Santa Fake

Last updated
Santa Fake
Directed byJ.M. Burris
Written byJ.M. Burris
Produced byChad Burris
Matthew Hanson
Jonathan Delaney Marsh
NaNi Rivera
Starring Damian McGinty
Heather Morris
John Rhys-Davies
Judd Nelson
Jeff Fahey
Tony Amendola
CinematographyRay Ortega
Edited byMichael Taylor
Shawn Wayman
Music byRyan Beveridge
Release date
  • October 4, 2019 (2019-10-04)
Running time
86 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Santa Fake is a 2019 American Christmas film written and directed by J.M. Burris and starring Damian McGinty, Heather Morris, John Rhys-Davies, Judd Nelson, Jeff Fahey and Tony Amendola. [1] [2]

Contents

Plot

In a Derry orphanage in 1994, orphaned baby Patrick Keeley is visited by a little person who tells him he will go on to do great things. 25 years later, Pat illegally immigrates to start a new life in New York City. He finds off-the-books employment and a father figure in Irish restaurant owner, Joe, but after a few months is asked to deliver two suitcases for his boss in return for $10,000 on the stipulation that he does not look inside them. Pat thinks about the shady dealings Joe has involved himself in and, after running into several police officers on the way to the drop, gets spooked and takes the first bus out of town.

His bus journey ends at Santa Fe where he pays for a single night at a Bed and Breakfast run by the widowed Mrs. Ortega. Pat calls Joe to reassure him that he will deliver the briefcases. Joe is furious that Pat ran off with them and scares him into hanging up while demanding his location. However, Joe determines where Pat is thanks to the area code and dispatches two of his top lieutenants, Jim and Seb, to kill Pat and retrieve the money. A wiretap on the phone prompts two FBI Agents to follow them, as they are trying to catch Joe for money laundering.

Pat opens the briefcases to find that they contain $1.3 million. After paying for a longer stay, he heads to the mall to buy himself a new wardrobe using the initially promised $10,000 as an advance. Attempting once more to clear things up with Joe, he is informed of his impending death and tries to flee again, only to bump into the mall's events coordinator Emily. Between Emily's concern that they have no mall Santa to entertain the kids, and Pat's concern for his safety, he agrees to go along since he figures he can hide in plain sight with the costume. He quickly wins over the children who visit with his kindness and penchant for singing.

Pat dumps the briefcases and keeps his money in a backpack, traveling to and from the mall in disguise to avoid being spotted by Jim and Seb, who have also arrived. Emily continuously tries to get him to fill out tax forms so he can be employed, but because of his illegal status, he says he'll work for free. Emily offers a compromise by taking him to dinner the following night. This and an encounter with Mrs. Ortega, still mourning her deceased husband, causes a crisis of faith in Pat and he heads to a nearby church. There he is offered reassurance by Padre Estaban, and in return reassures him that the church's upcoming toy drive will go well despite the lack of donations.

Out on his date with Emily, Pat learns that she's never traveled except for an out-of-state university, and Pat tells her that his father died in The Troubles and his mother had to give him up when he was born. Pat attempts to hide from any onlookers, but is unknowingly aided by the little person from the film's beginning, who distracts Seb and Jim by challenging them to remember all the lyrics to "The Twelve Days of Christmas". The date goes well, but upon returning to the B&B he is shaken when Mrs. Ortega tells him the FBI visited and traced a call to the establishment.

The next day during Santa duty, Pat meets a boy named Vicente who lives in a group home. Sympathetic to the boy's position, he enlists Emily and the security guard Ryan to help him buy the toys the kids have been asking for all month and hand them out on Christmas Eve. Though everything goes well at first, Jim and Seb finally realize that Pat is Santa and give chase. Pat evades them and flees to the church, with Emily and the onlookers following soon after. Pat first runs to the church to leave the backpack filled with money and a note to give the kids a good Christmas, which is later found by Padre Estaban.

