Santa Claus: The Movie (known on-screen as simply Santa Claus) is a 1985 Christmas film starring Dudley Moore and John Lithgow. It is the last major fantasy film produced by the Paris-based father-and-son production team of Alexander and Ilya Salkind. The film was directed by Jeannot Szwarc and released in North America on November 27, 1985 by Tri-Star Pictures. The 2005 DVD release was released by Anchor Bay Entertainment, now Starz Home Entertainment, under license from the film's current owner, Studio Canal.
Santa Claus: The Movie is a straightforward, nondenominational attempt to explore the mysteries of Santa Claus with the key objective being to answer some of the basic questions many children have about the Santa Claus mythos, such as how Santa's reindeer fly, how he and his wife made it to the North Pole and how Santa ascends chimneys, among other things.
The film chronicles the origins of Santa Claus (David Huddleston), who, along with his wife Anya (Judy Cornwell), goes from being a simple working man to becoming an international icon of Christmas. At the same time, the film also tells a contemporary story in which one of Santa's elves (alternately referred to as the "Vendequm" onscreen), a visionary named Patch (Dudley Moore), sets out to employ Santa's toymaking methods on his own, unaware that he might be ruining the magic of Christmas in the process.
Plot summary
Somewhere in the 14th Century, Claus is a peasant woodcutter in his mid-50s who, with his wife Anya, delivers his gifts to the children of a certain village. One night, Claus, Anya and their reindeer, Donner and Blitzen, are rescued from certain death in a blizzard, only to be transported to the vast "ice mountains, way up at the top of the world." Their expected arrival is heralded with the appearance of several elves, or, as Claus's people call them in their legends, the Vendequm, led by a wise, venerable old elf named Dooley (John Barrard). Here, too, they encounter the overzealous elf Patch (Moore), and his three trusty companions Boog (Tim Stern), Honka (Peter O'Farrell) and Vout (Christopher Ryan). The kindly couple is then led into the wondrous, wooden elf compound. Dooley explains to Claus and Anya that they have been brought here to spend Eternity crafting and giving a fantastic array of toys to every child on Earth.
Claus's first Christmas Eve begins with the solemn entry of the Ancient One (Burgess Meredith), the oldest and wisest of all the Elves, who explains to Claus that he and Anya represent the fulfillment of a prophecy that a "Chosen One" would be brought into the Elves' world who, "having no child of his own, would love all children everywhere, and that he himself would be an artisan, and a craftsman, and a skilled maker of toys." He charges Claus with his sacred duties and the name by which he will be known throughout the world for all time to come: Santa Claus. Santa then boards his newly recrafted sleigh, while the reindeer are fed with an incredible feed that grants them the power of flight. Toward the mid-18th Century, Anya recommends not giving an unruly child a present, to punish him for his bad behavior. Santa at that point commissions Dooley to develop a list of the world's naughty and nice children.
The story then jumps forward to present-day Manhattan --- where, in a dark and lonely alley, a 10-year-old homeless orphan, Joe (Christian Fitzpatrick) struggles to keep himself warm. Across the street, in an elegant townhouse, a young girl named Cornelia (Carrie Kei Heim) suddenly notices the boy before being scolded by her nanny, Miss Tucker (Dorothea Phillips). Back at the North Pole, after Santa tells both Patch and Puffy (Anthony O'Donnell) that he will choose one of them for the newly-created position of Santa's Official Assistant, the two elves compete for the spot. Patch eventually wins out by mass producing toys using his new Patch-o-Matic Supertoy Constructor, as opposed to Puffy, who chooses slower, more traditional methods of hand-crafting. However, unseen by anyone except the viewer, during operation, the machine malfunctions, screwdrivers snap, and the machine creates toys by means of a faster, more automated method --- but a method of poorer quality. Later, as Santa takes flight on Christmas Eve, he meets Joe, who has been searching for food in the trash. Santa is appalled that such a young child is made to live on his own, and accordingly offers to take Joe along with him. Santa's authenticity gets through to the normally cynical Joe, and the two go for a magical ride in Santa's sleigh. Santa shows Joe all the moves he can do, but falls short of showing him the "Super Duper Looper", as it is too difficult for the reindeer. On Christmas morning, many children throughout the world discover that their toys from Santa, as built by Patch's Supertoy Constructor, prove defective. Ashamed in the company of his fellow elves, and blinded by his own distrust of Santa, Patch leaves the North Pole, determined to prove himself to Santa. Puffy is then appointed Santa's Official Assistant.
