SYNOPSIS:
Jesper (Jason Schwartzman) is a spoiled rich kid living off his wealthy father who runs the Royal Postal Academy. In a last-ditch effort to mature his son, Jesper's dad makes him the sole postman on a remote island in the arctic circle, insisting he's permanently cut off from his life of luxury unless he personally processes 6,000 letters in a year. In a desperate attempt to escape the island and its two feuding clans, Jesper encourages the local children to mail letters to Klaus (J.K. Simmons), the lonely woodsman on the other end of the island, who will send them toys in exchange. And as Klaus responds to each letter with a new toy, a legend surrounding the mysterious man begins to form...
REVIEW:
This was a wonderful origin story for Santa Claus! And it didn't involve magic or elves or anything mystical. Just a simple act of kindness that spread like wildfire. Through whispers of the children and a few subtle suggestions from the postmaster, Klaus became this magical man who would make presents appear overnight, but only to good boys and girls. All the magical elements of Santa were justified by real-world actions in this film. It was very fun to watch.
Jesper reminded me a lot of Kuzco from The Emperor's New Groove (2000) (and Jackie and I had to look it up because Jason Schwartzman mimicked David Spade's whiny entitled voice very well). He started out a spoiled brat who will do anything to get home, but he eventually starts to get wrapped up in the good deeds he's performing and finds himself torn between returning to his life of luxury or continuing to help bring cheer and peace to a dark, depressed, and angry town. It was fun to watch his selfish acts slowly become selfless. I love redemption films and I always enjoy seeing if one is tempted to return to their former character, or if they've truly learned a lesson and grown as a person. Jesper was definitely put to that test in this film.
The animation of this film was beautiful! I was surprised to learn that it was hand-drawn animation, with a CGI lighting effect to give it more of a 3D appearance. That gave it a unique style and made it very visually appealing. I'd watch it again just for the look of it. This was Sergio Pablos' first film that he wrote and directed himself and I think he knocked it out of the park!
There was also a remote Saami clan featured in this film. Saami is both an indigenous Finno-Ugric people and describes the groups of languages spoken by them. The little blonde girl who spoke Saami in this film was so adorable! Probably my favorite part about this film. And Sergio Pablos actually flew to northern Norway to record her lines from an actual Saami girl who didn't speak any English. I think she tugged at my heartstrings more than anything else in this film. She was so cuuute! 😍
RECOMMENDATION:
I've never heard of this film until just a few days ago when I saw it pop up on Netflix, but the trailer made it seem interesting, and I'm glad I watched it! I enjoy unique origin stories for traditional tales and this one scratches that itch pretty well. If you like a down-to-earth, feel-good Santa story, you can't pass this one up! I highly recommend it!
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