The defence The Sentimental Softie
“Sincerity is not manipulation.”
The film risks embarrassment to make emotion communal, and that openness is harder than fashionable detachment.
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The Year Without a Santa Claus
Animation · Family · TV Movie · 1974
Feeling forgotten by the children of the world, old St. Nick decides to skip his gift-giving journey and take a vacation. Mrs. Claus and two spunky little elves, Jingle and Jangle, set out to see to where all the season's cheer has disappeared. Aided by a magical snowfall, they reawaken the spirit of Christmas in children's hearts and put Santa back in action.
Movie details
The Year Without a Santa Claus
1974 Animation · Family · TV Movie 51m
Critical arithmetic
One number, for now.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
TMDB
7.2 / 10
Community rating
Feeling forgotten by the children of the world, old St. Nick decides to skip his gift-giving journey and take a vacation. Mrs. Claus and two spunky little elves, Jingle and Jangle, set out to see to where all the season's cheer has disappeared. Aided by a magical snowfall, they reawaken the spirit of Christmas in children's hearts and put Santa back in action.
CriticWise case file
What this film says about your taste.
Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.
The archetype split
Who fights over The Year Without a Santa Claus?
For the defence
The Sentimental Softie
“You came to feel something, and you will.”
Read their case For the prosecution
The Cool Ironist
“Feeling things is a little embarrassing.”
Read their objectionThe split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.
Taste neighbourhood
Nearby on the taste map.
TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.
Prep & Landing
Animation · 2009
Wayne gets a new rookie partner, Lanny, after his previous partner got the promotion he wanted. Lanny has to remind Wayne of the Spirit of Christmas and the importance of being an elf in Santa's Prep and Landing elite unit.
Prep & Landing: The Snowball Protocol
Animation · 2025
Christmas elves Lanny and Wayne panic when their holiday missions go awry, leaving Wayne thinking he's in BIG trouble with Santa and accidentally revealing other merry mishaps.
Arthur Christmas
Drama · 2011
For hundreds of years, the Claus family has delegated the title "Santa" to a chosen few of its members, which can be passed down upon retirement. Each Christmas, Santa and his vast army of highly trained elves produce gifts and distribute them around the world in a one-night high-tech operation. However, when one of 600 million children to receive a gift from Santa on Christmas Eve is missed, it is deemed ‘acceptable’ to all but one—Arthur Claus, the current Santa’s misfit son deemed ineligible for the title, who executes an unauthorised rookie mission to get the last present halfway around the globe before dawn on Christmas morning.
Mickey Saves Christmas
Animation · 2022
Mickey, Minnie and their pals attempt to celebrate the perfect Christmas at their snowy cabin. However, when Pluto causes Santa to lose all the presents on his sleigh, the friends travel to the North Pole on a quest to save Christmas.
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
Animation · 1964
Sam the snowman tells us the story of a young red-nosed reindeer who, after being ousted from the reindeer games because of his glowing nose, teams up with Hermey, an elf who wants to be a dentist, and Yukon Cornelius, the prospector. They run into the Abominable Snowman and find a whole island of misfit toys. Rudolph vows to see if he can get Santa to help the toys, and he goes back to the North Pole on Christmas Eve. But Santa's sleigh is fogged in. But when Santa looks over Rudolph, he gets a very bright idea...
The Smurfs: A Christmas Carol
Animation · 2011
When Grouchy Smurf behaves badly to everyone and refuses to celebrate Christmas, the Smurfs of Christmas Past, Present and Future teach him to appreciate Christmas.
Stick Man
Animation · 2015
Stick Man lives in the family tree with his Stick Lady Love and their stick children three, and he's heading on an epic adventure across the seasons. Will he get back to his family in time for Christmas?
Noelle
Family · 2019
Kris Kringle's daughter, Noelle, sets off on a mission to find and bring back her brother, after he gets cold feet when it's his turn to take over as Santa.
Olaf's Frozen Adventure
Animation · 2017
Olaf is on a mission to harness the best holiday traditions for Anna, Elsa, and Kristoff.
The Boss Baby: Christmas Bonus
Animation · 2022
Christmas Eve takes a twisty turn when the Boss Baby accidentally swaps places with one of Santa's elves and gets stranded at the North Pole.
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Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
Arthur Rankin Jr. · Jules Bass
Written by
William J. Keenan
Shirley Booth
Mrs. Claus (voice)
Mickey Rooney
Santa Claus (voice)
Dick Shawn
Snow Miser (voice)
George S. Irving
Heat Miser (voice)
Bob McFadden
Jingle Bells (voice)
R
Rhoda Mann
Mother Nature (voice)
B
Bradley Bolke
Jangle Bells (voice)
Court is in session
Put The Year Without a Santa Claus on trial.
Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.
The prosecution The Cool Ironist
“The strings are showing.”
Every cue tells you exactly what to feel and when, leaving sentiment to do the work character should have done.