Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964)

Happy Holidays!  Tonight, for my Christmas movie marathon, I'll be reviewing THREE films!  (Not counting Elf (2003), which I actually watched yesterday)  The first review is on Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964).  Just a reminder that you can read all my reviews at https://cobyreviews.blogspot.com.

SYNOPSIS:
Sam the Snowman narrates the tale of Rudolph, the reindeer born with a glowing red nose.  Rudolph's unique nose is rejected by his father, Donner.  He attempts to hide it, but the other reindeer discover it and make fun of him, not letting him play in any reindeer games.  He runs away and runs into a couple other misfits: Hermey, an elf who wants to be a dentist; and Yukon Cornelius, a prospector.  The trio of misfits escape from the Abominable Snowman and come across an island of misfit toys.  Rudolph decides to help the toys find homes and heads home to the North Pole.

REVIEW:
I haven't seen this film since I was a child!  I remember the Abominable Snowman scared the hell out of me when I was a kid.  I was also weirded out by King Moonracer, the winged lion who rules the island of misfit toys.

Santa is really mean in this TV special!  He shames Donner for having a red-nosed son, is bored out of his mind when the elves perform a song for him, and constantly complains about everything.  He only changes when he realizes Rudolph's red nose might save the day.  Which honestly, is pretty selfish.  Probably the worst Santa I've ever seen on film.

I've always known the story of Rudolph, but this film seemed to add a ton of filler to the tale.  Like the elf who wanted to be a dentist, the eccentric prospector, the island of misfit toys, and the Abominable Snowman.  Not to mention, Rudolph has a love interest in the doe Clarice and has to save her and the rest of his family from the Abominable Snowman.  It felt like the story was all over the place.  I kept wondering how the story was going to get back to Rudolph saving the day, but it kept branching into new adventures.  Which was plenty entertaining, don't get me wrong.

RECOMMENDATION:
This is a classic Christmas story that's been around 20 years longer than I have.  It's a traditional TV special that's familiar to most everyone.  If you haven't seen it yet, you should!

Random trivia: In the original version of the film, Rudolph promises to tell Santa about the misfit toys so they can be given to children who would love them.  But then no other mention of them was ever made.  Children from all over wrote in to the producers, complaining that nothing was done to help the misfit toys.  So they added a segment to the end where Santa goes to pick them up and distribute them to the children of the world.  That addition has become a standard part of the special ever since.