The Christmas Chronicles

"Santa's in town early this year."

2018 1h 44m EN

👍

7.2

SOLID

★7.2TMDB · 2,445

ComedyAdventureFamilyFantasy

Synopsis

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Siblings Kate and Teddy try to prove Santa Claus is real, but when they accidentally cause his sleigh to crash, they have to save Christmas.

“Santa's in town early this year.”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Darby Camp
Kate Pierce
Judah Lewis
Teddy Pierce
Kurt Russell
Santa Claus
Martin Roach
Dave Poveda
Lamorne Morris
Mikey Jameson
Kimberly Williams-Paisley
Claire Pierce
Oliver Hudson
Doug Pierce
Tony Nappo
Charlie Plummer

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Clay Kaytis
Writers: Matt Lieberman, David Guggenheim, Matt Lieberman
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Released 8 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

CINEMA

Did you know

Part of the "The Christmas Chronicles Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Clay Kaytis, shot by Don Burgess. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Christophe Beck. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Dan Zimmerman shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Darby Camp and Judah Lewis and Kurt Russell carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Santa's in town early this year.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt2990140 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Clay Kaytis directs. Don Burgess behind the camera. Christophe Beck scores. Dan Zimmerman cuts. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Released 8 years ago.
2Part of the "The Christmas Chronicles Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
3Directed by Clay Kaytis, shot by Don Burgess. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Christophe Beck. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Dan Zimmerman shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Darby Camp and Judah Lewis and Kurt Russell carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "Santa's in town early this year.".
8IMDB entry: tt2990140 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Classified under 12 themes, including "holiday", "brother", "camera", "santa claus".

The technical file

Cinematography: Don Burgess
Original score: Christophe Beck
Editing: Dan Zimmerman
Production design: Paul D. Austerberry
Costume design: Luis Sequeira
Makeup / hair: Stephanie Ingram
Sound: Ron Bartlett
Runtime: 104 min · 1h 44m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Original language: EN
Certification (US): PG
IMDB: The Christmas Chronicles (2018)

Part of

The Christmas Chronicles Collection

The magical adventures of Santa Claus, Mrs. Claus and the Pierce siblings.

Also by

Clay Kaytis

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Trailers & featurettes

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Community reviews

What people are saying

Kamurai2020-11-30
★ 6/10
Decent watch at best, probably won't watch again, and can't recommend. Perhaps it's just that I don't like Kurt Russell and him injecting all his "Russellness" into Santa Claus ruins the magic of the character for me, but I really feel this portrayal of Santa Claus is lacking and borderline inappropriate. While the over all story structure and script are fine, there are just odd choices throughout the movie, particularly for the degree of life threatening risk in the adversity. I also hate the elves, they're basically furry smurfs. The really impressive thing is that Darby Camp can carry a movie. Despite everything happening, she is on it, mostly as a wide-eyed, dream filled kid, but she adds the charm of childhood spirit the movie requires.
r96sk2020-12-06
★ 8/10
Fun film, perfectly suitable for the festive period. I do enjoy Kurt Russell, I like most of the films that I've seen him in and this is another one to add to the list. He's great in the lead role, very much carrying the film. The other actors could've been better cast, but are still passable in their respective roles. There are also cameos for Goldie Hawn and Steven Van Zandt. The special effects are pleasant, the reindeer look alright but it's the elves that look the best. Plot-wise it's fine, nothing to shout about but it still makes for more than satisfactory viewing - they get the Xmas vibe right. There's only one scene I didn't rate, it involves a jail, yet it still kinda worked - in a cheesy way, of course. Without Russell I'd be rating <em>'The Christmas Chronicles'</em> lower, admittedly. Still, an enjoyable film.
Peter McGinn2020-12-19
★ 10/10
Pretty standard fare mostly. Dad died, son going off the rails, daughter still believes, let’s haul Santa in to help. (Which he does by letting them help him.) I found myself poking holes in the plot, which is a silly thing to do anyway in a Christmas fantasy film, such as If Santa can make presents magically appear in the jail, why can’t he get himself out of the jail without help? But the writers have the last laugh, when it turns out that this all seems to be a test for the kids. Or something. Okay, Kurt Russell isn’t your typical Santa, but he is the movie version I would most want to hang out with. It is all a little predictable and silly in the way Christmas movies are, but there are worse ways to spend your time. Like shoveling snow!