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A Christmas Tale - Rare Exports
- Critic rating
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Currently
3/5 Stars.
Movies.ie Critic Review
Santa is the baddie of the piece in this black comedy, American tycoon Riley (Ellefsen) unearthing a frozen, horned, child-snatching Saint Nick – and his not-so-little elves; naked old men - in remote northern Finland. Mayhem ensues, as reindeers are slaughtered, widowed dad Rauno (Tommila) finding a grumpy old man in his wolf pit and assuming it's the rampaging Santa. Only, he's told, it's a thorny old elf. With local children – and all the radiators – having been kidnapped by the elves, Rauno decides to take matters into his own hands...
THE VERDICT: Santa's suffered some indignities in his time – being kidnapped for the Oogie Boogie man; being arrested for impersonating himself on 34th Street; having Vince Vaughn as a brother; being Tim Allen; being hijacked by Coca-Cola – but this Finnish outing might just top the lot, turning him into every kid's nightmare. As opposed to Billy Bob Thornton's Bad Santa, which turned him into every dressing room assistant's nightmare. It's a joke that just about sustains for 82 minutes, creator Helander promoting his hit Rare Exports online shorts (about hunting and farming Santas) to a feature debut. It's all good, unclean, family-unfriendly fun.
Review by Paul Byrne
- Avg User rating
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Currently
3/5 Stars.
User Reviews