Arthur Christmas (2011)

Arthur Christmas (2011)

The Very Best

8.0

A hilarious, underseen holiday gem that's sweet and smart enough for adults and kids

Amazon Video

Spectrum On Demand

youtube

itunes

Movie

UK, United Kingdom

English, Spanish

Adventure, Animation, Comedy, Drama

2011

BARRY COOK, FEMALE DIRECTOR

Adam Tandy, Alistair McGowan, Andy Serkis

97 min

imdb

wiki

What it's about

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.

The take

A recent holiday classic you likely haven't seen, Arthur Christmas uses its premise of the North Pole as a massive spy organization to touch on how commercialization tears people apart. It's a surprisingly smart film with a fascinating dynamic among its family of Santas, with an incredibly funny script full of dry, British wit. And while the animation may already look dated at first glance, Arthur Christmas more than makes up for its looks with truly imaginative art direction and director Sarah Smith's fast-paced set pieces. This is that rare Chirstmas movie that doesn't just surrender to schmaltz; the lessons learned by the characters here are unique, complex, and timeless.

Watch now

amazon

buy $12.99

spectrumondemand

subscription

youtube

subscription

itunes

buy $12.99

microsoft

buy $12.99

play

buy $12.99

Powered by

Appears on

100 Best Movies on Spectrum on Demand

The Best Films of Jim Broadbent

Read also

14 Best Streaming Services for Classics

50 Best Free Streaming Services in 2024

16 Best Ad-Free Streaming Services (Without Commercials)

6 Best Streaming Services with Dolby Atmos

Comments

Your name

Your comment

UP NEXT

UP NEXT

UP NEXT

More like this in

Anora (2024)

An exciting and heartbreaking fairy tale with a modern, class-centric twist

9.0

The Trial of the Chicago 7 (2020)

A star-studded and riveting legal drama with a blockbuster feel.

8.1

I Lost My Body (2019)

The Oscar-nominated unconventional animation

8.2

Wild Tales (2014)

Co-produced by Pedro Almodóvar, this tumultuous Argentine anthology film tests the limits of human sanity when pushed to the extremes – and will also test yours.

9.9

Leave the World Behind (2023)

Shyamalan meets Black Mirror in this hugely entertaining, visually inventive apocalyptic thriller with a killer ending

8.2

Booksmart (2019)

Two academic overachievers from high school set out to prove that they're a smart and fun for one last time.

9.0

Contratiempo (2016)

8.0

Broken Embraces (2009)

A blind man remembers his love in this melancholic, noirish romance thriller

7.4

Forgotten Love (2023)

The stunning third take of the classic Polish pre-war melodrama

7.7

Victoria (2015)

Filmed in one continuous take and in real time on the streets of Berlin, ‘Victoria’ immerses the viewer in a heart-stopping drama

9.8

Movies

Series

Lists

Curated by humans, not algorithms.

© 2025 agoodmovietowatch, all rights reserved.

Terms and Imprint