Everyone gathers in the town square, drawn by Pat singing "O Holy Night" before his assumed death or arrest. He tries to escape in an antique fire truck, Emily joining him as he explains his situation to her, but Seb is arrested by Ryan and Jim is taken out by Padre Estaban. Despite the seeming victory, the fire truck runs out of gas and Pat has a breakdown because of the hopelessness of his situation if he's caught by the authorities or Joe's forces. In his panic, he falls out of the truck and blacks out.

When Pat wakes up, he is face to face with a reindeer and the real Santa Claus, with flashbacks revealing that he has been present for several moments in the film without anyone noticing. Furthermore, the little person who has been appearing is his elf Alowishus, who alerted Santa of Pat's potential for kindness and generosity thanks to his upbringing helping him relate to less-fortunate children. Santa states that he is 1749 years old and wants to retire, and would like Pat to apprentice under him and one day take over the business. Emily and Pat assure each other that they'll see each other again before Pat joins Santa and the two fly to the North Pole.

In the epilogue, Mrs. Ortega adopts Vicente, Emily receives plane tickets to Ireland, and Joe is given a wrapped box of coal by an unseen force.

Cast

Production

The film was shot in New Mexico in December 2017. [1] Judd Nelson, Jeff Fahey, and John Rhys-Davies were named as starring in the film and producer Delaney Marsh noted that the planned 12-day film schedule would be its "biggest challenge". [3] Actor Damian McGinty described the movie as "a very lovely, heartwarming family-friendly Christmas film". [4]

Release

Santa Fake was given a limited theatrical release on October 4, 2019, after which it was released to video on demand. [5]

Reception

Frank Scheck of The Hollywood Reporter gave the film a negative review and wrote, "J.M. Buris' debut feature severely tests the limits of how much mediocrity viewers will accept in exchange for some forced holiday cheer." [2]

Related Research Articles

<i>The Replacements</i> (film) 2000 film by Howard Deutch

The Replacements is a 2000 sports comedy film directed by Howard Deutch and starring Keanu Reeves, Gene Hackman, Orlando Jones, Brooke Langton, Rhys Ifans, Jon Favreau, and Jack Warden in his last film appearance.

<i>Elf</i> (film) 2003 American Christmas comedy film

Elf is a 2003 American Christmas comedy film directed by Jon Favreau and written by David Berenbaum. It stars Will Ferrell as Buddy, a human raised by Santa's elves, who learns about his origins and heads to New York City to meet his biological father. James Caan, Zooey Deschanel, Mary Steenburgen, Ed Asner and Bob Newhart appear in supporting roles.

<i>Dumb and Dumber</i> 1994 comedy film by Peter Farrelly

Dumb and Dumber is a 1994 American buddy comedy film directed by Peter Farrelly, who cowrote the screenplay with Bobby Farrelly and Bennett Yellin. It is the first installment in the Dumb and Dumber franchise. Starring Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels, it tells the story of Lloyd Christmas (Carrey) and Harry Dunne (Daniels), two dumb but well-meaning friends from Providence, Rhode Island, who set out on a cross-country trip to Aspen, Colorado, to return a briefcase full of money to its owner, thinking it was abandoned as a mistake though it was actually left as a ransom. Lauren Holly, Karen Duffy, Mike Starr, Charles Rocket, and Teri Garr play supporting roles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bob Cratchit</span> Fictional character

Bob Cratchit is a fictional character in the Charles Dickens 1843 novel A Christmas Carol. The overworked, underpaid clerk of Ebenezer Scrooge, Cratchit has come to symbolise the poor working conditions, especially long working hours and low pay, endured by many working-class people in the early Victorian era.

<i>Battle Cry</i> (film) 1955 film by Raoul Walsh

Battle Cry is a 1955 Warnercolor film, starring Van Heflin, Aldo Ray, James Whitmore, Tab Hunter, Nancy Olson, Anne Francis, Dorothy Malone, Raymond Massey, and Mona Freeman in CinemaScope. The film is based on the 1953 novel by former Marine Leon Uris, who also wrote the screenplay, and was produced and directed by Raoul Walsh. The film was shot at Camp Pendleton, California, and featured a large amount of cooperation from the United States Marine Corps.

