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Movies / On DVD / Fred Claus
Fred Claus

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Fred Claus (2007)

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Reviews Counted:31

Fresh:5

Rotten:26

Average Rating:4.3/10

Consensus: A slew of talent is wasted in this contrived and overly sentimental Christmas film, which can't quite get the balance between slapstick humor and sentimental family moments.

Rated: PG [See Full Rating] for mild language and some rude humor.

Runtime: 1 hr 56 mins

Genre: Childrens

Theatrical Release:Nov 9, 2007 Wide

Box Office: $71,970,547

Synopsis: Sibling rivalry takes on a new dimension in director David Dobkin's (WEDDING CRASHERS, CLAY PIGEONS) third collaboration with actor Vince Vaughn, FRED CLAUS. Ever since his younger brother,... Sibling rivalry takes on a new dimension in director David Dobkin's (WEDDING CRASHERS, CLAY PIGEONS) third collaboration with actor Vince Vaughn, FRED CLAUS. Ever since his younger brother, Nicholas (Paul Giamatti), was born, it seems that nothing Fred Claus (Vince Vaughn) does is good enough. Nicholas literally becomes a saint and is beloved by millions worldwide, but Fred is just a regular Joe. When Fred finds himself in need of big money in a hurry, little brother Santa is the only one he can turn to. Soon, Fred is working at the North Pole to earn some quick cash and shaking things up with the elves to the delight of efficiency expert Clyde Northcutt (Kevin Spacey), who is on a mission to close down Santa's operation. Can the dueling Claus brothers work together to save Christmas? A sweet lesson is thrown in amongst the sibling rivalry and hijinx: there are really no naughty children at Christmas, just kids who may need a little or love or a second chance. Vaughn plays a character familiar to us now, fast-talking but likable with good intentions. He's at his best when teaching the elves the merits of rock & roll, or talking himself out of sticky situations. Giamatti is endearing as Santa Claus, who compensates for the stress of his job by overeating. Spacey's emotionally frozen Clyde Northcutt harks back to WILLY WONKA's Slugworth as a villain. Frank Stallone, Roger Clinton, and Stephen Baldwin appear in the film's funniest scene as siblings with rivalry issues. Rounding at the cast are Miranda Richardson as Santa's wife, Kathy Bates as Mother Claus, Elizabeth Banks as Santa's assistant, John Michael Higgins as Wiilie the Head Elf, Rachel Weisz as Fred's girlfriend, and Chris "Ludacris" Bridges as DJ Donnie. [More]

Starring: Vince Vaughn, Paul Giamatti, Miranda Richardson, Elizabeth Banks

Starring: Vince Vaughn, Paul Giamatti, Miranda Richardson, Elizabeth Banks, John Michael Higgins, Rachel Weisz, Kathy Bates, Kevin Spacey, Trevor Peacock, Ludacris

Director: David Dobkin

Director: David Dobkin
Screenwriter: Dan Fogelman
Story: Jessie Nelson, Dan Fogelman
Producer: Joel Silver, Jessie Nelson, David Dobkin
Composer: Christophe Beck
Studio: Warner Bros.

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Release:

Nov 30, 1999

[DVD Details]
 
 

DVD Features:

  • Region 1
  • Dual Layer

Audio:

  • Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo - English, French, Spanish
  • Subtitles - French, Spanish
 
 
 
 

Reviews for Fred Claus

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1 - 20 (sorted by date)
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The movie is less ho-ho-ho than uh-oh, or oh-no.

Full Review Source: TIME Magazine | comment Comment
11/12/07
Richard Corliss
Richard Corliss
TIME Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

There are some scattered big laughs and a sweet message here, so I’m giving it a mild recommendation.

Full Review Source: Ebert & Roeper | comment 1 Comment
11/12/07
Richard Roeper
Richard Roeper
Ebert & Roeper
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As derivative and predictable as any of the holiday comedies of the past few years, providing audiences with at best a handful of laughs. Most of it is uninspired.

Full Review Source: USA Today | comment Comment
11/09/07
Claudia Puig
Claudia Puig
USA Today
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It senselessly dims an idea that should shine as brightly as Rudolph's nose.

Full Review Source: Toronto Star | comment Comment
11/09/07
Peter Howell
Peter Howell
Toronto Star
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A complete bust, derivative and uninspired, boring and dull, not funny, not moving and about a half hour too long.

