SCREEN IT! PARENTAL REVIEW: THE SANTA CLAUSE 2

"THE SANTA CLAUSE 2"
(2002) (Tim Allen, Elizabeth Mitchell) (G)

Alcohol/ Drugs	Blood/Gore	Disrespectful/ Bad Attitude	Frightening/ Tense Scenes	Guns/ Weapons
Minor	Minor	Moderate	*Moderate	None

Imitative Behavior	Jump Scenes	Music (Scary/Tense)	Music (Inappropriate)	Profanity
Moderate	None	Moderate	None	None

Sex/ Nudity	Smoking	Tense Family Scenes	Topics To Talk About	Violence
*None	None	Mild	Moderate	Mild

QUICK TAKE:: Comedy: A despotic Santa clone takes over the North Pole when the real Santa returns home to deal with his delinquent son and find a wife to comply with the "Mrs. Clause" stipulation in his contract.

PLOT:

It's been eight years since Scott Calvin (TIM ALLEN) took over the job of Santa Claus with the help of lead elf, Bernard (DAVID KRUMHOLTZ), and things have been going well. That changes, however, when Santa learns that his teenage son, Charlie (ERIC LLOYD), has been placed on the naughty list for acting up at school and getting on Principal Carol Newman's (ELIZABETH MITCHELL) bad side.

It gets worse when Curtis (SPENCER BRESLIN) the elf informs Scott/Santa of a just realized stipulation in his agreement to act as Saint Nick. It seems that he has to get married by the upcoming Christmas Eve lest he lose his Santa privileges and powers and the North Pole operation be shut down.

With only 28 days to go, Santa isn't sure what to do, but Curtis comes up with an idea. If they simply make a duplicate of Santa and pass him off as the real thing to fool the elves, then Scott can return home and deal with his various familial issues. Santa, who's quickly reverting into Scott with a rapidly disappearing beard and waistline, reluctantly agrees and heads home.

Once there, and with a limited amount of magic to use, Scott must not only deal with setting Charlie straight with the help of ex-wife Laura (WENDY CREWSON), her husband Neal (JUDGE REINHOLD) and niece Lucy (LILIANA MUMY), but also the task of finding a wife. At the same time, the duplicate Santa (TIM ALLEN), quickly adapts to his surroundings, adopts the real Santa's ways and then sets out to change things due to his growing despotic nature.

With the help of the various elves, reindeer in training Chet, and even The Tooth Fairy (ART LAFLEUR), Scott sets out to accomplish his various goals and stop the evil duplicate Santa before children around the world are disappointed come Christmas Day.

WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT?: It's a good bet that many of them probably will, particularly if they liked the original.

WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: G: For not containing material that would warrant a higher rating.

