studioAT 'Arthur Christmas' is one of the many modern Christmas films that reviewers claim will be the 'next festive classic' that we'll watch every year. And maybe for some it will be, but for me it's just another good Christmas film, not a classic.It has its moments. Aardman bring all of their normal charm to the proceedings, and you can't deny they've assembled a very good voice cast. But there isn't enough story to hang all the jokes onto, and the story that there is feels stretched. Arthur sets off to save the day, it's a very long hour before he does.For young children I think this film reveals too much about the myth of Santa, and the fact he doesn't 'actually' deliver the gifts (relying on elves to do the work) may upset some.Its got a nice message, it's got a good heart, but much like a nicely decorated present, there's not much inside.

morrison-dylan-fan Searching round on Netflix UK,I decided to take a look at their "Festive Features" section and I spotted a Christmas movie from Aardman Animation,which led to me getting ready to meet Arthur.The plot:Working in the letters department, Arthur Claus looks up in awe at his dad Malcolm,who is the latest member of the family to take the role of Santa.Needing to give every child a present,Santa and his other son Steve design space ships which allow them to travel the world in record time.Relying on machines to keep track of the presents being dropped off,the Christmas's and their elves do not notice that they have forgotten to deliver one present.Expecting to be given the job of new Santa,Steve is disappointed to find out that Malcolm plans to continue being Santa for years to come.Cleaning up the place,an elf discovers the undelivered present. Worried about how upset the child will be,Arthur decides that they must get the present to the child right away,but soon discovers that the rest of the family lack his Christmas Spirit.View on the film:Changing their animation method from clay stop-motion to CGI,co- writer/(along with Peter Baynham) director Sarah Smith and fellow director Barry Cook keep Aardman's distinctive features intact,as speedy whip-pans catch every wide-tooth grin and extra large eyes,whilst the Claus workshop gets filled with Aardman's trademark background gags which make repeat viewings of their works a Christmas cracker worth pulling. Following the Claus's (and the elves) on their deliveries,the directors make each location wonderfully distinctive,as the sleight goes from the dizzying lights of Toronto to the scorching hot jungles of Africa.Opening with a gallery featuring the history of Santa's,the writers deliciously keep the warm Christmas message intact,but hilariously show Santa trying to modernise his operations,that lead to all of the Claus's having to dust off their old ways,as they each struggle to get the hang of the Santa Sat-Nav.Walking round in a X-Mas jumper, James McAvoy gives a great performance as Arthur,thanks to McAvoy making sure to keep Arthur's passion for Christmas sincere rather than twee.Joining McAvoy in his X-Mas jumper, Hugh Laurie gives a very funny huff & puff performance as Steve,whilst Jim Broadbent is the perfect fit for the voice of the Aardman Santa.

Anssi Vartiainen Movies about Santa Claus tend to be rather... traditional. What I mean, they usually keep with the old and tried values. Lots of woodworking, hand-crafting, old methods, putting your back into it. Thus, it is very nice and different to see a film where Santa uses extremely modern methods to achieve his goals. The sleigh has been replaced with an ultra high-tech spaceship, the elves work more like highly-trained special ops units, everything is run with the precision of a military operation and the children are merely a statistic to be achieved.And yet, in the end, not really. That's the first five minutes, the starting point, but the film still holds with the spirit of the old. It simply takes into account the fact that Santa probably would keep up with the achievements of technology, while also exploring the downsides of this. Okay, what's the story? Arthur Christmas, the eponymous main character, is the younger son of Santa, who in turn is the scion of a long life of Santas. And now, during his 70th Christmas Eve, he's all set to turn the reins over to Steve, Arthur's older brother, but it just so happens that they miss a child. And through various reasons it's up to Arthur to save the Christmas of this one lone child, really an insignificant error in an otherwise flawless performance.Pretty basic Christmas story, but it's the premise and the characters that make it worth watching. The animation is very high-quality, the character designs look very nice, the soundtrack works and all in all it looks suitably Christmasy. And the characters are great. From bumbling and senile Grandsanta to the current Santa, who's far past his prime, to Steve, who's ultra-efficient, but self-admittedly not that good with kids, to Arthur himself, who lacks self-confidence and precision, but is pretty much the only one with his heart still in the right place.It's a fun film, and definitely a future Christmas classic. It will dazzle you with its vision and characters, while still delivering the same good old Christmas message that we all expect from our Yuletide films.

SnoosReviews Arthur Christmas takes a familiar, clichéd Christmas story and makes it its own by adding a futuristic, high-tech element. Times have moved on from the Reindeer and Sleigh routine and how now been replaced & upgraded with technology. The Sleigh has been replaced by a spaceship/air craft & Santa has the help of 1000's of Elves, with tablets & GPS devices when delivering presents. Christmas is now a military operation!Santa arrives back at the North pole after delivering all the presents and the celebrations are cut short as it comes to light that they have missed a child! There is one Child in Cornwall, England who is going to wake up Christmas morning, without a present from Santa. Arthur (Santa's youngest son) takes it upon himself to deliver this present the old fashioned way, with a Sleigh and Reindeer! Off he sets with his grandfather & a Scottish Elf from Packing named Bryony. This is where the movie really begins! The movie is fast paced and straight from the first scene is sucks you in and keeps your attention throughout.This movie received some criticism for its different approach but I honestly don't understand why. Yes it has a modern day twist but the message is always there from the start, no matter how many gadgets & technology is used, the old fashioned way will never let you down!Arthur Christmas offers great festive fun with some good laughs and a great British cast. I make sure I watch it every Christmas & I'm sure it will be remembered for many years to come.8/10