Full Review Source: San Francisco Chronicle | comment Comment
11/09/07
Mick LaSalle
Mick LaSalle
San Francisco Chronicle
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Fred Claus turns out to be not bad for a Santa movie, which I suppose could be interpreted as either faint or excessive praise, depending on your view.

Full Review Source: Los Angeles Times | comment Comment
11/09/07
Carina Chocano
Carina Chocano
Los Angeles Times
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The satire on globalism and downsizing is also as old as the Clinton administration, but that doesn't stop director David Dobkin from selling it like fresh goods.

Full Review Source: Newark Star-Ledger | comment Comment
11/09/07
Steven Boone
Steven Boone
Newark Star-Ledger
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

There is more plot in the average Geico commercial, so the movie pads itself with detours into sketch ideas that don't develop past the basic concept.

Full Review Source: New York Post | comment 1 Comment
11/09/07
Kyle Smith
Kyle Smith
New York Post
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About as funny as a sack of coal.

Full Review Source: New York Daily News | comment Comment
11/09/07
Jack Mathews
Jack Mathews
New York Daily News
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A pleasant little seasonal gift.

Full Review Source: Minneapolis Star Tribune | comment Comment
11/09/07
Jeff Strickler
Jeff Strickler
Minneapolis Star Tribune
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The movie's constantly shifting timbre takes some getting used to, and it's hard to escape the feeling that a whole lot of actors (Rachel Weisz, Kathy Bates, Miranda Richardson) are wasted in a whole lot of roles.

Full Review Source: Houston Chronicle | comment Comment
11/09/07
Amy Biancolli
Amy Biancolli
Houston Chronicle
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An amiable but awkward Christmas bauble that depends too much on charm substituting for timing.

Full Review Source: Detroit News | comment Comment
11/09/07
Tom Long
Tom Long
Detroit News
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The eggnog quickly turns sour as the movie alternates between moments both heartwarming and bizarre.

Full Review Source: Detroit Free Press | comment Comment
11/09/07
John Monaghan
John Monaghan
Detroit Free Press
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There's no more fleet talker flapping his lips with free associative aplomb than Vaughn, and he uses his edgy powers for good here.

Full Review Source: Denver Post | comment Comment
11/09/07
Lisa Kennedy
Lisa Kennedy
Denver Post
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Like so many secular, big-studio Christmas comedies, this isn't naughty enough to be funny or nice enough to be uplifting.

Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment Comment
11/09/07
J. R. Jones
J. R. Jones
Chicago Reader
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

[Vaughn's] naughtiness has never seemed so approachably nice.

Full Review Source: Boston Globe | comment Comment
11/09/07
Wesley Morris
Wesley Morris
Boston Globe
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Freely mixing reality therapy, fairy tale and satire, Dobkin's film does not maintain a consistent tone.

Full Review Source: Philadelphia Inquirer | comment Comment
11/09/07
Carrie Rickey
Carrie Rickey
Philadelphia Inquirer
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Fred Claus is a tacky would-be comedy about family dysfunction that fronts some Scrooge attitude only to dissolve into slobbering sentimentality and canned uplift.

comment Comment
11/09/07
Manohla Dargis
Manohla Dargis
New York Times
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[Fred Claus] has apparently studied Elf and figured out everything that could have gone wrong with its fish-out-of-water Christmas fable.

Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment Comment
11/09/07
Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Fred Claus ends up closer in spirit to Eugene O'Neill than it is to Dr. Seuss.

Full Review Source: Globe and Mail | comment Comment
11/09/07
Stephen Cole
Stephen Cole
Globe and Mail
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1 - 20 (sorted by date)
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Latest News for Fred Claus

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It's Friday, there's a new raft of movies in the UK cinemas this week, but are any of them any good? This week the UK film hacks give us their opinions on Clint Eastwood's... More...

November 24, 2008: RT on DVD: Fred Claus, Hancock, and 24: Redemption
The holidays are upon us, which makes it a perfect week to snuggle up with the superhero (Hancock), the spirited (Fred Claus), or the stealthy (Keifer Sutherland as Jack Bauer... More...

November 23, 2008: Don't make the mistake of misreading this mean-spirited production as a kid-friendly Christmas flick. Opens in new window
More...

November 22, 2008: Vince Vaughn's famously rude Wedding Crasher gets macho with Ludacris as a m-igitalized feisty Santa elf, while huddling over the pint-sized urinals in the john with another, to clue him about North Pole dirty dancing and romance. Opens in new window
More...

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