Eventually, Patch meets up with B.Z. (John Lithgow), a businessman who is under investigation by the United States Senate for shoddy manufacturing processing at his own toy company. Prior to this, we see Patch passing by a toy store, where B.Z.'s toys are being recalled. Mistakenly, Patch thinks the toys must be unable to stay on the shelves, as they must be selling like hotcakes. Later the next afternoon, B.Z. convinces Patch to work with him; and, acting on Patch's proposal, the toy mogul airs an unprecedented television commercial that is broadcast on every major television network on Earth. Among those watching the commercial are Joe, Cornelia (B.Z.'s step-niece) and Santa himself. Patch eventually takes flight on Christmas Eve just like Santa, in his own vehicle, called the "Patchmobile" --- which is packed with fantastically-crafted lollipops. Patch's outing turns out to be a large success, with his worldwide popularity now rivaling that of Santa's, a fact which Santa is quick to note as he drops off presents to households that already have Patch's special lollipops. His well-received lollipops result in B.Z.'s making Patch exclusive to his company at a press conference. After this success, the ever-reluctant Patch considers himself ready to return to the North Pole, but after revealing to B.Z. that the magic lollipops can make children fly, B.Z. is quick to capitalize on this. He then suggests using the same magic for candy canes in an effort he plans to market as "Christmas II". Joe and Cornelia catch wind of the plan from B.Z. and Towzer (Jeffrey Kramer) a few nights later, resulting in Joe being captured by Grizzard (John Hallam) and taken to B.Z.'s factory.
Towzer then reveals that the candy canes in production overreact when exposed to extreme heat, rendering them volatile. B.Z. dismisses this news as a reckless afterthought, and proposes to Towzer that the two of them escape to Brazil, which has no extradition treaty with the United States, thus leaving Patch to take the blame for all the possible chaos. The next morning, Cornelia writes to Santa about Joe's capture; once he learns of this, Santa wastes little time in taking off for Cornelia's place, regardless of the fact that he must make do with only six reindeer, as a result of Comet and Cupid both having come down with the flu. Cornelia tells Santa that she contacted the police about Joe's kidnapping, but doubts she was taken seriously. Back at B.Z.'s factory, Patch rescues the captured Joe. At first, Joe is enraged by Patch's having ruined Christmas, but Patch discovers that Joe has been carrying with him a wooden likeness of Patch --- crafted personally by Santa. This would suggest to Patch the notion that Santa might like him after all. Patch and Joe now resolve to deliver all the candy canes to Santa as a present in the Patchmobile, unaware of the canes' lethal side effects.
At the same time, B.Z. finds himself surrounded by the New York City Police Department, in response to Cornelia having called them, which they did indeed take seriously. The NYPD, already having apprehended and handcuffed Grizzard and Towzer, yells to B.Z. via a bullhorn that they have a warrant for his kidnapping of Joe, and that he must either surrender or they will enter his office. As the policemen are on their way up to his office, B.Z. eats an entire handful of the magic candy canes — only to find himself floating higher and higher, disappearing into the stratosphere. Meanwhile, Patch and Joe continue on their journey, until they find themselves in need of rescue, as the Patchmobile's continuing speed causes the candy canes to heat up, in turn causing certain unprotected wiring to violently self-activate. Santa, in pursuit, manages to rescue them from the exploding Patchmobile after a tense moment where ultimately, he must execute the one move he has never been able to properly execute: the aforementioned "Super Duper Looper".
