the old Santa dies. The gruff, no-nonsense manager of the North Pole is decidedly unhappy with the selectionThrough a cosmic mix-up, a shiftless but good-hearted man is accidentally tagged to be the new Santa Claus after the old Santa dies. The gruff, no-nonsense manager of the North Pole is decidedly unhappy with the selection

  • Director
    • Brad Turner
  • Writer
    • Douglas Bowie
  • Stars
    • Arnold Pinnock
    • Deanna Milligan
    • Dabney Coleman
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    4.3/10
    263
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Brad Turner
    • Writer
      • Douglas Bowie
    • Stars
      • Arnold Pinnock
      • Deanna Milligan
      • Dabney Coleman
    • 10User reviews
    • 1Critic review
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 1 win & 3 nominations total

    Photos2

    View Poster
    View Poster

    Top Cast35

    Edit
    Arnold Pinnock
    Arnold Pinnock
    • Floyd Court…
    Deanna Milligan
    Deanna Milligan
    • Natalie Fairlie
    Dabney Coleman
    Dabney Coleman
    • Tuttle
    Keenan Macwilliam
    Keenan Macwilliam
    • Heather
    Peter Millard
    Peter Millard
    • Farthing
    Brian Miranda
    • Carl
    Steven McCarthy
    Steven McCarthy
    • Yaz
    Gerard Parkes
    Gerard Parkes
    • Previous Santa
    Jordy Benattar
    • Molly
    Patrick Gallagher
    Patrick Gallagher
    • Security Guard
    Judy Sinclair
    • Woman (Mall)
    Seth Tubak
    • Punk
    Larry Yachimec
    • Men's Store Clerk
    Carol Rigg
    • Karen
    John Devenish
    • Bruce
    Jane Luk
    Jane Luk
    • Sabrina
    Amanda Farrace
    • Kid (Mall)
    John Alcorn
    • Piano Player
    • Director
      • Brad Turner
    • Writer
      • Douglas Bowie
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews10

    4.3263
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    Featured reviews

    9aliveandblessed

    Heart-warming and entertaining

    I will be the first to admit that this movie is a little hokey at times, but it is a very heart-warming and entertaining family movie.

    I highly recommend it for family viewing. Family movies are rare nowadays and when a good one comes along it is really a joy.
    5lastliberal

    Visually stunning and a bit unusual

    I was tempted to give this only four stars, but I added a fifth because it was an unusual presentation.

    The photography and visual effects are great and Brad Turner, who seems to have done a lot of Sci-Fi TV and Species III, did a good job directing, even if we didn't always know where it was going.

    But, maybe that was Douglas Bowie's story, which was certainly an unusual approach to a Santa story. There was a lot of religious symbolism evident in the film. The whole idea of Santa being a "regular Joe" and Santa at the same time is reflective of the divinity of Jesus, a man/god thing. There was also a lot of redemption in the story. This was all framed with Christmas music that was more religious than secular.

    Not only is the basic story unusual, but the idea of an Africa-American Santa (Arnold Pinnock), who falls in love with an angel (the lovely Deanna Milligan) is also different. Dabney Coleman was around to provide comic relief.

    Miligan made this a pleasant experience even if it was so unusual that I could not completely enjoy it. Maybe they were afraid to push too hard with the elements that were taken from The Santa Clause.
    10laquettajoray

    WONDERFUL HEART WARMING MOVIE

    This is one of mine and my daughters favorite CHRISTMAS movie from her childhood. She's 31 now with 3 children of her own. I'm a very BLESSED & PROUD NANA! We are both very disappointed πŸ˜₯ that her children will never be able to see MUST BE SANTA, since we haven't been able to find it on a DVD anywhere, including the Internet. This makes me very sad πŸ˜” 😭😭, because I LOVE 😍 the movie so very much!!
    3bolomark

    Decent Moral Story but falls short. Not horrible but not good either.

    This was kind of a mixed movie. It's a bit slow, dull and does have some curse words in it but nothing horrible and subtle. Still, cursing adds nothing to a movie.

    On the plus side, the movie has a fairly decent set of morals, faith, redemption and forgiveness. The kids played their parts fairly well and the plot wasn't bad. It was a bit slow though. You have a man that escaped prison/jail, wants to see his daughter and steals a bear/stuffed animal, and while running away, interrupts the transference of Santa Clause and they proceed to try to undo it. Santa is suffering from dementia and is dying but not dying. His spirt lives on. As for the elves, they're children that have died and the north pole is sorta a Heaven of sorts. In the movie, a dull blue Heaven and Angles make up the rest in operating the North Pole and being care givers/takers.

    The morals were good and things work out for the best but it is rather slow and dull. What I mean in Dull is most of the movie is in a dull blue hue. The acting isn't the greatest and could of been better for a lot of the effects are very low budget but this does involve faith, redemption and forgiveness. Some things could of been done without or at least a little more colorful/vibrant.

    Not bad but not great. Probably not great for young kids but older kids might like it more. Younger kids will probably get bored.
    10Viertel

    Sweet but not sappy

    This is a sweet movie that is not sappy.

    The movie opens with a new Santa who is old & ill - and the hunt for a new Santa is on. A new Santa is soon found - though not necessarily the one they started out to find.

    The new Santa is portrayed as a real human being - one who is not perfect and at times who must learn things the hard way.

    This movie has a lot to teach to anyone who is willing to watch and listen with an open mind and an open heart.

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    Storyline

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    Did you know

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    • Trivia
      Joe Flaherty has a cameo as Count Floyd, the horror movie show host he played on "SCTV."

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    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • December 12, 1999 (Canada)
    • Country of origin
      • Canada
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Sanata Claus soy yo
    • Filming locations
      • SkyDome, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
    • Production companies
      • Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC)
      • Universal Worldwide Television
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 2h(120 min)
    • Color
      • Color
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.33 : 1

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