This is bafflingly bad. 'Dear Santa (2024)' has a semi-decent premise, but it constantly makes the least effective choice possible. It's too raunchy to be for kids, but it's too safe to be for adults; it's too subversive to be saccharine, but it's too sweet to be truly rebellious. It just doesn't know what it is or what it needs to be. Worse still, it doesn't know how to be entertaining. It's not very Christmassy but it's clearly trying to be, sometimes in a cheeky way but often in a heavy-handed fashion that tends to backfire massively. Although it does have a few humorous moments, this isn't a good movie. It's like the weirdest Hallmark film ever, filled with bad acting and poor plotting and clumsy scripting that makes sure nobody ever really sounds like a real person. There's also a thematic clumsiness that leaves a sour taste in the mouth. Not only does the third act lack steam and structure, it also brings this clumsiness to the forefront with an insensitive ending that's destined to upset many in its audience.
My brother pointed out that if this didn't have Jack Black in it, it would somehow be even worse than it is, which really highlights the fact that it's not worth your time despite its occasional charms. I will say that I quite enjoyed the lead actor, who comes across as a genuinely nice kid and doesn't feel like a fake Hollywood version of himself, and that he delivers what he's given almost as well as anyone else could. It's a shame that he's stuck in this, although it was probably a lot of fun to see Jack Black goof off in person. He outperforms some of his adult costars, who often really struggle to convince even in basic scenes. Still, I can't recommend the picture based solely on the likability of the lead performer and the inherent charisma of Jack Black. It's not awful, but it definitely isn't good.
