Red One

 December is christmas movie month, and as I try to avoid those Hallmark romatic drama's it was time for something else.

An action movie with Santa's bodyguard!  We actually saw this movie right at the beginning of the year, but I saved it for publishing until now to give YOU inspiration for that funnier thing to watch next week during christmas eve, ain't I great!

Callum "Cal" Drift, played by the Rock, is the commander of ELF, the organisation tasked with guarding Santa Claus.  But he has become desillusioned with humanity, as now more are on the naughty list then aren't, and as such asked to retire after one more christmas run.  

But the day before Christmas eve, Santa Claus is kidnapped from the North Pole, after it's secret location was found and sold by con-man Jack O'Malley (hello Captain America).  Jack is brought in by MORA, an organisation handling mythical creatures, and interrogated.  He has to team up with a reluctant Cal to go out and find the man he sold the data to, bringing them to Aruba.  But the man is just an inbetween, as the real kidnapper is the Christmas Witch Gryla, who is working together with Santa's brother Krampus.  

Jack and Callum are captured, but thanks to Jack's fast thinking they can escape after trying to appeal to Krampus for reuniting with his brother.  They reveal to him that Gryla actually wants the magical power draining snow globe, the Glaskafig.  She wants to rid the world of every child that has been naughty, but as she tests it on Jack and his son Dylan, the two grow closer to each other in their imprisonment.  Becoming "nicer" that way, the globes break as Zoe and Callum find the hideout thanks to a tracker inside Jack.  They free ms Claus and the security staff, and in Santa's old workshop retrieve Jack and Dylan.

Gryla is stopped by Jack and Callum, aided by Krampus who came to make ammends.  Santa recovers and seals the witch in one of her replica Glaskafigs, as everyone prepares for the Christmas run as time has now ran short.  Jack and Dylan are invited to come along, and during the run Callum sees the inner child of Jack, bringing him back from his plan to retire.

So this was a funny movie, a bit of action, some comedy and cool snowman henchmen, not to mention the fantastic "Red One taking off" scene after Santa spend a day in the mall talking to children.  

Will it win an oscar?  Of course not, but neither would those Hallmark monstrosities and at least this doesn't leave you with stomach pain even before you have to overeat yourself at the christmas dinner table...