CAST AS ROLE MODELS:: TIM ALLEN plays Santa and the man who took over his role, as well as the evil duplicate Santa who becomes the despot of the North Pole. As the former, he tries to set his delinquent son straight, find a wife and make others happy, all within a very short amount of time.
ELIZABETH MITCHELL plays Charlie's hardnosed principal who initially doesn't like Scott, but eventually warms up to him.
ERIC LLOYD plays Scott's teenage son who has a bad attitude due to having to keep his father's true identity a secret (he shows this by defacing property by spray painting his version of graffiti on walls and lockers).
DAVID KRUMHOLTZ plays Santa's head elf who tries to keep things running smoothly at the North Pole.
SPENCER BRESLIN plays the 900-year-old elf (who looks like a boy) who comes up with the idea of duplicating Santa so that he can be in two places at once.
WENDY CREWSON plays his ex-wife who's concerned about Charlie's bad attitude.
JUDGE REINHOLD plays her psychiatrist husband.
LILIANA MUMY plays Scott's niece who thinks he's really Santa.
ART LAFLEUR plays the gruff Tooth Fairy who's concerned that his name and wings might make him seem too effeminate.; ELIZABETH MITCHELL plays Charlie's hardnosed principal who initially doesn't like Scott, but eventually warms up to him.
ERIC LLOYD plays Scott's teenage son who has a bad attitude due to having to keep his father's true identity a secret (he shows this by defacing property by spray painting his version of graffiti on walls and lockers).
DAVID KRUMHOLTZ plays Santa's head elf who tries to keep things running smoothly at the North Pole.
SPENCER BRESLIN plays the 900-year-old elf (who looks like a boy) who comes up with the idea of duplicating Santa so that he can be in two places at once.
WENDY CREWSON plays his ex-wife who's concerned about Charlie's bad attitude.
JUDGE REINHOLD plays her psychiatrist husband.
LILIANA MUMY plays Scott's niece who thinks he's really Santa.
ART LAFLEUR plays the gruff Tooth Fairy who's concerned that his name and wings might make him seem too effeminate.; ERIC LLOYD plays Scott's teenage son who has a bad attitude due to having to keep his father's true identity a secret (he shows this by defacing property by spray painting his version of graffiti on walls and lockers).
DAVID KRUMHOLTZ plays Santa's head elf who tries to keep things running smoothly at the North Pole.
SPENCER BRESLIN plays the 900-year-old elf (who looks like a boy) who comes up with the idea of duplicating Santa so that he can be in two places at once.
WENDY CREWSON plays his ex-wife who's concerned about Charlie's bad attitude.
JUDGE REINHOLD plays her psychiatrist husband.
LILIANA MUMY plays Scott's niece who thinks he's really Santa.
ART LAFLEUR plays the gruff Tooth Fairy who's concerned that his name and wings might make him seem too effeminate.; DAVID KRUMHOLTZ plays Santa's head elf who tries to keep things running smoothly at the North Pole.
SPENCER BRESLIN plays the 900-year-old elf (who looks like a boy) who comes up with the idea of duplicating Santa so that he can be in two places at once.
WENDY CREWSON plays his ex-wife who's concerned about Charlie's bad attitude.
JUDGE REINHOLD plays her psychiatrist husband.
LILIANA MUMY plays Scott's niece who thinks he's really Santa.
ART LAFLEUR plays the gruff Tooth Fairy who's concerned that his name and wings might make him seem too effeminate.; SPENCER BRESLIN plays the 900-year-old elf (who looks like a boy) who comes up with the idea of duplicating Santa so that he can be in two places at once.
WENDY CREWSON plays his ex-wife who's concerned about Charlie's bad attitude.
JUDGE REINHOLD plays her psychiatrist husband.
LILIANA MUMY plays Scott's niece who thinks he's really Santa.
ART LAFLEUR plays the gruff Tooth Fairy who's concerned that his name and wings might make him seem too effeminate.; WENDY CREWSON plays his ex-wife who's concerned about Charlie's bad attitude.
JUDGE REINHOLD plays her psychiatrist husband.
LILIANA MUMY plays Scott's niece who thinks he's really Santa.
ART LAFLEUR plays the gruff Tooth Fairy who's concerned that his name and wings might make him seem too effeminate.; JUDGE REINHOLD plays her psychiatrist husband.
LILIANA MUMY plays Scott's niece who thinks he's really Santa.
ART LAFLEUR plays the gruff Tooth Fairy who's concerned that his name and wings might make him seem too effeminate.; LILIANA MUMY plays Scott's niece who thinks he's really Santa.
ART LAFLEUR plays the gruff Tooth Fairy who's concerned that his name and wings might make him seem too effeminate.; ART LAFLEUR plays the gruff Tooth Fairy who's concerned that his name and wings might make him seem too effeminate.

CAST, CREW, & TECHNICAL INFO

HOW OTHERS RATED THIS MOVIE

Curious if this title is entertaining, any good, and/or has any artistic merit?
Then read OUR TAKE of this film.

(Note: The "Our Take" review of this title examines the film's artistic merits and does not take into account any of the possibly objectionable material listed below).

OUR WORD TO PARENTS:

The following is a quick look at the content found in this G-rated comedy. A few colorful phrases are present, as is some imitative behavior. Speaking of which, various characters have varying degrees of bad attitudes, including a teenager who takes out his frustrations by vandalizing things via spray-paint. Some material involves divorced parents (but not as much as the first film).

Some action-oriented and slapstick style violence and action are present, and a few of the scenes could be unsettling or suspenseful to very young viewers, but that depends on their age, level of maturity and tolerance for such material. Beyond that, a reindeer has some flatulence issues and we see the duplicate Santa's plastic and non-realistic looking bare butt.

