Blizzard

This film was the most entertaining movie I've seen in a long time....and my kids just loved it!! So will yours!! It has the most amazing visual effects, but more important, it has a phenomenal story with great heart. Everyone should see this picture....it is destined to be a classic!

'Blizzard' from 2003, starring Christopher Plummer alongside Kevin Pollak & Brenda Blethyn, Directed by LeVar Burton. It's a Christmas movie, a bit of a children's film, that is written well around a good story.

Plummer plays Santa Claus. It's regarded as a fairly good film, and that's exactly what it is, not downright good, but it's not bad. Plummer is good in the film, Blethyn is good also, they deliver good performances. Pollak delivers his part competently in a part he plays a bit over the top without going completely in the clouds, and all and all, Pollak delivers the part well.

Burton usually directs shows, but he's directed 4 movies during his career and he does a good job. The film is from 2003, but Burton's Direction & grainy filming give it an early 1980s feel, and I mean that in a good way; it somehow brings it to a needed organic earthiness; the acting by the supporting cast, including the kiddos, is done well.

All and all, 5.5 stars of 10, a fairly good film. A movie that almost surely would have been bad without the good Directing of Burton and the good acting of Plummer and pretty much the entire cast.

Our family just finished watching this movie tonight. We wanted to spend the Thanksgiving weekend together and went to find an appropriate movie for all of us. Our first pick was "Christmas with the Kranks", but they were sold out at our local video store. I had never heard of "Blizzard" but the G rating as opposed to everything else available PG13, hooked me in. There are 4 children, ages 5-10 in our home and mom and dad make 6. I think it was a great film for the family and would recommend it to anyone wanting to get into the Christmas spirit. It was the kind of movie that made everyone "feel good" on the inside after watching it. I think all our kids thoroughly enjoyed it, and it wasn't beneath our 10yr old (daughter) who said "I'm glad you picked this movie mom." Great "family movie night" film! The importance of good quality films in the society we live in has been overlooked for too long and I am all for the reintroduction of character-building stories like what we saw tonight. The 2 story lines going on at the same time reminded me of "The Princess Bride", which is one of our family's favorites. I liked the fact that there was reality that even good wholesome characters make mistakes sometimes and that it is not the end of the world; there is forgiveness and second chances. It teaches our kids that we don't live in a perfect world and there are disappointments and we must learn to deal with them and grow from there. I'm glad the movie we wanted, wasn't available or we may never have seen this.

My family watched this last night during our Friday family film and pizza night. This is a really good, charming film! It's an engaging movie, with lots of positive lessons. It also tells a good Santa Claus tale that keeps the mystery of the North Pole intact for young viewers.

I'd put this in with the league of quality family films like "Because of Winn-Dixie." My kids are 3, 6, and 11 years old. We all loved it. It even made my 6 year-old a bit weepy (he said he had dust in his eyes ;) This will be a holiday staple in our house for years to come. If you have kids, go out and rent or buy this little gem from Canada. Levar Burton has made a sweet family film here; he certainly appears to have a sense for what family moviegoers want to see.

This is a nice family Christmas movie with a crazy story, which could have been a story on its own, but it was primarily an amazing story told to cheer up a sad girl.

Zoe Andrews does a wonderful job not just as an actress but also as a skater. Of course, sometimes i couldn't see her face, and several atunt skaters were listed in the credits. At first I thought the same actress played both the girl hearing the story and the girl who was the subject of the story, but they just look alike. Jennifer Pisana is the sad girl and her role is brief but effective.

Brenda Blethyn is a good storyteller and quirky.

I am familiar with Kevin Pollak but had forgotten he was in the credits by the time I saw him. Every movie like this needs a nasty villain and he does just that. One thinks of Santa's workshop as a happy place but he has a Scrooge running things.

As for Santa himself, the great Christopher Plummer shows as much talent here as he ever has. This is a Shakespearean level Santa, and not one who looks like the expected image. Gray hair and a beard, not white, and his clothes are not red either, unless you can see red in the pattern of the clothes, which is a challenge.

The elves wear beautiful colorful costumes that show a fantasy place. And the buildings are magnificent.

As for Whoopi Goldberg, if I hadn't been told it was her, I wouldn't have known. She doesn't sound quite like herself, but she becomes Blizzard, a very determined reindeer who will break rules in order to help those who need it. The other reindeer are also appealing enough, mainly Donner Jr. (DJ).

Back in the "real world", Jan Triska starts our creepy and almost evil, but he turns Katie into a cahmpion-level skater and changes personality to ecome more appealing.

Brittany Bristow is your typical spoiled bad girl but I assure you she has another side. She can also skate pretty well but it appeated to me she fell just short of Katie's ability, which is important. Those are hard moves for a young girl, though.

Miracles happen, of course, along with a number of "only in the movies" situations. Rules must have consequences, but sometimes it's best to make it look like things could happen as long as the offenders show they have leanred a lesson.

Is this family friendly? Of course. I don't understand the TV-PG V-chip rating. A couple of scenes are a little scary but I don't think anything here would mean even young children shouldn't watch.

There is some diversity. One Black man, and possibly two, have lines. One trains Santa's reindeer. The other, who might be the same man, patrols the city at night and has some funny moments. One of the skating girls is Black but has no lines, and Katie appears to have an Asian friend who also has no lines.

I think it's a fine effort.