Prancer

Review: A classic 1989 Christmas family drama centered on a young girl who discovers a reindeer and decides it must be one of Santa’s, eventually deciding it’s Prancer. I’m not totally confident how to express the vibes of this movie other than that it feels inherently Midwestern. Since the movie was released in the late ‘80s its considered a classic, but honestly if it was released in the 21st century I don’t think it would’ve been anything more than a direct-to-DVD, TV, or streaming movie that would be forgotten within the year. The power of nostalgia is strong, especially when it comes to holiday traditions. If you want to watch it for yourself this holiday season, you can stream it free on Tubi. 

High: This was a really sweet movie, and I’d credit that to the heartwarming Christmas feelings it was able to squeeze into it. A movie that would never be able to get away from being so sappy if it wasn’t made specifically for families to watch during the holiday season, since it does meet those criteria, it’s just sappy enough.

Low: This was a really sweet movie… but the performances were not very good. The film tried to bite off some really daunting topics (loss of a parent, having to split up families, grief, & even a scene about questioning your religious faith) for which I applaud it. But none of them really landed because the performance were so stale. I have some grace for the several child actors taking on lead roles, namely Rebecca Harrell who plays the main role of Jessica. But there’s not really an excuse for the grown actors who still gave subpar performances, like Sam Elliott & Cloris Leachman. The best actor in this movie was hands (hooves) down Boo, the reindeer that played Prancer.

Rating: 6.5/10