The film ends with a joyous celebration with Santa, Anya and the other elves .... and it seems that Cornelia and Joe will stay with Santa at the North Pole. Dooley reacts to the idea mockingly, saying: "As if I don't have enough to do! Now I'm going to have to be a school teacher!" To which the two children gasp: "School?!" The final image of the film is that of B.Z., suspended in space along with the remnants of the Patchmobile, floating higher and yelling for help.
Production
Conceived by Ilya Salkind in the wake of the apparently waning critical and U.S. box office success of 1983's Superman III and its immediate follow-up, 1984's Supergirl, Santa Claus: The Movie was directed by Jeannot Szwarc, who had directed Supergirl, from a story by David and Leslie Newman. David Newman, however, took sole screenplay credit. Pierre Spengler, Ilya's longtime partner, and the third key element of Team Salkind, joined Alexander's son as the project's producer. John Carpenter was originally offered the chance to direct, but also wanted a say in the writing, musical score and final cut of the movie. Carpenter's choice for the role of Santa was Brian Dennehy.
Among the original choices to direct the film other than Carpenter were Lewis Gilbert, who, despite initial interest, could not agree with the Salkinds over certain aspects of the script. Robert Wise was also offered the chance to direct, but Wise had a different approach to the story, and doubtless would have made the project an altogether more darker experience. Guy Hamilton, who'd had to withdraw from directing Superman The Movie in 1976 (because he was a tax exile, and, as such, could only spend 30 days in England, where the movie would be filming), was very interested in directing and lobbied hard for the chance to do, but only on the condition that the film be shot either in Los Angeles, Vancouver or Rome. Ultimately, the Salkinds chose Jeannot Szwarc because of their excellent working relationship on Supergirl which many executives at TriStar Pictures believed was a masterpiece and would also become a megahit.
Santa Claus: The Movie was filmed in Buckinghamshire, England at Pinewood Studios, between August and November 1984. The film was photographed by Arthur Ibbetson, whose credits, among others, included the original Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (1971). Santa Claus: The Movie was his final feature film. Serving as film editor was Peter Hollywood.
The production was designed by Anthony Pratt, with costume design concepts by Bob Ringwood. The visual effects unit, as well as several of the production staff, were Salkind stalwarts from the Superman films: Derek Meddings, director of visual and miniature effects; Roy Field, optical visual effects supervisor; and David Lane, flying and second unit director.
The documentary Santa Claus: The Making of The Movie, which chronicles the film's production, is introduced by David Huddleston, speaking straight to the camera in character as Santa, with Dudley Moore serving as on-screen host. The voice over commentary is performed by Ted Maynard, who had also done voice-overs for the film's original UK trailer. The documentary originally aired in the United States on ABC, on Christmas Eve, 1987. Anchor Bay Entertainment's 20th anniversary DVD of the film includes this documentary as a bonus feature.
Casting
Dudley Moore had always been the top choice to play the lead Elf in the movie. Ilya Salkind having remembered a scene in Arthur in which Liza Minelli's character asks Moore if he is Santa's Little Helper. Moore was attached to the project virtually from the offset, and therefore had a say on scripting and choice of director. Originally, David Newman's first-draft script called for the character to be named Ollie; but Moore decided instead that the name should be changed to Patch, Patch being the nickname of his own young son, Patrick. Ilya Salkind, from the very beginning, had wanted an American actor to portray Santa Claus because he felt that the movie focused on a primary piece of Americana in much the same way that Superman The Movie did. Brian Dennehy was the top choice of John Carpenter when he discussed the possibility of directing the film with the Salkinds. Jeannot Szwarc, however, felt that he needed an actor with more warmth than Dennehy, and toward that end, he had screen-tested such actors as David White (who, being in his late 60's, was considered too old for the role), and Moore's Arthur co-star Barney Martin. For a while, Ilya Salkind actively pursued Carroll O'Connor for the role before Szwarc showed him David Huddleston's screen-test, which won Salkind over. For the role of B.Z., the producers wanted a star with a similar stature to Gene Hackman when he had played Lex Luthor in Superman The Movie. To this end, they offered the role to Harrison Ford who turned them down. They made offers to Dustin Hoffman, Burt Reynolds and Johnny Carson --- all of whom, for one reason or another, turned the part down. Eventually, John Lithgow was settled on after Salkind watched Terms of Endearment and realised that he had a Grinch-type look to him. The role of the Ancient Elf was written with James Cagney in mind; however, with Cagney being very weak in his old age, the legendary actor could not adequately assume the role, despite the fact that he liked the film's overall idea. Nonetheless, Cagney had no other choice but to turn the offer down, so Fred Astaire was considered. When this eventually came to nothing, Dudley Moore suggested his friend Burgess Meredith for the role, which he in the end won. Finally, it is worth noting that at the time of the movie's announcement in Summer 1983, the British Press carried reports that diminutive actors such as David Jason, Patrick Troughton and Norman Wisdom would be cast alongside Dudley as fellow Elves. This ultimately came to nothing.
