The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause

The Santa Clause 3:
The Escape Clause
The Santa Clause 3:; The Escape Clause
	Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Michael Lembeck
Written by	Leo Bevenuti (characters) ; Steve Rudnick (characters) ; Ed Decter ; John J. Strauss
Produced by	Robert F. Newmyer ; Brian Reilly ; Jeffrey Silver
Starring	Tim Allen; Elizabeth Mitchell; Judge Reinhold; Wendy Crewson ; Ann-Margret; Eric Lloyd; Spencer Breslin; Liliana Mumy; Alan Arkin; Martin Short
Cinematography	Robbie Greenberg
Edited by	David Finfer
Distributed by	Walt Disney Pictures
Release date	November 3, 2006;
Running time	92 minutes
Country	Template:FilmUS
Box office	$110,768,122 (worldwide)

The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause is a 2006 American film, the sequel to The Santa Clause and The Santa Clause 2. This is the third film in the trilogy.

Tim Allen again plays Scott Calvin / Santa Claus, while Martin Short plays Jack Frost, a competing holiday character. Allen and Short had previously worked together in the 1997 Disney comedy feature film, Jungle 2 Jungle. Eric Lloyd returns in a smaller role as Santa's son Charlie, as do many of the supporting actors from the first two films, reprising their previous roles. However, David Krumholtz, who previously played the head elf Bernard, does not make an appearance in this third installment because of contractual issues, and so Curtis (played by Spencer Breslin), who was previously the Assistant Head Elf has now been promoted to Bernard's former position.

This was the last film to feature Peter Boyle in his lifetime, as he died from cancer one month after the film's release. The 2008 film All Roads Lead Home would be released posthumously.

Production was completed in February 2006. The movie was released in theaters on November 3, 2006 in the US followed by a release date of November 24 for the UK.

The DVD and Blu Ray were released on November 20, 2007 in the U.S. and November 12, 2007 for the UK.

Plot

Scott Calvin/Santa Claus (Tim Allen), is having difficulties managing Christmas this year. His wife Carol (Elizabeth Mitchell), is expecting their first child which is due on Christmas Eve and is afraid that Scott will be making his deliveries while she is making hers. Wanting her to feel more comfortable, Scott invites his in-laws, Silvia and Bud Newman (Ann-Margret and Alan Arkin), up to the North Pole (disguised as a Canadian toy factory), along with his ex-wife, Laura (Wendy Crewson), her husband Neil (Judge Reinhold) and their daughter Lucy (Liliana Mumy) to keep Mrs. Claus company. Meanwhile, Santa is summoned to a meeting of the Council of Legendary Figures consisting of Mother Nature (Aisha Tyler), Father Time (Peter Boyle), the Easter Bunny (Jay Thomas), Cupid (Kevin Pollack), the Tooth Fairy (Art LaFleur) and the Sandman (Michael Dorn). They show him a cardboard cutout of Jack Frost that reads "Merry Frostmas" as Jack Frost (Martin Short) arrives. Besides Father Time reminding Jack that he heralds the season and not a holiday, Mother Nature accuses Jack Frost of attempting to upstage Santa by freezing a volcano in Hawaii, making it snow in the Amazon, and making it cold in Mexico sending the geese back North for the winter. All the other Legendary Figures agree that a punishment needs to be invoked against him with the idea to suspend him. Jack manages to convince them to put him into community service at the North Pole. When Scott brings up the part with the in-laws during an argument with Jack, Cupid recommended the "Escape Clause" which Scott declines. When Jack asks what the Escape Clause is, Father Time tells Jack that he would know more about it if he attended the meetings more. Scott reluctantly agrees with a warning to Jack if he does anything wrong on his watch. Jack helps to disguise the North Pole as Canada for the arrival of the in-laws. Scott manages to get the in-laws to "Canada" with the help of the Sandman.

