Santa Claus (1985)

The first half of this film, set hundreds of years ago, shows how the old man who eventually became Santa Claus was given immortality and chosen to deliver toys to all the children of the world. The second half moves into the modern era, in which Patch, the head elf, strikes out on his own and falls in with an evil toy manufacturer who wants to corner the market and eliminate Santa Claus.

Director:

Jeannot Szwarc

Writers:

David Newman (story), Leslie Newman (story),

Stars:

Dudley Moore, John Lithgow, David Huddleston

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Dudley Moore	...	Patch
John Lithgow	...	B.Z.
David Huddleston	...	Santa Claus
Burgess Meredith	...	Ancient Elf
Judy Cornwell	...	Anya Claus
Jeffrey Kramer	...	Towzer
Christian Fitzpatrick	...	Joe
Carrie Kei Heim	...	Cornelia
John Barrard	...	Dooley
Anthony O'Donnell	...	Puffy
Melvyn Hayes	...	Goober
Don Estelle	...	Groot
Tim Stern	...	Boog
Peter O'Farrell	...	Honka
Christopher Ryan	...	Vout

Storyline

This dazzling, heartwarming Christmas classic is the story of a master toymaker who discovers a magical kingdom of elves in the North Pole and becomes Santa Claus. But when Santa's eager-to-please elf Patch leaves the North Pole for the big streets of New York City, he becomes mixed up with a dastardly toy tycoon's plans to take over Christmas. And so begins Santa's greatest adventure of all - to rescue his faithful elf and to save Christmas for all the children of the world!

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Plot Keywords:

toy | santa claus | elf | christmas | north pole | 

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Taglines:

Santa Claus. The spirit of Christmas. But who is he really?

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Genres:

Adventure | Family | Fantasy

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Details

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

4 December 1985 (France)

Also Known As:

Joulupukki

Filming Locations:

Albert R. Broccoli 007 Stage, Pinewood Studios, Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$50,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Calash Corporation, GGG, Santa Claus Ltd.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

107 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby (35 mm prints) 70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints)

Color:

Color (Rankcolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The role of B.Z. was offered to Harrison Ford, Burt Reynolds, Dustin Hoffman and Johnny Carson all of whom turned it down.

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Goofs

When Cornelia leaves the plate of food outside for Joe the can of Coke is positioned so the word "Coke" is showing. When Joe picks up the plate moments later the can has turned to show the words "Coca-Cola" in cursive on the other side of the can.

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Quotes

B.Z.: A sequel. That's it. We'll bring it out on March 25, and we'll call it... Christmas 2!
Patch: Christmas 2?

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Connections

Featured in The Nostalgia Critic: Santa Claus: The Movie (2012)

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Soundtracks

Making Toys
by Henry Mancini and Leslie Bricusse

User Reviews

I loved this film!!

I have long lasting memories of this film from when I was very small. It was on the television every Christmas, and my sister and I loved. At one point we actually taped it and watched it again and again and again. In fact, most of my generation loved it. OK, so it is badly done, and the plot is predictable and a bit thin, but remember it is designed for kids and was made in the early 80's. A grown adult watching it for the first time would hate it and think it is just a pile of rubbish, that is how I feel about Barbie & the Nutcracker Prince, but kids seeing that when it first came out loved it!!