jackbanister16

Watched this one with my daughter and I have to say, it was not in league with other Disney/Pixar movies and I'm glad I caught it on Disney+ vs paying for a theater admission! Not a bad movie by any means but I would not feel compelled to watch it again like I do with Moana or Coco. If I'm honest it was just a bit boring and lacked the depth you have come to expect with a Disney movie.

This was one of these "self discovery" movies with no real antagonist, but rather resolving family tensions and bringing back peace. Very nice message and fun characters, but anti-climactic in my opinion. Another complaint is that the origin of the Madrigal family magic seemed a bit flimsy to me.

The songs were catchy although the only one that leaves a lasting impression was "We don't talk about Bruno."

Overall not my favorite and I know that Disney is capable of much better work. That being said, I could see the visuals and music having broad appeal to young kids, so it might be worth watching with the little ones to keep them entertained for a bit.

Just read an article that screenwriter Chris Terrio wanted his name struck from the credits of Joss Whedon's Justice League because it was such a disaster.

How can he be ashamed of Justice League when he attached his name to this utter travesty. Just as bad if not worse. Disney pulled down their pants and took a fat, steaming dump all over the beloved original trilogy. Even Jar Jar Binks is hanging his head in shame at the laziness and cliche loaded "story" Disney pieced together to sell action action figures.

Just when you thought that Princess Leia force floating in the vacuum of space wasn't absurd enough, space horses galloping on moving spaceships.. yep, space horses.

The story loosely draws on Santa's mythos, but presents Santa as having brokered a Faustian deal with the US govt. to manufacture toys with the intent of stimulating the economy. Unlike the normal presentation of St. Nick, Santa can get depressed and run low on Christmas spirit, and there are bills to pay to keep the toy factory afloat. At the end of the day though, this movie is basically a revenge plot between the kids who get lumps of coal and the big, red, fat man.

The actors are all top notch, truly. Mel Gibson is awesome as Chris Cringle with a gritty, but vaguely jolly Santa that has been brought down by the realities of life as a sellout. Mrs. Clause, played by Marianne Jean-Baptiste, is Santa's soft place to fall and brings a healthy dose of Christmas spirit to the table. The kid in this movie, Billy Wenan (Chance Hurstfield), is a truly diabolical villain, who in my opinion steals the show. He is almost a little too convincing in his sociopathic role; someone get that kid a shrink lol. A close runner up to the kid is his henchman, the skinnyman (Walter Goggins), who has also been "wronged" by Santa. All of the actors in this movie are very good at their jobs and deserve kudos for their performance.

The final scene is just excellent acting by Mel Gibson, who makes sure that everyone knows that Santa is making a list, and checking it twice.

Overall, I really enjoyed this movie, but I can't give this movie more than 7 stars because the climax was a little underwhelming. The movie builds a good deal of momentum and kind of peters out just when you hope they will turn the dial up to 10 on the action and drama. I'd definitely recommend it to a friend though!