However, Jack, who wants to have the power and influence of Santa, goes around the North Pole and uses his powers to create technical problems with some of the equipment. The shop flies into chaos and many gifts are destroyed, and Scott is faced with the possibility that there will not be enough toys for all the children in time for Christmas.

Jack talks to Head Elf Curtis (Spencer Breslin) about the Hall of Snow Globes, and discovers that Scott's snow globe can be used to activate the Escape Clause, the most powerful clause of all the Santa Clauses. This clause can help the current Santa escape from his job as Santa; if he holds his snow globe and says, "I wish I had never become Santa at all", the Clause is triggered, and he can return to the point where he becomes Santa and prevent the event from occurring. Scott takes a quick break to show Lucy the Hall of Snow Globes, and gives Lucy a magical snow globe that shows her hugging a snowman, which turns pink because her hugs are so filled with love and warmth. As they leave, Jack sneaks into the Hall and steals Scott's snow globe, freezing Lucy's parents when they catch him. After further attempts at sabotage, Jack manages to enrage Scott's in-laws, and gives him a gift as Scott talks about his frustrations. Not realizing what he is doing, Scott is persuaded into uttering the Escape Clause while opening his gift and taking out his snow globe. Jack and Scott are sent back in time to the front of Scott Calvin's yard, where, twelve years earlier, Scott caused Santa to fall off the roof and donned his coat to become the new Santa. Jack reaches the coat because the past Scott doesn't, due to the snow globe's power and puts it on to become Santa.

Scott is sent back to the present, where he has been the CEO for his old company for the last twelve years, and works even on Christmas Eve. He drives over to Laura's house. Laura treats him very coldy. She then reveals that she and Neil also divorced after having Lucy, as without Scott around Neil tried and failed to fill his role to his son. Scott frantically asks where Carol is and Laura says she "left town years ago because there weren't enough local kids to terrorize or something." Laura gives Scott a magazine that shows the North Pole; it is now a tourist attraction, where wealthy parents take their kids and pay for them to be on the Nice List. Scott assures Laura that he'll fix everything and it will all go back to normal. Scott, wanting his old job back, returns to the North Pole where the elves are miserable and Christmas has become highly merchandised. Lucy and Neil are there as well, although they too are not happy to see Scott. Scott confronts Jack with what he has done and claims his vision of Christmas isn't what the holiday is about, but Jack reminds Scott that he was the one who said "I wish I had never become Santa at all".

Scott convinces Lucy to sneak into the Hall of Snow Globes, and bring Jack's to him. Scott interrupts a musical performance by Jack, when Lucy tosses Jack his snow globe. Jack mocks that Scott will never convince Jack to invoke the Escape Clause, but Scott plays a recording of Jack saying "I wish I had never become Santa at all", when he said it to him earlier. Whisked back to the past, Scott holds Jack down while his past self finds the suit and puts it on, restoring events to the way they were.

Back in the present, Scott reunites with his wife, even though no time has passed since he left, and he promises to make her life better. He then shows his in-laws the truth about his workshop, where despite Jack's sabotage, gifts are being manufactured and will be ready on-time for Scott's deliveries. To Scott's surprise, his son Charlie (Eric Lloyd) arrives and helps out the elves.

It seems things are going perfectly until Curtis and Lucy appear, and Neil and Laura are wheeled in, frozen solid. Jack is also dragged in by the "Elficers" and he refuses to undo his spell on them. By unfreezing them, Frost would have to "unfreeze himself" and so they will be forever frozen. When Scott asks for Mother Nature to help him out, she reminds him that the abilities of a Legendary Figure won't work on other Legendary Figures. However, Scott has an idea. He tells Lucy to give Jack one of her heart-warming hugs; full of love and warmth, her hug changes Jack, melting his clothes and hair from icy to normal and breaks the spell around Neil and Laura. Everyone - including the defrosted and reformed Jack - celebrates with a hug, and Carol suddenly announces that her package is coming. She gives birth to a boy and names him Buddy Claus.

