#88 GET SANTA

#88: GET SANTA
Starring Jim Broadbent, Rafe Spall, Warwick Davis, Stephen Graham and Kit Conner.

Written and directed by Christopher Smith, 102 minutes.

Released from jail, three days before Christmas, having served his 2 year sentence (a rare occurrence, an actual ex-con who deserved to be in jail) Steve, Rafe Spall, has sworn to go straight and take his son out for the day, only there's a man in his son's shed who swears he's Santa and he needs Steve and his son, Tom's help or Christmas is going to be canceled! It turns out he is actually Santa and when he's subsequently arrested for trying to break his reindeer out of Battersea Dog's Home and carted off to the exact same prison, Steve's just been released from it's up to newly reunited father and son to break him out of the slammer or see the world's Christmas loving children wake up on Christmas Day without presents!

After that, it's the usual story of a missing ex-con and his son – who it seems he's abducted – and a nationwide, police man-hunt staged by loveable, bungling policemen and not a single, 'I can't breathe' in sight, flatulent reindeer and a father bonding with his mildly estranged son and rediscovering the the good in everyone at Christmas, even crimbos! Think of it as Shawshank Redemption meets Miracle on 51st by way of Starred Up.

It's a film of two halves, there's one which follows Jim Broadbent's Santa as he adjusts to life in prison which is utterly hilarious and had me and the only other adult male in the cinema howling with laughter, his attempts to be hard man are priceless, and then there's the half of the film where Steve and Tom go off to save Christmas and rescue St. Nick by way of the North Pole and Santa's Elves, which is okay, but you'll find yourself missing Santa LOTS.

I have it on good authority that this is infinitely funny and vastly more enjoyable than Nativity 3 and I accept that on absolute faith having no desire to sit through Nat 3. I have already seen number 1 & half of 2 and that was more than enough for me.

7/10