<i>Santa Who?</i> 2000 American television film by William Dear

Santa Who? is a 2000 American made-for-television fantasy-comedy film starring Leslie Nielsen and directed by William Dear, in which Santa Claus develops a case of amnesia right before Christmas.

<i>Screwed</i> (2000 film) 2000 film by Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski

Screwed is a 2000 American dark comedy film written and directed by Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski. The comedy of errors stars Norm Macdonald, Dave Chappelle, Danny DeVito, Elaine Stritch, Daniel Benzali, Sarah Silverman, and Sherman Hemsley. The film was released by Universal Pictures and received generally negative reviews.

A Face to Die For is a 1996 television film, based on the book The Face by Marvin and Mark Werlin who also wrote the teleplay with Duane Poole. It is a romantic thriller that stars Yasmine Bleeth, James Wilder and Robin Givens.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Santa Claus in film</span>

Motion pictures featuring Santa Claus constitute their own subgenre of the Christmas film genre. Early films of Santa revolve around similar simple plots of Santa's Christmas Eve visit to children. In 1897, in a short film called Santa Claus Filling Stockings, Santa Claus is simply filling stockings from his pack of toys. Another film called Santa Claus and the Children was made in 1898. A year later, a film directed by George Albert Smith titled Santa Claus was created. In this picture, Santa Claus enters the room from the fireplace and proceeds to trim the tree. He then fills the stockings that were previously hung on the mantle by the children. After walking backward and surveying his work, he suddenly darts at the fireplace and disappears up the chimney.

<i>Christmas in July</i> (film) 1940 film by Preston Sturges

Christmas in July is a 1940 American screwball comedy film written and directed by Preston Sturges, and starring Dick Powell and Ellen Drew.

Damian Joseph McGinty Jr. is an Irish singer and actor. McGinty has been performing for over a decade, and was a member of the group Celtic Thunder for thirteen years, starting when he was fourteen. On 21 August 2011, McGinty won the Oxygen reality show The Glee Project, earning him a seven-episode guest-starring role on the hit Fox television show Glee which was later extended to 18 episodes.

<i>Elf</i> (musical) Musical composed by Matthew Sklar and Chad Beguelin

Elf is a musical based on the motion picture of the same name, with a score by Matthew Sklar and Chad Beguelin. The book is adapted by Bob Martin and Thomas Meehan from the 2003 film. The musical ran on Broadway in the Christmas seasons of 2010–11 and 2012–13, in the West End in the 2015–16 season, and has also toured extensively, often during the Christmas holiday season.

<i>A Princess for Christmas</i> 2011 television film directed by Michael Damian

A Princess for Christmas, billed in the UK as A Christmas Princess: Sometimes Dreams Come True is a 2011 American made-for-television comedy-drama film directed by Michael Damian and starring Roger Moore, Katie McGrath, Sam Heughan, Charlotte Salt, Leilah de Meza, and Travis Turner. The film premiered December 3, 2011 on Hallmark Channel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rory Flanagan</span> Fictional character from the Fox series Glee

Rory Flanagan is a recurring fictional character from the Fox musical comedy-drama series Glee. The character is portrayed by actor Damian McGinty, and appeared in Glee starting with its third season episode "Pot o' Gold", first broadcast on November 1, 2011. Rory is an exchange student from Ireland who arrives as a sophomore, and is living at the home of Brittany Pierce while studying at McKinley High. He joins the McKinley glee club, New Directions, in his first episode. The character was created after McGinty was one of two winners of a seven-episode arc in Glee's third season after having successfully competed in the reality television show The Glee Project. As Rory, McGinty sang four solo covers on the show, and appeared in many group performances. Rory continued as a recurring character beyond the initial seven episode prize, through the end of the third season. He made one more appearance after that, in the fourth season. McGinty was invited back for the series finale, but could not take part due to scheduling commitments with the world tour for Irish singing group Celtic Thunder.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Faye Windass</span> Fictional character from Coronation Street

