dragonfire88's Full Review: Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause
In 1994, The Santa Clause was released and became a very popular Christmas movie. I did see and enjoy that movie. Eight years later, a sequel was released which I also saw. That movie had a few problems but it was still enjoyable overall for me. I was a little surprised when I first saw a preview for The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause earlier this year since I hadn’t thought there would be another movie in the series.
In the first movie, Scott Calvin became Santa Claus when he put on the red coat after Santa died in an accident on Christmas Eve. His son Charlie loved that his dad was the new Santa. Scott eventually accepted his position as the new Santa. In the second movie, Scott was trying to deal with some problems with Charlie when he learned about a clause that could prevent him from continuing as Santa. He had to get married to remain Santa. Scott set his sights on Carol, a woman that didn’t like Christmas and was Charlie’s principal.
Christmas was fast approaching and Scott was having a little more trouble getting everything ready. Carol was pregnant and ready to deliver any minute so Scott was trying to spend more time with her. She was missing her family so Scott decided to invite her parents, Sylvia and Bud Newman, to the North Pole even though they didn’t know that he was Santa. Lucy, the daughter of Scott’s ex-wife Laura and her second husband Neil, really wanted to see the North Pole. She convinced Scott to let her and her parents go there for Christmas.
Mother Nature called an emergency council meeting to decide what to do about Jack Frost and the things he had done recently. Jack wanted his own holiday and was very jealous of Santa. Scott decided to give Jack one more chance. Jack acted like he was trying to do better, but he was really messing up everything he could while plotting how to replace Scott as Santa. Jack tricked Curtis into explaining how the escape clause would work.
The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause did build on the previous movies. There really wasn’t any kind of recap of what had happened in the first two movies, though later in the movie it was briefly shown how Scott originally became Santa. People who haven’t seen the first two movies yet might be a little confused about a few things in this movie. I don’t think it would be too difficult for anyone who hadn’t seen the first two movies to figure out what was going on. People that have seen those movies might be a little confused by the fact that Bernard the elf was missing with no explanation. He wasn’t even mentioned once. That was kind of strange, especially since I was so sure I had seen Bernard at least briefly in the trailer earlier this year. It would have been nice if there was some sort of explanation for why he was missing.
The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause was a very family friendly Christmas movie. Some things that happened were little silly which might annoy parents. Scott did have a lot to deal with getting ready for Christmas Eve, having his in-laws visit for the first time and preparing for the new baby. Those things did add some complications to the plot without making the plot too confusing. The movie was predictable, so there really weren’t any big surprises or shocks. I didn’t expect a few small things that happened. I still thought the movie was entertaining and enjoyable. The movie was cute and the children in the theater when I saw it seemed to be enjoying it. There didn’t seem to be as much of the magic as there was in the first movie, though almost the entire movie was set in the North Pole. I did like the way it was depicted.
The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause did have some funny moments in it. I did laugh more than once, though this wasn’t one of the funniest movies I’ve seen. There were times when it seemed like the movie went too long without some sort of laugh. Those parts did drag just a bit. The movie did have a little bit of a lesson without it feeling like it was being shoved down the throats of the viewers. The few more serious scenes were needed to fully share the lesson. There was an attempt to add a bit of gross humor in one scene with a farting reindeer. I didn’t find that funny, but some of the kids in the theater did. I was entertained by the movie and enjoyed it even though I felt like it could have been funnier.
Much of the cast from the first two movies returned in The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause. I did think that Tim Allen was good as Scott/Santa. He was very believable in the part. Carol was introduced in the second movie and played an important part in that plot. She was also important in this movie since she was ready to have a baby any time. Elizabeth Mitchell was good in the part.
Scott’s son Charlie wasn’t around as much in this movie. Eric Lloyd has played Scott in all three movies. His mom Laura and his step dad Neil have also been in all three movies. Their daughter Lucy has only been in two of the movies. She was also close to Scott, calling him Uncle Scott. She loved that he was Santa. Liliana Mumy was good in the part. Spencer Breslin also returned as Curtis, one of Santa’s elves. Different magical beings like Mother Nature, Father Time, the Easter Bunny, Cupid, Sandman, and the Tooth Fairy turned up briefly like they did in the second movie.
There were really three new characters for this movie. I don’t remember Jack Frost being around with the other magical beings in the second movie. He wanted his own holiday and was very jealous of Santa. Jack was not a nice guy and I really didn’t like him. He was very sneaky and devious. Martin Short handled the part well, though he did seem to go a little over board in a few scenes. Alan Arkin and Ann-Margret turned up as Carol’s parents Bud and Sylvia. They were happy to see their daughter and not quite sure what to make of everything else.
Main Cast
Tim Allen - Scott Calvin/Santa Clause Alan Arkin - Bud Newman Peter Boyle - Father Time Spencer Breslin - Curtis the elf Wendy Crewson - Laura Miller Michael Dorn - Sandman Art LaFleur - Tooth Fairy Eric Lloyd - Charlie Calvin Ann-Margret - Sylvia Newman Liliana Mumy - Lucy Miller Kevin Pollack - Cupid Judge Reinhold - Neil Miller Martin Short - Jack Frost Jay Thomas - Easter Bunny Aisha Tyler - Mother Nature
The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause was an entertaining family friendly Christmas movie even though it had a few small problems. People that liked the first two movies may also enjoy this one. Children may like it more than adults.
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