Cast

Tim Allen as Santa Claus / Scott Calvin
Martin Short as Jack Frost
Elizabeth Mitchell as Mrs. Claus / Carol Newman-Calvin
Eric Lloyd as Charlie Calvin
Judge Reinhold as Neil Miller
Wendy Crewson as Laura Miller
Liliana Mumy as Lucy Miller
Spencer Breslin as Curtis the Elf
Alan Arkin as Mr. Bud Newman
Ann-Margret as Mrs. Sylvia Newman
Aisha Tyler as Mother Nature
Peter Boyle as Father Time
Michael Dorn as Sandman
Jay Thomas as Easter Bunny
Kevin Pollack as Cupid
Art LaFleur as Tooth Fairy
Charlie Stewart as Dr. Hismus
Abigail Breslin as Trish
Madeline Carroll as Santa elf
Zach Mills as Carpenter Elf
Jordan Orr as Voices of Elves

Escape to the first film ___________________________________________________________________________________________________

The first time where Jack Frost and Santa Claus fall to the clip. They notice Santa Claus and Jack yells, "Hey, you!" Santa loses his balance and died. Yellow lines went over Jack Frost and Santa Claus disappears. They change.

The second time where Santa Jack and Scott Calvin fall to clip, again removing Jack's coat. He tries to get it, but Scott accidentally yells, "Hey, you!" Santa loses his balance and died, again. Young Charlie rushes over to see him die. They climb the ladder. Santa Jack disappears and yellow lines went over Scott. They change back.

Critical response

The Santa Clause 3 received negative reviews from critics, earning a 15% freshness rating at Rotten Tomatoes, with the consensus that "Playing Jack Frost as an evil cross between Liza Minnelli and Liberace, Martin Short is a welcome presence, but this tired series continues drawing from its bag of bland gags and dumb slapstick." Eric D. Snider, a reviewer, said that Allen did The Santa Clause "The first time with enthusiasm, the second time with affection and the third time for a paycheck."^[1] Kyle Smith wrote, "We're getting a turkey and a ham for the holidays. Santa is so dumb he should be demoted to cleaning up after Geoffrey the Giraffe at Toys 'R' Us." Manohla Dargis dismissed the movie (in a three-paragraph review) as "Squeaky clean, but you might die of boredom." Finally, Nathaniel Bell wrote off the film as "Holiday filler, stuffed with unearned emotion and trite sentimentality." In the UK, Mark Kermode described it in 2006 on BBC Radio Five Live as "The cinematic equivalent of tertiary syphilis".

The film was given five nominations at the 2006 Golden Raspberry Awards for Worst Actor (Tim Allen; also for The Shaggy Dog and Zoom), Worst Supporting Actor (Martin Short), Worst Screen Couple (Allen and Short), Worst Prequel or Sequel and Worst Excuse for Family Entertainment, but did not win any of those categories.

Box office

The first two films had become box-office successes during their opening weekends, but The Santa Clause 3 was beaten by Borat for the #1 spot.

As of February 7, 2007; The Santa Clause 3 made $84,500,122 in the US and a worldwide gross of $110,768,122.^[2] The first film made $189,833,357 worldwide at the box-office while the second film made $172,855,065.

Television appearances

It first appeared on ABC Family on December 1, 2008; as part of the 25 Days of Christmas. Then again, on December 12, 2009. In Canada, the movie first appeared on CBC Television on December 13, 2009. In the UK, it was shown for the first time on the BBC on Christmas Eve 2009. It is due to be aired again on December 25th, 2010. In New Zealand, it was also aired on TV 2 on Christmas Eve 2009.^[3]

DVD & Blu-ray Disc release

The film was released on both standard DVD and high-definition Blu-ray Disc on November 20, 2007.

References

External links

[1] ttp://www.ericdsnider.com/movies/the-santa-clause-3

[2] Lee's Movie Info

[3] "Christmas Eve Movies". TVNZ.

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