Faye Windass is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera Coronation Street, portrayed by Ellie Leach. She was introduced as a potential adoptive child for Anna and Eddie Windass in the episode aired on 24 January 2011. Faye's early storylines have included being adopted by Anna and Eddie, being the victim and perpetrator of bullying, contacting her birth father Tim Metcalfe and accusing Anna of abusing her. Her later storylines include her falling pregnant at the age of 13 and keeping it secret from her family. Faye's struggling to bond with her daughter, Miley results in her giving her up to Jackson Hodge, Miley's dad. Other storylines involve her relationships with Seb Franklin and Craig Tinker, being imprisoned after attacking Adam Barlow after a case of mistaken identity, being sexually assaulted and being diagnosed with premature menopause. In April 2023, it was announced that Leach had quit the role of Faye after 12 years, with her final scenes airing on 24 May 2023.

<i>Elf: Buddys Musical Christmas</i> American TV series or program

Elf: Buddy's Musical Christmas is a 2014 American stop-motion animated Christmas musical television special produced by Warner Bros. Animation, directed by Mark Caballero and Seamus Walsh and written by Aaron Horvath, Michael Jelenic, Bob Martin and Thomas Meehan. It is based on the 2003 film Elf and the Broadway theatre musical Elf: The Musical. While Ed Asner reprises his role of Santa Claus from the film, the rest of the cast consists of Jim Parsons, Mark Hamill, Kate Micucci, Max Charles, and Rachael MacFarlane. The special premiered on December 16, 2014, on NBC.

"Grifting 101" is the ninth episode of the sixth season of the American comedy television series Community. The episode was written by Ryan Ridley and directed by Rob Schrab. It premiered on Yahoo! Screen on May 5, 2015.

<i>Noelle</i> (2019 film) 2019 film by Marc Lawrence

Noelle is a 2019 American Christmas fantasy comedy film written and directed by Marc Lawrence, produced by Walt Disney Pictures and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. The film stars Anna Kendrick as Noelle Kringle, the daughter of Kris Kringle. It also stars Bill Hader, Kingsley Ben-Adir, Billy Eichner, Julie Hagerty, and Shirley MacLaine. In the film, when Noelle's brother Nick is stressed from all the pressure of taking over for their father, he leaves and does not return. She must find her brother and bring him back in time for Christmas. It was filmed from October 2017 to January 2018 in British Columbia and Woodstock, Georgia.

Angela's Christmas Wish is an Irish animated family film written and directed by Damien O'Connor. It was released on Netflix on 1 December 2020. It features the voices of Lucy O'Connell, Brendan Mullins and Ruth Negga. The main character is Angela, and she wishes to reunite her family for Christmas, particularly her father who is working in Australia.

<i>Violent Night</i> 2022 film directed by Tommy Wirkola

Violent Night is a 2022 American Christmas action comedy film directed by Tommy Wirkola and written by Pat Casey and Josh Miller. It follows Santa Claus as he fights mercenaries who have taken a wealthy family hostage in their home. The film also stars John Leguizamo, Alex Hassell, and Beverly D'Angelo.

References

  1. 1 2 Brummett, Chad (18 December 2017). "'Santa Fake' Filming in NM". KRQE . Retrieved 5 March 2021.
  2. 1 2 Scheck, Frank (19 December 2019). "'Santa Fake': Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter . Retrieved 24 January 2020.
  3. ↑ Nott, Robert. "City Different is the star in local film 'Santa Fake'". Santa Fe New Mexican. Retrieved 2021-03-07.
  4. ↑ "Glee's Damian McGinty plays undocumented Irish immigrant in new Christmas movie". IrishCentral.com. 2019-12-02. Retrieved 2021-03-07.
  5. ↑ "Glee's Damian in Christmas film". Derry Journal. Retrieved 2021-03-07.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.