The Christmas Chronicles (2018)

Director: Clay Kaytis
Stars: Kurt Russell, Darby Camp, Judah Lewis
Runtime: 104 minutes

Synopsis: A sister and her older brother go on a journey with Santa determined to save a Christmas they thought they ruined.

• Performances: 4/10

Why? Kurt Russell's disappointing but okay take on Santa aside, the two other protagonists' performances were unfortunately incredibly magicless. I didn't feel the excitement and joy they were supposed to bring to their characters despite them bearing the heavy task of making their journey one that kids would dream of.

• Screenplay: 2/10

Why? Santa's elves did the floss, and the big man himself sang an Elvis song in jail. While on paper these scenes sound awesome, they were just two of the many ones that left me wondering why the movie was greenlit in the first place. It's not funny, I didn't care one bit about the characters or their journey, a lot of scenes feel forced and I never sensed that the film knew what it wanted to be about. I just don't know why families would watch "The Christmas Chronicles" during the holidays when there are so many much better Christmas themed movies out there that fall in the same category as this one ("Elf", "A Christmas Story" and even "Jingle All the Way" are only some of them). 

• Special Effects: 2/10

Why? It really doesn't get any worse than that. The elves and reindeers look like they were drawn and added to the final cut a day before its release. 

• Costumes/Makeup: 5/10

Why? The kids' costume design did look a bit cheesy, but my issue was with Santa's wardrobe. The decision to make him slim and mentioning that Santa being fat is only a myth did not sit well at all with me, and felt like a lazy excuse to avoid getting Kurt Russell into an expensive, uncomfortable fat suit. 

• Editing: 6/10

Why? Fine, I guess. The narrative does feel disjointed at places and there a few unnecessary scenes, but that was more the script's fault than anything.

• Cinematography: 6/10

Why? Not bad, but not great either. Does anyone care anyway?

• Score/Soundtrack: 5/10

Why? I kind of enjoyed Russell's take on Elvis' famous "Santa Claus is Back in Town", but God did it feel forced and out of place.

FINAL GRADE: 3/10