Arthur Christmas

It's hard enough to make a Christmas movie that is heartfelt and sentimental, without being sappy, but combine that with making a family movie that works for both kids and adults, and you're looking for a small miracle. Arthur Christmas is that small miracle. A collaboration between Aardman Animation (the Wallace and Gromit films) and Sony Pictures Animation, this is a pleasant and zippy little animated film that hopefully won't be overlooked amongst the heavy family film competition this Thanksgiving.

We've seen lots of holiday movies built around the story of Santa Claus, and how he is able to pull off his yearly run of delivering presents all over the world in one night. But, in my opinion, Arthur Christmas does it best. We learn that Santa is not really just one man, but really a family dynasty, with the title passing down each generation. The current Santa (voice by Jim Broadbent) currently serves as kind of a figurehead representing Christmas, and all it stands for. The real work is done by his eldest son, Steve (Hugh Laurie), who with the aid of his millions of elf helpers, has made Santa's workshop and the process of dropping off gifts on Christmas Eve into something that looks like a cross between Star Trek and James Bond. The old fashioned reindeer-driven sleigh is gone, replaced by a massive airship that intentionally brings to mind memories of the Starship Enterprise. As the ship zooms about the world, it drops off the elves, who go on elaborate stealth missions, using the most advanced spy technology to drop the gifts off without being seen.

Santa has another son named Arthur (James McAvoy) who, despite the fact that he pretty much radiates Christmas cheer from every fiber of his being (right down to the musical reindeer slippers he wears on his feet), is basically seen as the black sheep of the family. While older brother Steve gets all the glory at the North Pole, and is expected to become the next Santa after their dad retires, Arthur is pushed aside to the letter department, answering children's letters to Santa. This does allow Arthur a chance to have personal experiences and feelings for the children of the world, since he's required to read their letters and hear their deepest wishes. This probably explains why Arthur is so horrified when he discovers that a little girl's present has gone undelivered during Steve's most recent Christmas Eve run. Being a bean counter, Steve sees the undelivered gift as a simple oversight, and nothing to be concerned with. But all Arthur can think about is how disappointed the child will be.

The remainder of the film deals with Arthur's attempts to deliver the gift on his own before the sun rises, and it's officially Christmas Morning. He teams up with Grandsanta (Bill Nighy), the cantankerous old Santa (before Arthur's father's time) who still believes that the old fashioned reindeer-driven sleigh is the way to go over Steve's hi-tech operation, and leads Arthur to a room where the sleigh, magic flying dust, and reindeer have been locked away in secret. With the sleigh, Grandsanta, and a stowaway elf named Bryony (Ashley Jenson), who shares Arthur's views on no gift going undelivered, Arthur begins a series of misadventures to deliver the present, which include a stop in Africa, and a lot of unintended damage as they fly around the world.

Arthur Christmas is that rare animated film that prides wit and storytelling, over merchandising and celebrity names. While there are a few famous voices to be heard, they're not so distracting that we're paying attention to who's doing the voice, rather than the character up on the screen. The action is always lively (almost as soon as Arthur takes to the skies to deliver the present, the action hardly stops), there are a lot of fun individual sequences, and more than a few one liners tossed in by screenwriters Peter Baynham (who previously worked with Sacha Baron Cohen on Borat and Bruno) and director Sarah Smith that's sure to go over kids' heads, but make the parents laugh. There's nothing inappropriate to be found, despite the PG-rating, and the movie has a surprising amount of heart, which allows us to sympathize with the characters.

Whenever a studio tries to make a Christmas-themed movie, it's often too easy to get wrapped up in sappy sentiment, or corporate greed. Fortunately, this movie avoids both traps, and manages to be a true delight. Yes, the animation's not quite up to the efforts we got last week from Happy Feet Two. But then, this is the much better scripted movie, so Arthur Christmas wins in the end. My only advice is that you seek out the 2D version over the 3D, as I did. I did not see much that would have benefited from the extra dimension, and you don't have to wear those awkward glasses while watching the film. I've been tending to avoid 3D movies, unless I hear unusually good things about the effects, so I guess you can consider this my blanket response to which version to see from now on.

Now that I think about it, I have one more piece of advice. If you can, arrive a little late to the film. Before the movie starts, there's a three minute tie-in music video with Justin Bieber performing "Santa Claus is Coming to Town". Even by teen idol standards, Bieber's rendition is particularly bland and grating. I simply closed my eyes, and waited for the movie to start. At least it offers a chance to hit the concession stand if you haven't already.

See the movie times in your area or buy the DVD at Amazon.com!

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