JTA The Film Passionator’s review published on Letterboxd:
Arthur Christmas - Hilarious, Fast, and Exciting!
Arthur Christmas (2011) is a Christmas comedy movie directed by Sarah Smith, who co-wrote the screenplay with Peter Baynham. The movie features the voices talents of James McAvoy, Bill Nighy, Hugh Laurie, Jim Broadbent, Ashley Jensen, Imelda Staunton, Marc Wootton, and Ramona Marquez.
The movie follows the legacy of the "Santa Claus" title being passed onto new generations in the Claus family. The "Santa's" Christmas Day nights were successful in producing and delivering presents with the elves' support. However, the events of the story occur when a child named Gwen (Ramona Marquez) was missed on Christmas following a technical issue that accidently failed to deliver her present. Luckily, Santa's youngest son Arthur (James McAvoy) discovers the terrible truth and embarks on an exciting worldwide journey with his grandfather (Bill Nighy), his reindeer team, and a Christmas elf named Bryony (Ashley Jensen). Will Arthur deliver Gwen's present on time before Christmas morning rises?
The story was memorable and entertaining with its creativity that makes it stand out from most family Christmas movies. With its fast yet fun pacing, the story offers a unforgettable plot structure, a great sense of humour, the use of originality, some heartwarming moments, and splendid character development. The movie explores the themes of Family, Courage, and Christmas's True Meaning. These were shown through the "Santa Claus" title being passed down to the family's new generation with Arthur building up his courage that he can be a brilliant Santa by bringing joy and overcome the barriers of his journey.
The animation was magnificent since it has appealing character designs and impressive locations that resemble real life areas. In my opinion, it hold up well to today's standards. However, the only issue I had with it was that it did not resemble Aardman's traditional animation style as most of it was done by Sony Pictures Animation.
The voice acting was pleasing because the cast delivered their lines brilliantly in a humorous tone and matching their characters' personalities well. James McAvoy delivered the best voice performance as Arthur with his great sense of British humour and energetic moments.
There was a very funny visual joke in the movie where Grandsanta attempts to get rid of Bryony while flying through Toronto and accidently fly into a "Center for Self Help" sign with Bryony holding onto the sleigh. What made it so funny was that the sign now says "Elf Help" with a light elf hanging above it.
Because of Aardman's involvement and their experience in character development, every character in the film was likeable, well-developed, and relatable while having some hilarious moments. In my opinion, Arthur was the best character because he had a caring personality and gave me the most laughter with his thrilling and silly acts.
Unlike most Christmas movies, there are no proper antagonists in this movie since the story had a realistic approach and an understandable family conflict during the stressful situation.
Harry Gregson-Williams' music score was amazing as he used different music to establish each scene perfectly, so that suits the movie's light tone. For example, Harry uses fast paced music in some scenes to make them more adventurous and exciting for the viewers.
The movie's target audience are children and families because it has a lighthearted tone, an adventurous premise, and important messages. Also, the movie appeals older Aardman fans since they want to see how much their favourite British stop-motion studio evolved over the last decades and recommending their best films to a new generation.
In conclusion, Arthur Christmas (2011) was still an enjoyable Christmas movie that has an unforgettable story full of likeable characters, funny moments, brilliant soundtrack, and marvelous animation. In my opinion, this is worth the watch. This will make you love Christmas even more.
