Santa Claus - The Movie

Santa Claus - The Movie (1985)

  • 18% of critics liked it
    (17 reviews)

  • 65% of users liked it
    (18,339 ratings)

After introducing how Santa and Mrs. Claus came to the North Pole and began their work delivering toys at Christmas time, this routine children's film segues into a story about an evil corporate magnate (John Lithgow). One of Santa's elves (Dudley Moore) goes to work for the nasty tycoon and invents… More

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PG, 1 hr. 52 min.
Directed By
Jeannot Szwarc
Written By
David Newman
Genres
Science Fiction & Fantasy, Kids & Family
In Theaters
Jun 1, 1985 Wide
On DVD
Oct 4, 2005
TriStar Pictures

Critic Reviews

  • Ryan Cracknell, Movie Views

    One would expect a holiday epic with a title like Santa Claus: The Movie. It implies something definitive, which would therefore put it in the canon of Christmas classics. However, this is definitely not the case.

  • Chuck O'Leary, FulvueDrive-in.com

    Even though some of its special effects are now dated, Santa Claus: The Movie is a touching tale that deserves to be rediscovered by younger generations.

  • Steve Crum, Kansas City Kansan

    Colorful super spectacle suffers from script, pacing.

  • Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, Spirituality and Practice

    Here is a Christmas package that should have been left on the shelf.

  • Alex Sandell, Juicy Cerebellum

    So horrible I didn't even like it when I was a member of its target audience.

Read all 6 critic reviews

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

Featured Audience Ratings

  • Wahida K


    Not one of the best Santa Claus Movies but a nice Santa Movie.

  • Anthony L


    A fantastic cast and a magical film, I have such fond memories of watching this as a child. Unfortunately, on re-watching this last Christmas, I was horrified to realise this is an awful film. Still, I'm giving it a decent rating for the child inside.

  • Candy R


    This is one of the first Christmas movies I saw as a child. There is an evil toy manufacturer who tricks Patch (head elf) to produce toys to eliminate the need for Santa Claus but Santa saves the day. Hooray!

  • Lafe F


    It wasn't a magical Christmas movie. You'd expect from the folks who brought us the Superman films, something called "Santa Claus - The Movie" would be truly amazing. But it was a dismal bore. Santa had no personality. Dudley was good as the bad Elf. There was no… More

  • Jason S


    I saw this as a kid and have always liked it. It doesn't take itself too serious and thats what makes it a fun watch.

Read all 9 featured audience ratings

Cast

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Trailers & Clips

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