ARTHUR CHRISTMAS

aww! fab

Now a classic Xmas movie we all enjoy watching!

Brilliant fun and great characters this is the perfect film for Christmas with loads of high energy action and low on the trauma. Arthur is a lovable character with a bevy of elves performing hi-tec and SAS like manoeuvres to deliver presents in a modernised Santa craft {not a sleigh.} Imagination and plot are first rate so this is now my go to Christmas film....well, one of them :)

Arthur ChristmasThere's no shortage of Christmas films, many claiming to 'save' the idea of Christmas but the trap so many fail to avoid is the sort of schmaltzy, sickly sentimentality that can infect too many of this genre. Worry not, because Aardman work their magic yet again and not only avoid all the obvious traps but produce something that bears repeated watching.Briefly, the plot centres around the dysfunctional Claus family - three generations of them, anyway - each beset by their own insecurities, age-related issues and family disputes, apart from the family matriarch, a kind of Christmas Wonder-Woman, clad in plaid sweaters as opposed to skin-tight bikinis and top but capable of phenomenal technical feats and knowledge. Aardman haven't skimped on casting, either, as the list of credits reads like a who's who of the Cambridge Footlights. Michael Palin, Hugh Laurie, Ashley Jensen, Bill Nighy, Jim Broadbent and Imelda Staunton among others, have us cackling out loud, while James McEvoy voices the eponymous hero with considerable aplomb.Comparisons with that other animated Christmas feature - the Polar Express - are inevitable, but where that was almost industrial in its portrayal of the Christmas concept, Arthur Christmas is delightfully cheeky and very British. Laughs abound, with a lot of fun being poked at Sat Navs, bright children, discordant family Christmas dinners, youthful enthusiasm and board games but, working on several levels, the film also examines frustrated ambition, competitive families and misguided motivations. It's rare, but this film pulls off the trick of appealing to all ages yet avoiding sentimentality. This is a superb production and well worth seeing. As a bonus, seasoned Aardman watchers will enjoy spotting the numerous visual references in the film to other productions including Independence Day, Close Encounters and Toy Story.

Bought for a Christmas Eve box. Nice little touch with the decoration. Lovely film for all the family.

This is another great addition to the Aardman body of work. The story of the Christmas family and the power struggle for succession to the throne of Father Christmas, it gives a wonderful vision of how technology might be used nowadays to deliver presents - a sleight designed like the Enterprise and a mission control manned by thousands of elves.The story focusses on how Arthur is left to deliver a missing present with his grandfather (the previous Santa) using only the old low-tech sleigh and how this causes the frictions in his family power politics to fracture. But the voices, animation and most importantly script and visual jokes more than carry the day. It's not quite up to the standard of Chicken Run [DVD] [2000], but if a great film that will entertain you and kids from 7 upwards, working visually and dialogue-wise on both levels.

Lovely Christmas Film

Perfect family entertainment, well written, great characters, a moving story(with a great message about the true meaning of Christmas) and most importantly funny! It's an Aardman animation, need I say more. There's jokes that everyone will laugh at and some that will keep adults entertained. Do your family a favour and watch this film next Christmas, it has been our family's go to Christmas film for the last four years, my daughter(now 8) as adored it for all those years, there's not only something new for her to laugh at every year but she understands more about the spirit of Christmas a little more too. 10/10