Santa Claus is Comin' to Town (1970) is considered a classic kid's Christmas film. To me, this falls into the same category as Rudolph and Frosty the Snowman. That is how I compare my ratings, so let's read to see where it falls!
First off, this is a stop motion film that takes a lot of time to make, it and can be difficult. Not many companies would attempt such a television movie. They managed to land a couple of fairly popular actors in Mickey Rooney as Kris Kringle and Fred Astaire as the narrator postman. Both perform wonderfully. Another noteworthy voice performance comes from Robie Lester as the future Mrs. Claus. This leads to the songs. She has a solo song that is kinda groovy. You feel like you're on some sort of trip as flying colors and flowers are traversing the screen.
I'd be remiss not to mention my personal favorite song in the movie which is "Put One Foot in Front of the Other". This is done by Kris and Keenan Wynn as the Winter Warlock. I hum this song multiple times throughout the year so not just Christmas time. Something about it speaks to me.
Next, we have Paul Frees as the Burgermeister Meisterburger which is incredibly fun to say. Try it. This grouchy man hates toys and outlaws them. This is part of the origin story. Kris decides to bing the children of the town toys even though it's against the law. Many movies and shows have their own Santa origin, but I like this one. It has happiness, sadness, an antagonist and conflict to overcome.
Overall, it's a fun and wholesome film. I enjoy watching it and plan to again. My movie rating is A-.
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