Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale

Usually every year we get at least one or two dreadful Christmas movies - unfunny Hollywood comedies, etc.. - to fill up the cinema through December. This year there has been nothing that I can think of. Instead we get this delightfully different take of the story of Santa Claus from Finland. You see the idea we have of Santa is a lie spread by Coca-Cola and the truth is that he was a rather vicious creature, more interested in punishing naughty children than giving presents to nice ones.

A bumbling group of Americans dig up the original Santa buried in the ice beneath and unleash something on the nearby Sami community. Only bookish Pietari is clued into what is really going wrong. To be honest, for much of the time it plays like a standard creature feature, and none of the scares are particularly original of themselves, but this is lifted well above the average by a number of strengths. Firstly, the filmakers are confident in the genius of their idea that they downplay rather than overplay the horror and gore (none of the locals are killed off). Secondly there is a very real sense of place in the depiction of the Sami community, which is never romanticised or patronised. Thirdly and most importantly, there is real depth in the relationship between Pietari and his father. Finally, the film maintains a really funny sense of dry humour throughout, both in some good dialogue and in the execution of the central idea which sees Santa as an old man/creature running about naked in the icy landscape. There's also a great conclusion where the resourceful locals triumph.

Overall - 8/10 Original, inventive and funny alternative take on Santa.