Here’s my surprisingly thirsty review of cinematic Christmas cocktail The Christmas Chronicles.
So cheesy and corny it’s almost the movie equivalent of cinema nachos, “The Christmas Chronicles” is a good old-fashioned magical Christmas fable, the kind it feels like they don’t make any more. Luckily, it has Kurt Russell to add some jalapeno heat to proceedings.
When Kate (Darby Camp) and Teddy (Judah Lewis) catch sight of Santa Claus (Kurt Russell) they seize their chance and manage to stow away in his sleigh. But when they’re discovered, the surprise causes Santa to lose control and crash. With the sleigh damaged, the reindeer scattered and the presents lost, it’s up to Kate, Teddy and Santa to find a way to save Christmas.
Many a Christmas movie has succeeded or failed on the strength of its Saint Nicholas and in Kurt Russell, “The Christmas Chronicles” has found a jolly old elf for the ages. Warm, charismatic, twinkly-eyed, charming and – a rarity in the genre – a sexy silver fox, Russell’s Claus is a sardonic swashbuckling incarnation, every bit the wise and wonderful character we’ve come to know, with just a dash of Jack Burton’s swagger for good measure. Just don’t call him fat.
There’s nothing pioneering about its Santa separated from the sleigh schtick but Russell’s charisma and the likeable kids carry it off with aplomb. Overflowing with magic and whimsy, “The Christmas Chronicles” is so darn adorable you can’t help but get swept up in the festive feel-goodness of it all, even when the ever-so-slightly hokey CGI elves turn up and join the fun.
It’s got just the right balance of sentimentality, silliness, cleverness and charm to be the perfect mixer to Russell’s intoxicating Santa Claus and creating a deliciously rich and warming Christmas cocktail. Let’s all hope for many more chronicles to come because this is a Santa Claus we can all believe in.
