The Santa Clause 2

This was much better than I anticipated. It made me laugh a few times. In the sequel, Santa Claus (Allen) is losing his magical powers. There was a hidden clause in his contract that he had to marry by a certain time or he would lose them all. So, he goes back home to date and help straighten his son out who was on the naughty list. While away, Santa's lead elves make a plastic replica Santa so the other elves won't worry. And a lot of the funny parts have to do with plastic Santa as he learns the enjoyment of cocoa and goes on a power trip.

I wish the movie would have shown more than one dating disaster with Santa. Molly Shannon does a cameo as his date and loudly sings this funny song in a restaurant. And the flying reindeer and tooth fairy bring even more cuteness to the film. The principle was so annoying and you knew she was going to be the one. But it felt so fairy tale like because Santa knows her like a week and he's saying, "I'm so in love" and all they did was go to a faculty Christmas party. Does Santa stop the evil plastic Santa and save Christmas? What do you think? Duh!

FINAL VERDICT: It was pretty good for a kid's film. I recommended it if you don't think movies like this are too childish.

Let me just say I liked all the Santa Clause movies in their own right. This is a decent sequel to an amiable first film, that is good spirited, fun and sweet. It is not the best Christmas movie out there, but it doesn't try to be. If the kids get past the rather thin plot, and that the script isn't always particularly groundbreaking or new, they are in for a festive for a treat, adults too. However, it has a very good message, and it is guaranteed to put a smile on your face.

The soundtrack is also lovely to the ears and the look of the film is nice. I don't know about you guys, but like the first film I felt good while watching this movie, and for me that is a good thing. The performances are very good, Tim Allen as always is very likable and completely watchable. And the supporting characters like Cupid and Father Time are so cute a movie of their own would suit them perfectly.

All in all, a nice movie. Not groundbreaking, but a pleasant Christmas diversion, and as far as sequels go, I personally think it's one of the better ones. 7/10 Bethany Cox

OK so I admit I thought this was going to be a dud. The first one was sorta clever but a sequel... oh dear. I ended up going to watch it anyway, not entirely by choice.

Well, actually it was pretty good. There were several intertwining plot lines, lots of laughs that weren't all about Tim Allen being fat and falling down, and the kids in the theatre seemed to enjoy it too. So, for what it is (clean family entertainment), it's actually pretty good.

OK, so it's not quite as good as the first, but this really captures the Christmas spirit...I saw it in a theatre with a load of little kids who laughed and cheered right through. Everyone who came out of the theatre had a big smile on their face at the end, even the Mums, Dads, and GrandParents!

Tim Allen does a good job (again) as Santa, and there are plenty of nice in-jokes in there - Allen wearing a flannel shirt (remind anyone of Al Borland), and of course all the car references...and there are also some movie homages in there - did the duplicator machine remind anyone else of Bride Of Frankenstein!?

The first 15-20 minutes are a little slow but once Allen returns to America the film really begins to pick up. Good support cast too - Elizabeth Mitchell is beautiful! Reinhold does well but does not have quite enough screen time.

Some of the scenes really do capture the magic of Christmas - witness the Teacher's Xmas party for example.

Basically, if you want a good family film to put you in the Christmas spirit, you could do far worse than see this. 8/10.

Scott Calvin (Tim Allen) has been Santa for awhile, but only now is he told that there is more Santa Clause. He must marry a Mrs Claus before Christmas eve. In addition, his son Charlie has landed on the Naughty List. He decides to go south and leave a substitute Santa in his place. While he falls for Charlie's principal Carol Newman (Elizabeth Mitchell), the substitute Santa stirs up trouble and puts every child on the Naughty List.

This still has some of the original charm. Most of it comes from Carol slowly finding out Scott is actually Santa. Charlie's complaint about his father is less convincing. I don't think the secret is that big of a deal. It feels very fake. I rather not have an excuse for his misbehaving. There is a good lesson to be had there, but it ends rather weakly. It's a missed learning opportunity. Besides that, the movie is good family fun.