Babbo Natale 3D

I just saw this on the I-Max dome theater at the Detroit Science Center. This one wasn't 3-d, but was pretty unique on the domed screen. It has computer generated graphics like "Toy Story" that are fairly well done.

It starts out with a joke that all adults in the crowd laughed at and in fact, I'd venture to say more than half the jokes were geared toward us parents and grandparents.

It's the story of a cute, solitary Snowman getting jealous of the worldwide adulation of Santa and waging a minor war on Santa and his Elves in hopes he can take over Santa's duties himself.

The only complaint I could imagine any parent having would be Santa and his Elves actually behaving war-like during the fight scenes even though it was mostly snowballs versus guns filled with hot chocolate.

My own grandchildren in attendance ranging in age 21 months to 10 years old loved it.

From the start to the finish of the film I found it funny and enjoyable, I normally find these sort of films appeal to only children and I was worried that I would have to sit through a thirty-two minute kids show with a plot so thin that I am sure a dog could understand it. Having said that, I was surprised to find myself laughing out loud several times during the film. Its edgy and yet innocent humour makes this what I feel could easily become a Christmas family favourite. Adults may like it for the humour as well as its ability to bring you back to your inner child, and children will like it for its characters and its cartoon style. Its battle scene, reminded of when I was a kid and epic snowball fights and the fun of just playing in the snow, with my star wars toys! To know what I am really talking about I recommend you seeing this film for yourself!

We chose to see this movie as an alternative to The Polar Express showing at our local IMAX theater. What a waste of time and money! First, it is not cute. The Snowman, at times, looked demonic. Other times, he was simply a zombie. He showed no expression or emotions most of the time, and his hollow blue eyes were just creepy.

Secondly, Santa states in the beginning it's a movie about the spirit of giving. Santa and a snowman declaring war on each other is a movie about giving? I'm all for a little parody, but this just wasn't funny or entertaining.

The idea that the Snowman's flute is his voice is different. Too bad you never see or hear the snowman play his flute...not even a "thank you" to Santa.

The only funny parts of the movie were the "outtakes" at the end of the film. Too bad they didn't use them in the movie. It would have been better.

You can tell just from looking at a movie poster or a DVD cover how sugar coated a kids movie is going to be. "Santa Vs. The Snowman" is certainly kids fare, but it sometimes is not sure what kind of story it's trying to tell.

It's only 33 minutes long, but it's pretty predictable. Once you see the snowman, and see how Santa is adored by the masses, you pretty much know how the story is going to go. They're going to fight, and they're going to make peace for the sake of Christmas. Nothing really new there.

Actually, it almost felt like Steve Oedekirk, who produced this film and created the characters, made a shorter, animated, kid-friendly Christmas version of "The King of Comedy" (1983). The snowman had the delusion that kidnapping Santa and taking his place would give him the love he thought he deserved, similar to Rupert Pupkin's delusion that getting on Jerry Langford's TV show would give him everything he ever wanted.

Of course, the snowman seems too sweet to be corrupted. I liked how it showed him playing the flute all alone in the Arctic tundra, and how the sky looked with all the stars. When the snowman gets it in his head to overthrow Santa, he starts to look strangely demonic, which is a little scary and weird.

However, I actually like the battle that ensued between the elves and the snowman clones. I laughed when I saw the elves using hot chocolate guns and hot gingerbread men to melt the other snowmen. I also thought the subtle allusions to the famous, four-legged AT-AT walkers from "The Empire Strikes Back" (1980) were a nice touch.

Otherwise, the short film is just okay. The 3D effects were actually ahead of their time, considering how 3D would come back in a big way roughly six years after this film's release. The character design could have been better, and the narration by the late Don "Movie Trailer 'In A World' Guy" LaFontaine seemed unnecessary at times.

It would make an adequate animated short before a feature film. When compared to most predecessors like "A Charlie Brown Christmas" and "Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer", all it can do is melt.

This is a hilarious spoof of several Christmas stories, and some not of this 'galaxy', all spun together in one of the most clever ways.

It's about a Snowman and his flute that institutes a war against Santa. The rest has to be seen to be believed.

It's a bit hard to keep unbiased in the enjoyment of this movie. I first saw on television in the late 1990's. It was later released with a 3D rework in IMAX theaters in select cities. This is definitely a movie to add to your collection and the new DVD comes with 3D glasses to enjoy the big screen entertainment come to life in your home.

Definitely a keeper and remember to go to the bathroom beforehand.