Well, Halloween just came and went. Guess that means it’s time for Christmas now, right? Haha. Considering the entertainment offerings that audiences have to choose from starting now, that’s actually not a joke. And to be honest, getting a head start on the Christmas spirit isn’t a bad idea. Netflix just added to their large holiday library with a Dutch film that aims to do just that, called The Claus Family.
Young Jules (Mo Bakker) moves with his mom (Bracha van Doesburgh) and little sister to be closer to his grandfather Noël (Jan Decleir) shortly before Christmas. Jules says he hates Christmas, and some significant negative thing has clearly happened recently to the family as a whole. Jules has no time to dwell on this, though, before making a stunning discovery: his grandfather is Santa Claus.
Now, when it comes to holidays on film, Christmas is like a well tapped over and over to the point where the iconography is as familiar to us all as breathing. The elves, the North Pole, the red suit, the sleigh, the reindeer– we recognize it all.
One of the most interesting things this film aims to do is shake that up a bit, and even though it’s not always successful, there is a lot of fun in the attempt. Instead of a sleigh and eight reindeer, a magic snow globe transports Santa anywhere he needs to go. Instead of a multitude of elves, we only see three. And, most importantly for the plot, Santa is not an immortal being but a position passed down through the generations within one family. Just like royalty. And Santa can be either male or female, which is a nice little detail. One detail that may jar viewers is the fact that Santa’s deliveries are made over many nights leading up to Christmas, not just Christmas Eve.
Through unevenly doled out flashbacks, the viewer learns that Jules’ dad died in an accident on Christmas Eve the previous year, after he had already taken over Santa duties for Noël. Grief is overshadowing any enjoyment for Jules. However, when Noël suffers a fall, no one else can help deliver all the gifts kids are expecting around the world. Is it any surprise that Jules learns to love Christmas again? And is it any surprise that all the deliveries are made on time?
Holiday family entertainment follows a certain formula, and The Claus Family makes no effort to pioneer anything new. However, bright spots of humor and emotion are worth celebrating. Such as the moment when Jules and Noël are delivering at one house and end up scaring off burglars! Or when the teenager who’s babysitting Jules’ little sister opens up about her prosthetic leg to give him some perspective on his loss. Also, kudos for the mention of America’s president being a “Madame President” because it’s just nice to hear, isn’t it? (Sigh. Someday.)
At the same time, a subplot about Jules’ mother’s job features a caricaturish evil boss. Also, the characters of the elves are supposed to be providing a lot of laughs but they mostly just feel like they’re trying too hard. The music throughout also felt derivative to me, like it was knocking off John Williams sometimes.
The Christmas holiday season takes on much more cheer when you can enjoy harmless, happy stories of the season on screen, and that’s exactly what The Claus Family is. It may not make its way into your permanent holiday movie rotation each year but it’s a comforting and pleasant option for this time of year.
3 1/2 stars out of 5
The Claus Family is now streaming on Netflix.