Now that this year's Halloween celebration has drawn to a close, it's time once again to ready ourselves for the onslaught of Christmas-related foofaraw that's sure to come at us faster than a snowball thrown by ROOKIE OF THE YEAR's Henry Rowengartner. As a way of celebrating the oncoming apocalypse of sugary cookies, special screenings of Tim Burton's THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS, and good will toward all, Netflix has debuted a new trailer for their upcoming holiday adventure THE CHRISTMAS CHRONICLES starring Kurt Russell as Santa Claus.
Helmed by ANGRY BIRDS director Clay Kaytis and produced by HOME ALONE and MRS. DOUBTFIRE filmmaker Chris Columbus, THECHRISTMAS CHORNICLES tells the story of sister and brother, Kate (Darby Camp) and Teddy Pierce (Judah Lewis), whose Christmas Eve plan to catch Santa Claus (Kurt Russell) on camera turns into an unexpected journey that most kids could only dream about. After staking out Santa’s arrival, they sneak into his sleigh, cause it to crash and nearly derail Christmas. As their wild night unfolds, Kate and Teddy work together with Santa – as you've never seen him before – and his loyal Elves to save Christmas before it's too late.
I mean, it's no ERNEST SAVES CHRISTMAS or Dudley Moore's SANTA CLAUS: THE MOVIE, but it's got Kurt frickin' Russell as Jolly Old Saint Nicholas! Plus, Russell's Kris Kringle looks to have something of a hard edge to him, doesn't he? I bet he spikes his eggnog something fierce. Also, let's not overlook how glorious Russell looks in all of his red-suited glory, and don't even get me started on that legendary beard of his.
Recently, Kaylis spoke about Russell taking on the role of everyone's favorite Christmas ninja by saying, "No one is better suited than Kurt Russell to bring our version of a rugged, charismatic, and hilarious Santa Claus to life. From our first meeting, he completely threw himself into this iconic role – and grew an impressive beard in the process. It has been a dream come true to work with Kurt in creating what I believe will be the new definition of Santa Claus for generations to come."
Chris Columbus then added, “Kurt is the definitive Santa Claus. Charismatic, tough when needed with a wicked sense of humor. We’re really excited for audiences to see his performance onscreen and hope The Christmas Chronicles becomes a timeless classic.”
It's been a while since we've had an honest-to-goodness Christmas classic, wouldn't you say? Personally, I think the last bonafide Christmas movie gem could be the Sarah Smith and Barry Cook-directed holiday animated feature ARTHUR CHRISTMAS. The film stars James McAvoy, Jim Broadbent, and Bill Nighy, among others, and tells the story of Santa's clumsy son Arthur, who sets out on a mission with St. Nick's father to give out a present they misplaced to a young girl in less than 2 hours. It's a delightful holiday ride for people of all ages, and if you haven't seen it, I suggest you do just that.
Meanwhile, THE CHRISTMAS CHRONICLES will be making its Netflix debut on November 22nd.