13 year old Allie (Hallee Hirsh) and her best friend Sam (Brenda Song) see an old man (who unknown to them is Santa Claus (John B. Lowe)) throwing a strange machine in the garbage. Though Sam tells Allie that they shouldn't take it, the young teen takes it anyways. Once Allie discovers it is actually a weather machine, she decides to create a snow day (in L.A.) so she can start Christmas Vacation early and not have to turn in a book report she hasn't even started the next day. However the machine causes many problems and nearly ruins Christmas for Allie and everyone around her.
This may be no Christmas classic, but it certainly is charming and fun on its own merits. Allie is in many ways your typical Disney Channel early teen. She wants to become popular. She has a best friend who is often the unwilling sidekick in her crazy schemes. She spends much time deciding what to wear and how she looks around her crush. However she is not completely shallow and has a good hear underneath it all. This type of character may seem cliché, but the reason it has become a cliché is that it works. Saying that Allie is a likable character and a lot of fun to watch. The movie itself is a lot like this character. It is quite faulted, but its heart is always in the right place. This movie has a message about the importance of family over presents during the Christmas season. This message is presented very well. It is never preached to us but rather plays out as a natural unforced part of the story. Underneath how over the top and silly the story is, there are some genuinely heart warming moments in this film.
Adding to much of this movie's sense of fun is an enjoyably over the top villain. You can just tell that Peter Scolari is having so much fun playing this part and chances are you will have just as much fun watching him as I did. John B. Lowe (who continues to enjoy success in made for TV Christmas movies thanks to Hallmark (he was in two just this year)) is fantastic as Santa also adding much fun to this film.
The weakest parts of this movie are the two elves (John Salley, Bill Fagerbakke) and the younger brother (Spencer Breslin). The elves are about as unfunny as comic relief can get and unfortunately the brother is written in a way that most of his lines are whined.
A nice little movie to get you in the Christmas spirit.
-Michael J. Ruhland
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