Christmas 2021: December 9th

Fitzwilly (1967)

Dick Van Dyke is one of those pop culture figures that is widely beloved because, by most accounts, he's a genuinely delightful human being. That sense of fun and joy, the sheer thrill he gets out of acting goofy on-camera being the way he makes a living, is evident in everything he does. This propensity for light-hearted antics was best displayed in Van Dyke's groundbreaking and still influential fifties sitcom. He would parlay that success into a series of film roles. Outside of appearances in iconic features like “Mary Poppins” and “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang,” most of these leading man moments would be commercially unsuccessful and quickly forgotten. Which is surprising, considering Van Dyke's pure likability. Let's take a look at one of those projects, 1967's “Fitzwilly,” (which just so happens to be a Christmas movie) and see if we can answer why this is. 

Claude Fitzwilliam is a butler for a rich old lady nicknamed Miss Vicki. Except Miss Vickie isn't rich, as her millionaire dad left all of 150 dollars to her. Her wealth is an illusion maintained by Fitzwilliam and the rest of the staff, who keeps their employer unaware of the truth by pulling off a number of swindles and cons. This carefully balanced lie is threatened when Miss Vicki hires Juliet, an observant young woman, to be her secretary. Fitzwilly decides to throw Juliet off the trail by romancing her but the two actually end up falling in love. How will this affect the gang's biggest scheme yet, to rob Gimbels department store on Christmas Eve? 

In "Fitzwilly," Dick Van Dyke plays probably the most adorable con artist ever put to film. Yeah, he's a thief and crook but he's doing it all to make a little old lady happy. He's only ripping off businesses, not people, so it's pretty easy to forgive him for any moral trespasses here. All the thieving is framed as comedic set pieces. Such as the stand-out sequence in the film, where his team arrives at a marketing exhibition and pack up a tent display and just walk out with it. Or an amusing bit where he cons his way into buying a fancy piano. Van Dyke, of course, is completely charming in the role. It's easy to imagine him pulling off elaborate crimes like this, just through the pure power of his winning smile and disarming demeanor. 

Starring opposite Van Dyke is Barbara Feldon as Juliet. This was Feldon's feature film debut, though she was already a veteran of television by this point. From the minute she walks on-screen, wearing a turtleneck sweater and sexy librarian glasses, you can't take your eyes off her. Feldon is perfectly capable of matching Van Dyke witty repartee. The love story is improbable but the two have such an easy-going chemistry together that you can still enjoy it. I'm also glad that the script allows Feldon to figure out what is going on about halfway through, instead of trying to stretch the deception out for the rest of the movie. That would've really strained plausibility. 

In fact, the entire cast is quite good. John McGiver, with his distinctly gravelly voice, is well utilized as a former minister with sticky fingers who feels continued guilt over his role in this crimes. John Fiedler, Piglet himself, has an amusing small role as one of the sellers Fitzwilly swindles. Both of these plot points — as well as a reoccurring band of Boy Scouts with some unorthodox beliefs — come together for the manic climax at the crowded department store. Watching the chaos of the Christmas shopping season escalate, as Fitzwilly and his gang pull off their convoluted scheme, is definitely worth a laugh or two. 

"Fitzwilly" never quite produces belly laughs. I don't know if that's what it was going for. However, the movie has such a relaxed, charming ambiance to it. Everyone involved here was so clearly having a good time and that feeling spreads to the audience. It's a wacky but low-key comedy that is extremely well-cast. It's a film that is perhaps best described as amicable. (The score from a young John Williams — so young he's credited as "Johnny Williams" — certainly helps along this vibe.) That makes it a good addition to anybody's Christmas movie marathon, as this is the kind of year when you just want to hang out with friends anyway. I'm glad I caught up with this one, it's cute. [7/10]

The Life & Adventures of Santa Claus (1985)

In the eighties, Rankin/Bass Productions would find something other than festive holiday specials to occupy their time. The studio would produce popular Saturday morning cartoon shows like "Thundercats" and "Silverhawks." (As well as some not-so-popular ones, like “TigerSharks” and “The Mini-Monsters.”) This would be the company's biggest success of the decade but they didn't leave holiday cheer totally behind either. In 1985, they would adapt Frank L. Baum's "The Life & Adventures of Santa Claus," an otherwise stand-alone novel with ties to his “Wizard of Oz” universe. This would also be the final Animagic Christmas special the company would make, as they ceased all active production two years later.

Since Balm provided the plot, at least the studio's team can't be blamed for "The Life & Adventures of Santa Claus'" story being full of nonsensical fantasy bullshit. The plot concerns the Council of Immortals meeting in the forest of Burzee. They have gathered to determine the fate of Santa Claus, a mortal man. Their leader, the almighty Lord Ak, regales the Council with Claus' life story. How he was a foundling discovered in a blizzard, giving to a lioness to raise. How a fairy raised Claus and Ak, and many other magical mentors, taught him their ways. Soon, Claus would become determined to spread joy via toys to children the world over. It is not a quest that will be easy.

While the Christmas specials are their most cherished output, Rankin/Bass also had their hand in animated fantasy adventures like "The Hobbit," "Flight of Dragons," and "The Last Unicorn." You can't help but notice a lot of that energy seeping into the holiday side of things here. The opening credits scene includes a whole litany of fantastical royalty with bizarre names and titles. Fairies and other magical beings occupy the plot. The scenes of Lord Ak flying a young Kris Kringle around the world, showing him the ways of man, have a certain mythic status to them. Yet the heavy high fantasy trappings are often exhausting. Such as a lengthy digression in the middle of the special, where a race of toy-snatching, semi-invisible ogres declare war on Ak and his comrades. When you have an elaborate battle scene, which includes sights like a dragons being turned into pillars of flames or hideous monsters being shrank down, I really had to ask what any of this has to do with Santa Claus.

Part of why “The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus” is a little frustrating is because Rankin/Bass already did an origin story for St. Nick. While “Santa Claus is Coming to Town” provided a strictly whimsical explanation for many of the Jolly Old Elf's quirks, this one continues down that path of convoluted fantasy storytelling. Santa has a polyglot elf sidekick that names many of his invention. His reindeer are provided by another grouchy elf, with a lizard tail for some reason. He sneaks in through the chimney because of those aforementioned monsters. Christmas trees are tied up in this too. Because the story is so wrapped up in these fantasy elements, the Christmas traditions feel almost besides the point at times. And the special never explains the red suit or how he can deliver all those presents in one night either.

Still, “The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus” is worth seeing for a few things. The traditional cutesy Animagic character designs are abandoned for more anime-esque character designs. (That the animation for these special was done in Japan has never been more apparent.) This is paired with stop-motion animation that is smoother and more detailed than maybe you'd expect. It's impressive how far Rankin/Bass and their team came, in that regard, over the course of its existence. The songs are pretty forgettable though, with only a number sang by children about the cat toy Santa carved them being all that memorable. If nothing else, “The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus” is less inessential than the few Rankin/Bass holiday specials that proceeded it. It's weird, in a sort of interesting way, instead of a sort of boring way. Let that be the epitaph of this particular Christmas special tradition. [6/10]