Santa Vs. The Snowman 3D

The kid-friendly Santa vs. the Snowman began as a 1997 animated television special, then made a leap to the biggest movie screens--IMAX--in the world (in 3-D, no less), and now has come full circle to DVD with its extra, simulated perspective and deep focus intact. (3-D glasses, which come with the disc, are required.) An animator's lark, Santa concerns a battle between Mr. Claus and a scheming snowman who tries to overtake Santa's toy-making and Christmas Eve delivery operation. A full-scale war erupts (there are some scary images here, particularly of a snowman writhing to his fiery death), though the violence is mitigated by clever quotes from movie and animation classics, including Toy Story and the stop-motion television perennial Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town. The original 2-D geometric planes are artfully reinvented to achieve an exciting depth. --Tom Keogh