DVD Reviews

Fred Claus - Blu-ray Review

By Jeff Swindoll Nov 28, 2008, 11:51 GMT

Sibling rivalry isn’t unknown to those of us that have siblings. Even better if you’re sibling is well loved the world over. This is the situation Fred finds himself in since his brother is Santa Claus.

Fred Claus (Vince Vaughn) is a repo man in Chicago. He has issues with his brother; this might seem out of the ordinary if his brother wasn’t Nicholas Claus (Paul Giamatti) or as he’s known to you and me – Santa Claus.

Fred wants to purchase some prime Chicago real estate and make a killing, but he needs $50,000 by the 22nd of December. He sees some curbside Santa’s helpers raking in the dough so he decides to get into the act for his favorite charity – himself. When the other Santa’s get wise to his racket and lack of permit they gang up on him and the resulting melee gets him thrown into the clink. He doesn’t have a choice but to call little brother Nick at the North Pole to send me the $5,000 in bail money. Nick’s wife Annette (Miranda Richardson) says that he should practice “tough love” with Fred so the condition for the cash is that Fred travel to the Pole and help get Christmas ready. Santa sends his head elf Willie (John Michael Higgins) to pick up Fred and soon Fred is making of mess of things at the North Pole. This isn’t good since the board has sent an efficiency expert named Clyde Northcutt (Kevin Spacey) to write a report about how things are going up there. Three strikes and Nick will get fired and operations will be moved to the South Pole and ran more efficiently. Since Fred can’t seem to help but screw things up, with a little behind-the-scenes help from Clyde, it looks like Christmas isn’t going to come this year and Santa is going to be in the unemployment line. Fred Claus is a film that aims to be a whimsical Christmas romp but seems to have forgotten to put in some of the whimsy along the way. The plot of having Santa’s brother living in his shadow is an interesting one. It is hilariously explored with a support group of other siblings – Roger Clinton (Bill’s brother), Frank Stallone (Sylvester’s brother), and Stephen Baldwin (Alec’s brother)), but it stops exploring that for a “Christmas in danger” plot. True enough that Fred has to step up to the yuletide plate and save the day, but that part seems old hat compared to the brotherly rivalry. Not that we have any doubts that Christmas is going to be saved – um, it is coming this year right?

Spacey’s villainy is easily seen through and his heart grows three times the day that Santa gives him the present that he wanted so as a boy (it’s an ironic one considering another film he starred in). Then there’s the weirdness of seeing Higgins’s head slapped on a little person’s body, especially when the seams show, but it is a good performance. Fred Claus is a film that has some good ideas but doesn’t explore the ones that I would’ve liked to have seen looked at. It does feature some good performances from Giamatti, Spacey, Kathy Bates (as the Claus matriarch), Elizabeth Banks and Rachel Weisz (both stunners but given little to do). Vaughn is just doing his usual shtick and whether you enjoy the film may depend on your tolerance of him. I wondered if somebody less brash might’ve made it more believable. It’s not coal in the stocking, but it’s not exactly going to be a classic either. Fred Claus is presented in a 1080p high definition transfer (2.40:1). Special features include a commentary from director David Dobkin. The rest of the special features are in high definition, unless noted but it’s odd that they didn’t just do them all in high-def. The 9 minute “Pause for Claus” has the elves chatting about their boss. The 9 minute “Sibling Rivalry” has all the famous brothers talking about their siblings. The 13 minute “Meet the Other Claus” is a making of documentary. Lucacris (who cameos as the elf DJ in the film with his head digitally stapled on another body ala Higgins) provides a 1 minute music video. The rest of those mentioned are in standard definition: 25 minutes of deleted scenes and 4 minutes of Q&A “Fireside Chats” with Giamatti and Vaughn. You also get a disc with a digital copy of the film for your PC or portable device and a separate disc with a DVD game called “The Race to Save Christmas.” Fred Claus is an okay holiday film, but it feels like it misses the mark on an interesting take on the Santa Claus myth. The Blu-ray does provide some decent special features but I would’ve been happier if they were all in high definition. It was still a fun movie and just squeaks on the nice list and not the naughty one.