If you're still concerned about the film and its appropriateness for yourself or anyone else in your home who may be interested in seeing it, we suggest that you take a closer look at our detailed listings for more specific information regarding the film's content.

ALCOHOL OR DRUG USE: People have wine in a restaurant.

BLOOD/GORE: Comet the reindeer lets out several loud farts after eating too much candy.

DISRESPECTFUL/BAD ATTITUDE: Charlie has a bad attitude toward authority figures and vandalizes a wall and then a row of lockers by spray painting his form of graffiti on them.
Bernard tells a white lie to the other elves about the duplicate Santa being the real one.
Scott and Carol don't initially like each other (although that later changes) and Scott isn't respectful of Neal's opinion about Charlie.
The fake Santa lets his power go to his head and takes control of the North Pole facility.
Some viewers might not like the male Tooth Fairy asking if his wings make him look "too girly."

FRIGHTENING SCENES: Younger kids might find the following as suspenseful, but older kids probably won't.
Charlie appears to fall down inside a roof opening, but he's attached to a rope so he's okay.
The fake Santa's army of toy soldiers (full-sized, non-expressive toys) could be a little unsettling or scary to the very youngest of kids when those figures are brought in to control the elves in several scenes.
As Scott tries to make his way into the airborne sleigh piloted by the bad Santa, he has to walk between the reindeer along a narrow support (high above the ground) and then ends up hanging on a railing (and nearly falling off) on the backend.

GUNS/WEAPONS: None.

IMITATIVE BEHAVIOR: Phrases: An incomplete "What the...?" "Do you go pee-pee with that?" "Who are you calling pork chop, meatloaf?" "Nutty" (weird), "Shut up," "You little idiots," "Fire in the hole" (said before farting sounds) and "Loser."
Charlie has a bad attitude toward authority figures and vandalizes a wall and then a row of lockers by spray painting his form of graffiti on them.
Needing the Tooth Fairy to show up, Scott and others try various ways to pull a tooth from his head including tying it to a door and then slamming that shut as well as tying it to a toaster and then throwing that over a railing (neither work).
Scott jokingly yells "Fire!" at a party (but no one reacts).
Charlie and others throw snowballs at the Principal's house.

JUMP SCENES: None.

MUSIC (SCARY/TENSE): A moderate amount of dramatic and suspenseful music plays in the film.

MUSIC (INAPPROPRIATE): None.

PROFANITY: None.

SEX/NUDITY: We see the plastic bare butt (not realistic) of the duplicate Santa that Curtis creates.

SMOKING: None.

TENSE FAMILY SCENES: We hear that Charlie's parents are divorced and a girl with him says that hers are as well.
Carol says she liked Christmas as a child because it was the one day when her parents weren't fighting.

TOPICS TO TALK ABOUT: Rekindling the spirit of Christmas or other holidays.
Finding something to believe in.
The existence/story of Santa Claus.
Children growing up with divorced parents.
Scott jokingly yells "Fire!" at a party (but no one reacts).

VIOLENCE: The following, save for the last entry that's played for action, is played for laughs rather than harsh violence.
The fake Santa plays rough while playing football with the elves and knocks them aside as they try to tackle him (he even clotheslines one and knocks him to the ground).
Needing the Tooth Fairy to show up, Scott and others try various ways to pull a tooth from his head including tying it to a door and then slamming that shut as well as tying it to a toaster and then throwing that over a railing (neither work, but the latter yanks Scott over the railing and down some stairs).
Curtis bangs into some trashcans while hanging from a rope held by the Tooth Fairy as he flies him and Scott back to the North Pole.
A new reindeer accidentally knocks down Santa.
As the elves battle the full-sized toy soldiers (throwing snowballs at them, tripping and ripping them apart with material held between snowmobiles, rushing and attacking them, etc.), Scott and the bad Santa battle in an airborne sleigh. The bad Santa elbows him and then bangs his head onto the sleigh's "dashboard." The sleigh then crashes to the ground and knocks down many toy soldiers, breaking them apart.

Reviewed October 26, 2002 / Posted November 1, 2002

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