Santa's elves
The elves in the film are portrayed as legendary beings known as the Vendequm. According to the Santa Claus: The Movie novelization written by science fiction/fantasy novelist Joan D. Vinge, the elves keep watch over all that happens in the world that borders their own magical realm. The Vendequm are described as being extremely fond of children since, after all, only children can see them, due to the innocence of their youth. The elves are fond of making things for children, and so they often journeyed out into the children's world, leaving their newly crafted toys where children would find them. According to the novel, with the passing of each new century, and as civilizations continued to rise and fall, it became more and more difficult and dangerous for the elves to venture too far out into the human world. Thus the vast majority of the toys the elves made could not be given out, and were left to gather dust in their magnificent storeroom, the Toy Tunnel.
The novel also describes how, on a certain long-winter's night, the oldest and wisest elf of all, the Ancient One, foresaw the arrival of a man whose love for children would be equal to that of the elves. The Ancient One believed that this man would be the one to whom the elves would grant full immortality, along with the ability to deliver the elves' gifts to children all over the world.
In addition to Patch, Dooley, Puffy, Boog, Honka and Vout, the film's screenplay and cast listing features three additional elves: Groot, the Elves' Senior Chef; Goober, the head of the Elves' tailoring shop, who crafts Santa's full red robes; and Goobler, who trains several of his fellow elves in the art of painting toys with their own beards.
Reception
Reaction to Santa Claus: The Movie has generally been negative, with a rating of 18% on Rotten Tomatoes, from the 17 reviews counted.[1] Box Office Mojo lists the film's total United States box office gross as $23,717,291, less than half the film's listed $50 million production budget. However, it did fantastic business in the United Kingdom and throughout most of Europe. In England, the movie was considered a classic, staying at #1 in the movie charts for a month. Eventually, the film's worldwide gross would weigh in at an impressive $125 million, thus making the movie a hit, regardless of its status in the eyes of history as a flop. [2]
Chicago Sun-Times critic Roger Ebert noted some positive points to the film, writing that the film "does an interesting job of visualizing Santa's workshop" and Santa's elves. He also praised the film's special effects, particularly the New York City fly-over sequence involving Santa. Ebert also had some praise for Lithgow's "nice, hateful performance"; but wrote that "the villain is not drawn big enough." He ceded that young children would probably like most of the film, but that older children and adults are "likely to find a lot of it a little thin."[3]
Vincent Canby of The New York Times was less positive than Ebert, calling the production "elaborate and tacky". He described the film as having "the manner of a listless musical without any production numbers". Unlike Ebert, he offered little praise for the film's production design. Canby quipped that "Santa's workshop must be the world's largest purchaser of low-grade plywood" and that the flyover sequences with Santa "aren't great." The only praise he had for the film's acting was for John Lithgow, who Canby wrote "(gave) the film's only remotely stylish performance."[4] A more recent review by William Mager on BBC.co.uk's review section echoed Canby and Ebert's comments.[5]
Unmade Sequel and Remake
After the film completed production, Ilya Salkind originally proposed that he and his father Alexander, along with Pierre Spengler, should develop an entire series of Santa Claus movies that could potentially replace the Superman series, the rights to which Team Salkind had recently sold to Cannon Films. Despite only performing to lukewarm business at the US box office, the movie was a critical and box office smash in Great Britain and in Europe, and earned over $100 million worldwide. Thus, plans were put into motion for a possible Christmas 1987 release of Santa Claus II, at which point Ilya Salkind planned to appoint George Pan Cosmatos, fresh from the phenomenal success of Rambo: First Blood Part II for TriStar Pictures to direct, while Ilya himself began potential story treatments for the script at various stages with first, David Odell, who had written Supergirl; and later, with Lorenzo Semple, Jr. When it became apparent, however, that these plans would ultimately come to nothing, Salkind revised his story outline into that which could be developed into a possible spin-off feature focusing solely on Dudley Moore's Patch character. While a Patch project would not be exclusively be a Christmas movie per se (even if, ideally, the project would feature David Huddleston reprising his role as Santa), it could open in the summer, which as a result could generate better business. Two possible titles for the project were, among others, Patch: The Movie; or Patch: The Ultimate Adventure. But by the time Cosmatos was pencilled in as the project's director, Team Salkind were absorbed in the Superboy TV series, and the subsequent pre-production phase of Christopher Columbus: The Discovery; and further plans for the Patch movie were eventually neglected.
