Christmas Viewing Log 2009

Post by **Luke** » Mon Nov 30, 2009 3:26 am

It's no secret that I started watching holiday fare back in September.

Things I've reviewed...
Mickey Mouse Clubhouse: Mickey's Choo-Choo Express - Not really Christmasy, but marketed that way and featuring the Clauses
White Christmas
It's a Wonderful Life
A Miser Brothers' Christmas
I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown
Four Christmases
Santa Buddies
Mickey's Magical Christmas: Snowed In at the House of Mouse
Walt Disney Animation Collection: Classic Short Films - Volume 7: Mickey's Christmas Carol
A Muppets Christmas: Letters to Santa
(Boy that's a lot of holiday DVD reviews!)

I have also watched <i>A Merry Fraggle Holiday</i> and <i>The Year Without a Santa Claus</i>.

slave2moonlight · Post by **slave2moonlight** » Mon Nov 30, 2009 4:02 pm

Last night I watched that new "Christmas Story" DVD I received from Amazon Vine. It's one of those movies about Santa Claus's life. This is a new, Finnish film. Despite the rave reviews by customers on Amazon, I thought it was pretty weak. It starts out strong and has great visuals, but while the filmmakers say they are trying to make Santa Claus less of a 2D personality with this film, they do a lousy job. No reason is really given for his obsession with Christmas and gift giving and so on, or especially his insistance that his identity remain secret. And no explanation is ever given for his sudden imortality or other magical abilities in the end, like how he gets his reindeer to fly and so on. It basically tells a very realistic story of his childhood and learning to be a carpenter, ***SPOILERS AHEAD*** then, it seems like he snaps one day and just wants to give presents to as many children as possible. Then, he gets old, promises he is going on his last night of gift giving because he is so old, and he doesn't return. Then, his friends see him flying through the air in a sleigh pulled by flying reindeer, without saying how he became magical and all... Too many unanswered questions, and lots of times characters' motivations seemed unexplained. Pretty disappointing and way too short.

Margos · Post by **Margos** » Mon Nov 30, 2009 4:28 pm

Just curious, have you ever read or seen a film version of L. Frank Baum's The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus? It's like the same basic thing, only much, much better and more satisfactorily explained. I'm really looking forward to seeing the Rankin-Bass version of it this year, and maybe if I'm lucky I'll see the one that Cartoon Network shows rarely that is more faithful to the book.[/u]

slave2moonlight · Post by **slave2moonlight** » Mon Nov 30, 2009 5:36 pm

I know of it, but I always avoided it as a kid because of my attachment to the Rankin Bass "Santa Claus is Coming to Town" version of Santa's origin. In more recent years, when I was more willing to give Life and Adventures a chance, it has seemed harder to come across, and I don't think it's in either of my holiday specials TV boxed sets (that hold a lot of Rankin/Bass ones), but I'd have to double check the second one. Still, for me, I'm sure I will always favor two origin stories, the "Santa Claus is Coming to Town" one and the one from "Santa Claus: The Movie", that old Dudley Moore film from my childhood. I remember seeing that one and One Magic Christmas (starring a very young Elisabeth Harnois; still wish I was married to her today) in theaters as a little kid, back when they first came out.

Margos · Post by **Margos** » Mon Nov 30, 2009 5:52 pm

I've never heard of "Santa Claus: The Movie," but I do know "Santa Claus is Coming to Town." Personally, I prefer Baum's version of Santa's origin, but that's because I'm more of a high-fantasy fan. It involves wood nymphs in the enchanted forest of Burzee (I believe that's how it's spelled, but I don't recall), and "Immortals," and is just a very cool sort of take on the whole thing.

slave2moonlight · Post by **slave2moonlight** » Mon Nov 30, 2009 5:55 pm

Yes, the other two are just right for me because they blend the realistic with the high fantasy, which is what I like. I prefer that to extreme realism and extreme fantasy, to be able to imagine that our worlds intermingle.

DisneyFreak5282 · Post by **DisneyFreak5282** » Mon Nov 30, 2009 7:52 pm

Tonight I watched How The Grinch Stole Christmas! on ABC. I tuned in late to The Grinch, but I have the Classic Christmas Favorites box set (two copies, both copies from the initial pressings that have the wrong version of The Year Without a Santa Claus, one I paid for and one was a replacement they sent me free, which had the same problem and two copies of the Frosty's Winter Wonderland DVD), so I can watch that anytime. I'll probably get the OOP 50th Birthday Edition since that has the Horton Hears A Who! animated special and the disc included in the CCF box set is a re-authored version of last year's "Deluxe Edition" (which was essentially the same as the 50th BE) - but they removed Horton to make room for 3 other specials on this box set. It's bittersweet since some of the specials they made room for have never been on DVD before.

After that Shrek The Halls came on. I saw it when it premiered in '07, but I missed it last year. It was great, and I enjoyed it just as much as I did the first three Shrek films. It was funny, warm-hearted, and all around great. I'll definitely be buying the DVD so I can revisit it again this holiday season.

slave2moonlight · Post by **slave2moonlight** » Mon Nov 30, 2009 9:55 pm

I actually watched that Finnish "Christmas Story" movie again just now, and it is better than I felt after the first viewing. That's why I always like to watch things twice, ha. I still feel the first half is much stronger. As it is, it is a tale of a man named Nikolas (nothing to do with St. Nicholas here) who started the traditions of Santa Claus and encouraged them to be carried on after he was "gone". So, it's a very realistic take that practically presents how parents came to "pretend" to be Santa and so on. The ending is a bit ambiguous though, which I didn't like, and the second half of the film is less magical and too much like a serious Hallmark Channel movie.

