Album Reviews
Movies
Concert Reviews

Top 10
Resources
Contact Us

The _Santa Clause_, a runaway theatrical hit in 1994 for Tim Allen and Walt Disney Studios, arrives on DVD in time to serve as a refresher before patrons head off to the theater to see _The Santa Clause 2_ (the DVD package even includes a voucher for a free ticket to the new film).  Allen is featured as Scott Calvin, a divorced father who inadvertently causes Jolly Saint Nick's demise on Christmas eve, and is required to fill the position.  The film's comedy centers on the struggles of an everyman to come to grips with his position as beloved hero to children the world over, while learning to become a decent father to his own son.  Co-stars include Wendy Crewson as Calvin's ex-wife, Judge Reinhold (Beverly Hills Cop, etc.) as a school counselor and Peter Boyle (Young Frankenstein, Everybody Loves Raymond).

The visual quality of the film has been markedly improved from Buena Vista's 1998 DVD release.  The picture is matted in widescreen format at 1.85:1, anamorphically encoded, and the program is THX certified.  The Dolby Digital 5.1 surround audio program is not noticeably different from the previous release.  Bonus features include a 6-minute featurette entitled  "So You Wanna Be an Elf?," hosted by the film's David Krumholtz.  Wolfgang Puck hosts "Making Santa Snacks with Wolfgang," in which the renowned chef demonstrates how to make three of Santa's favorite snacks - pizza, cookies and hot cocoa (Santa doesn't have to watch his calories).

Jeff Elbel 1/10/2003