However, in late 2008, shortly after the Ilya Salkind Company was launched, plans to remake the movie were set into motion, with the project bearing, among the choice of several working titles: Santa Claus is Missing: The End of Christmas?, Santa Claus: The New Movie or simply Santa Claus. The new project would involve many of the familiar elements from the original 1985 film, with a view toward re-casting such major characters as Patch and B.Z. It has been reported that the new project would be shot at Pinewood Studios, with a possible target release date of Christmas 2011. It was further reported that Renny Harlin is in talks to direct the new movie.
As previously mentioned, Studio Canal owns the ancillary rights, while CBS Television Distribution controls TV rights (in the U.S., it currently airs on American Movie Classics under license from CBS).
Soundtrack
The soundtrack was composed and conducted by Henry Mancini, composer of the themes from The Pink Panther and Peter Gunn, with veteran lyricist and screenwriter Leslie Bricusse contributing five original songs. The song It's Christmas (All Over The World) was written by Bill House and John Hobbs with Freddie Mercury in mind. While it is known that Mercury recorded a demo for the House/Hobbs song at Pinewood Studios, he was never to make a full commitment to the project, as he and his Queen bandmates had already committed themselves to the Highlander soundtrack. In the end, Mercury turned down the project, stating that he felt that Queen had become overcrowded with requests to work on film soundtracks; as a result, Sheena Easton was ultimately chosen to record the tune. As mentioned on the DVD commentary of the movie by Jeannot Szwarc, Paul McCartney was asked to compose songs for the film. It is unknown why he did not do so in the end, but his song Once Upon A Long Ago had been indeed originally composed with the movie in mind. [6]
- "Main Title: Every Christmas Eve 1 and Santa's Theme (Giving)" (Mancini/Bricusse)
- "Arrival of the Elves" (Mancini)
- "Making Toys" (Mancini/Bricusse)2
- "Christmas Rhapsody: Deck the Halls/Joy to the World/Hark! The Herald Angels Sing/12 Days of Christmas/O Tannenbaum/The First Noel/Silent Night"
- "It's Christmas Again" (Mancini/Bricusse)2
- "March of the Elves" (Mancini)
- "Patch, Natch!" (Mancini/Bricusse) 3
- "It's Christmas (All over the World)" (Bill House, John Hobbs)5
- "Shouldn't Do That" (Nick Beggs, Stuart Croxford, Neal Askew, Steve Askew) 4
- "Sleigh Ride over Manhattan" (Mancini)
- "Sad Patch" (Mancini)
- "Patch Versus Santa" (Mancini)
- "Thank You, Santa" (Mancini/Bricusse) 2
1Sung by Aled Jones
2Performed by the Ambrosian Children's Choir.
3Performed by the Ambrosian Singers
4Produced by Ken Scott and performed by Kaja
5Produced by Keith Olsen for Pogologo Corporation, and performed by Sheena Easton.
See also
References
External links
