Olive, the Other Reindeer

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Fleegle B A really amazing aninated movie Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/03/24 Full Review Audience Member An endearing, if unambitious, Christmas special that has its cringier moments but is otherwise not a bad 45-minute adventure for the whole family. The intentionally wonky pop-up-book character designs coupled with the 3D backgrounds and smooth frame rate result in an art style that has aged incredibly well for a TV special in 1999. Apart from the style I approved of, the voice acting is really good, the songs are decent and the characters are simultaneously likable and memorable with a penguin voiced by Joe Pantoliano being the honourable mention. Olive, the Other Reindeer is an animated Christmas special that may not have the same staying power as the Grinch cartoon from the '60s but this sort-of 2D/3D hybrid is still an adorable little special that you won't mind having 45 minutes of your time taken by this all-ages Matt Groening entry. Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/23/23 Full Review Audience Member Kids who watch this film can never know how revolutionary it was. Every one of its dozens of innovations, from the progressive structure to the use of reindeer models for additional authenticity, has become all but standard. No problem -- there is time enough for them to study these aspects of Olive, The Other Reindeer's brilliance if they decide to learn more about film history and criticism. For their first viewing of this brilliant work (and for purposes of a family discussion about the spirit of Christmas), just let them focus on the story, the dialogue, and the characters, which remain as compelling and contemporary as they were more than 19 years ago. Like Willie Stark in All the King's Men, Olive begins as a populist and triumphs as a champion of Santa, and we cannot help but hope for some explanation of how that happened, as her owner does. Both Olive and Stark were based on real-life figures. Olive was based largely but not completely on Rudolph Hearst, the almost impossibly wealthy heir to the largest milk and cookie mine owner in The North Pole, who became a powerful sled pulling machine. Olive might also have been based on Matt Groening himself, only 25 years old when he co-wrote, directed, and starred in this, his first Christmas film. He spent the rest of his life coming up with one excuse or another for why he never came close to that level of achievement again. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/22/23 Full Review Carlotta 4 This is my favorite of the christmas specials! Very funny but also fairly sweet and heartwarming with christmas cheer. I love the concept they based the film off of and they do a good job capturing the original book's aesthetic through the 3D rendering (yes, apparently the look is INTENTIONAL and not cheap flash). It's a pretty short special but I don't say that as a negative, it actually makes it pretty rewatchable from year to year. I liked it as a kid and I think I actually like it even more as an adult now that I can pick up on all the humor I'd missed. Rated 4.5/5 Stars •  Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 12/24/17 Full Review Audience Member Favorite Christmas Special since I was a child. Its witty humor, heartwarming story and colorful, unique animation get me ready for Christmas every year. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/26/23 Full Review Audience Member Interesting imagination makes this very heart warming story a great treat around Christmas Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/13/23 Full Review Read all reviews

Olive, the Other Reindeer

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