THE SEARCH FOR SANTA PAWS
Convoluted and Mixed
What You Need To Know
THE SEARCH FOR SANTA PAWS is a somewhat convoluted Christmas tale, following a Santa Claus who loses his memory, his dog who loses his way, and a group of orphan girls longing for a family.
After discovering that Mr. Hucklebuckle, an old friend and toy store owner, has died, Santa is saddened. In order to cheer him up, his elves use magic from the Great Christmas Icicle to bring a toy dog to life.
Santa then takes a trip to New York City, bringing his new dog Paws with him. Shortly after they arrive, however, a taxicab hits Santa. Paws runs off to find help, but Santa is gone by the time he returns. When Santa comes to, his memory is gone. While Santa searches for his memory, Paws searches for Santa. Along the way, Santa runs into some orphan girls deprived of Christmas joy by a mean caretaker.
Can Santa and Paws be reunited in time for Christmas?
While the story idea of this film is somewhat charming, the execution leaves too much to be desired. The production value is a mixed bag, ranging from good to pretty bad. The acting fares better, but is similarly varied. Every piece of the story feels forcefully contrived and is utterly lacking in heart. Beyond this, there are a couple of musical sequences thrown in seemingly at random that feel extremely out of place. Overall, it seems like the creators couldn’t settle on what they wanted for this movie, in more ways than one, and it falls flat.
From a moral standpoint, the movie also has some mixed messages. It must be mentioned that magic is used and condoned throughout, and the real meaning of Christmas (the birth of Jesus Christ) is never mentioned or even implied, though the words Merry Christmas are valued. Overall, however, there is quite a bit of morality presented within it. A homeless man steals early in the movie, but repents of his theft later and is forgiven. Santa is portrayed as having a strong spirit of service. The importance of family is extolled. An orphan says her family is in Heaven.
This movie falls squarely into the category of serviceable movies created solely to generate a quick buck by preying on parents looking for movies that appear kid friendly for their children. There is little outstanding about it. Despite the positive moral lessons, the movie’s references to “Christmas magic” will confuse children.