slave2moonlight · Post by **slave2moonlight** » Wed Dec 02, 2009 4:22 am

Watched ABC Family's presentation of Santa Clause 3 last night. It was a lot better than I remembered and easier to watch on TV, I think. I don't know, when I first saw it in theaters it was a bit much. Martin Short was certainly perfectly cast though! I liked it a lot this time around. Still a pretty goofy movie, but I always thought it was a goofy series anyway, even if the original was much less plastic. I still think I find the second the most enjoyable, but they're all pretty fun and rewatchable.

slave2moonlight · Post by **slave2moonlight** » Wed Dec 02, 2009 5:31 pm

I watched most of the Kelsey Grammer Christmas Carol TV musical today on Hallmark Channel. Just missed the first part, which I've never seen. I always come in when he's already out with Christmas Past or Present. Anyway, it's very stage-style in the performances and all, but I very much enjoy it. Hope to get it eventually. But, I've been wondering, between the three live-action (Muppet-free) Christmas Carol musicals I am aware of, this one, the stage version that starred (or stars?) the great Jim Dale, and the movie musical (that I barely remember) starring Albert Finney, are any of them the same? I mean, in terms of songs and all, are any remakes of another, or are they all musicals? Anyone know?

Cordy_Biddle · Post by **Cordy_Biddle** » Wed Dec 02, 2009 5:38 pm

Look Who's Talking Now:

Just bought the "Look Who's Talking" DVD collection and thought it was the perfect movie to kick off my official Christmas viewing count-down.

slave2moonlight · Post by **slave2moonlight** » Thu Dec 03, 2009 8:46 pm

Saw part of a modern Christmas Carol movie starring Susan Lucci, and it was pretty interesting, especially how they tried to work in a lot of the classic dialogue. Sometimes that was kind of awkward, but interesting. Anyway, I had to run an errand after the Ghost of Chrismas Past stuff (didn't really love the concept of Christmas Past).

Then, I saw all of the 1930's Christmas Carol with the gorgeous Christmas Past and the chubby Bob Cratchit. This was always a fave of mine since childhood. I hope to get that 4 film TCM DVD release that holds this movie sometime this month, if I can (not sure just now, as I wanna get the Bishop's Wife first and my income has been cut considerably). After this finished, I again caught the last of Christmas Vacation on AMC. Still haven't seen all of that one this year. I keep coming in on Christmas Eve.

Cordy_Biddle · Post by **Cordy_Biddle** » Fri Dec 04, 2009 12:17 am

slave2moonlight wrote:Saw part of a modern Christmas Carol movie starring Susan Lucci, and it was pretty interesting, especially how they tried to work in a lot of the classic dialogue. Sometimes that was kind of awkward, but interesting. Anyway, I had to run an errand after the Ghost of Chrismas Past stuff (didn't really love the concept of Christmas Past).

.

Ah... That would have been "Ebbie", starring Ms Lucci as a female incarnation of the Scrooge character.

Barbossa · Post by **Barbossa** » Fri Dec 04, 2009 5:03 am

I finally started watching some Christmas stuff. Tonight I watched on DVD:
The Muppet Christmas Carol
I haven't seen it since it's theatrical release. Still a good movie.
I'm probably going to watch The Nightmare Before Christmas next and I'm hoping on the weekend to catch a show of the new Christmas Carol in 3D.

UmbrellaFish · Post by **UmbrellaFish** » Fri Dec 04, 2009 5:15 am

So far only a few things-

The Simpsons- I caught the episode on TV, it was on last night, I think, but I don't remember the episode title.

Samantha Brown Disney Specials- It's sort of become a quirky holiday tradition for me.

And I've got Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Santa Claus is Coming to Town, Kathy Ireland's Once Upon a Christmas, and Twice Upon a Christmas on my DVR which I'm waiting to view until I get in a real Christmas-mood.

slave2moonlight · Post by **slave2moonlight** » Sat Dec 05, 2009 2:29 am

Thursday night, I watched Christmas with the Kranks, and tonight I caught this year's airing of The Muppets' Letters to Santa special. I think I enjoyed the Muppet one a bit more this year, as you always see things more clearly on a second viewing. But, I also realized one of the big problems with these modern Muppet specials. The songs in them sound too much like they were recorded in a music studio, not live and spontaneous like they seem in past specials (like "Muppet Family Christmas", one of the all time best Christmas specials ever).

pap64 · Post by **pap64** » Sat Dec 05, 2009 8:11 am

Here's what I've been watching:
- The Santa Clause 2 and 3
- The Year Without a Santa Claus
- Various Simpsons Christmas Specials

PeterPanfan · Post by **PeterPanfan** » Sat Dec 05, 2009 12:53 pm

Elf
Unlikely Angel
A Charlie Brown Christmas
A Christmas Carol (2009)
Everybody's Fine
How the Grinch Stole Christmas (1969)

Barbossa · Post by **Barbossa** » Mon Dec 07, 2009 2:14 am

The Muppet Christmas Carol
A Christmas Carol (2009 version with Jim Carrey)

Just watched another version of A Christmas Carol, this time the new one that's in theaters.

Gonna take a break from Dickens and watch Nightmare Before Christmas tomorrow.

Cordy_Biddle · Post by **Cordy_Biddle** » Mon Dec 07, 2009 7:38 pm

"Will & Grace": Christmas Break.

Grace accidentally breaks one of Marilyn's rare Lladro figurines (the bashful geisha); and Karen is forced to share the holidays with her estranged stepdaughter.

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Christmas Viewing Log 2009