Santa's Apprentice / The Magic Snowflake

Luc Vinciguerra serves as director for both of these French-Australian-Irish co-productions from Gaumont Animation. Santa's Apprentice (2010) introduces viewers to young orphan Nicholas, who is popular with the other children at the home in Sydney (with Southern Hemisphere shots of the kids eating outdoors in short sleeves among palm trees), likes to share, and is only bothered by a fear of heights. Over at the North Pole, Santa is a bit overwhelmed by his 178 years on the job, but he gets together with past Santas to use a magic globe to help find an apprentice, which leads them to Nicholas. Showing Nicholas his new duties—he gets to test out toys (including a robot that says “You're my favorite human. You will be spared in the uprising.”), talk to reindeer, and engage in other workshop hijinks. Ultimately, Christmas Eve presents various obstacles, ranging from Nicholas's friend's housing problem to Santa being accosted by authorities. The 2013 companion sequel The Magic Snowflake follows Nicholas as he suffers under the pressure of his new job and comes down with a nasty case of grouchy “Grown-up-itis” that is only cured by a time-traveling sequence; meanwhile, the original Santa and his wife find a storyline at the former orphanage. Whimsical holiday fare, this light-hearted two-fer—also available separately for $14.98 each—is recommended. Aud: P. (J. Williams-Wood)