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Title: Fred Claus (2007)
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| Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
| Vince Vaughn | ... | Fred Claus | |
| Paul Giamatti | ... | Nick 'Santa' Claus | |
| John Michael Higgins | ... | Willie | |
| Miranda Richardson | ... | Annette Claus | |
| Rachel Weisz | ... | Wanda | |
| Kathy Bates | ... | Mother Claus | |
| Trevor Peacock | ... | Papa Claus | |
| Ludacris | ... | DJ Donnie (as Chris 'Ludacris' Bridges) | |
| Elizabeth Banks | ... | Charlene | |
| Jeremy Swift | ... | Bob Elf | |
| Elizabeth Berrington | ... | Linda Elf | |
| Kevin Spacey | ... | Clyde | |
| Rio Hackford | ... | Leon | |
| Bobb'e J. Thompson | ... | Samuel 'Slam' Gibbons | |
| Allan Corduner | ... | Dr. Goldfarb | |
During childhood, Fred Claus suffered his younger brother Nick's saintliness. Jump ahead: Fred is a fast-talking, genial but self-centered guy in Chicago looking for $50,000 to open an off-track-betting shop. When one scam goes awry, he calls Nick at the North Pole for a loan: Nick will give him the money only if Fred comes up to help a few days with the Christmas rush. After his girlfriend dumps him, Fred heads north. Santa's facing an audit from an efficiency expert, and it's not pleasant. Fred's job is to review charts and determine who's naughty and who's nice. Is there any fraternal feeling left, can either learn from the other, and what about Santa getting fired? Written by <jhailey@hotmail.com>
I watched this with low expectations, expecting it to be a mess. But I was surprised. Fred Claus is far from a Christmas classic, but there are much worse as well, for example Deck the Halls was very mean-spirited and unfunny, both of which I often see Fred Claus get criticised for.
I do agree it is very predictable, and that the direction is on the slack side. And there is also some uneven pacing and moments of disjointed dialogue. That said, it does look good with lovely cinematography and scenery, and the soundtrack is great and does put you in the mood for the Christmas season. Also there are moments of inspired physical comedy and while they have been better Vince Vaughan and Paul Giamatti(who was so good in Sideways) do display a good chemistry and both deliver spirited performances.
So overall, this is not a bad movie. It could have been better, but it is almost certainly not a disaster. 6/10 Bethany Cox