FILM REVIEW: I was really routing for this movie hoping it would at least meet my expectations. I’m a big fan of Paul Giamatti, Rachel Weisz, and especially Vince Vaughn so this was going to be great, right? I’m also a big fan of Christmas so even better. Put it all together and you end up with a movie that falls short. This movie has a lot of everything but not enough of anything. It was funny but not enough. It was dramatic but not enough. It’s a movie for kids but not really. It’s a movie for adults but not really. Its mix of kid themes and adult themes kept stepping on each other and thus degrading itself. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not a bad movie, it just could have been better. The concept was interesting but the development was weak. With all the holiday movies that have been made, it was nice to see a “fresh” idea for a story but it tried to do too much. The first movie that comes to mind in comparison is probably Elf and even though it also has some adult type themes and drama, it was kept at bay to focus more on its humor throughout. Does this movie at least get you into the Christmas spirit? About as much as putting up the lights.
Fred Claus was doing just fine until his younger brother Nick came along. Fred really wanted to be the best brother ever, but as Nick got more and more attention and favoritism, they grew to become polar opposites and thus began the sibling rivalry. Nick (Paul Giamatti) became a saint and one of the most famed givers, Santa Claus. Fred (Vince Vaughn) became a repo collector and all around miserable soul. When faced with financial difficulties, Fred reluctantly and as the most ultimate of last resorts turns to his younger, more successful brother Nick for help. Good natured Nick agrees to help with the condition that Fred goes up to the North Pole to earn it by helping out around the factory being that it is only a few days to Christmas and therefore the busiest time of the year. Fred has no choice but to go. He quickly infuses his irresponsible ways to this well oiled machine, and so begins the havoc.
The very existence of Santa Claus in this film indicates an orientation towards kids. But when the film introduces Clyde (Kevin Spacey), an efficiency expert who wants nothing more than to shut down the whole Santa Claus operation, the orientation towards kids is quickly altered. There is also the sibling rivalry issue that carried over into adulthood and the overall family interaction and relationship issues that could go over the heads of most kids. But getting back to Kevin Spacey, this movie has quite the cast. Along with the names already mentioned, throw in some Kathy Bates, John Michael Higgins, Miranda Richardson, Elizabeth Banks, and even a touch of Ludacris and wow, not bad for this project. All of them did their roles satisfactorily. Honorary mention goes to Kevin who is excellent at being cold and calculated, Paul who makes Santa a more approachable human being, and Vince who in my opinion is the reigning king of comedic line delivery.
One impressive aspect of the movie was the visual representation of Santa’s workshop and surrounding village at the North Pole. I think they nailed it. One thing that didn’t impress me was the elves special effects. In various scenes throughout the movie where regular height performers are made to look like elves was not very convincing. Director David Dobkin (Shanghai Knights, Wedding Crashers) had an extremely tough act to follow after making his instant classic and masterpiece in Wedding Crashers. We can be lenient on him because we know his potential. This one was just not as strong so please try again David.
Movie Review By Cine Marcos
DVD: Fred Claus DVD includes both widescreen and full screen formats on one disc. It also includes over 25 minutes of additional scenes. The DVD include and option to download a digital copy of the film, so you better have a fast speed internet access in order to do so. This is one of those DVD that are recommended just for renting.
Release Date: November 25, 2008
