'The Night Before Christmas in Wonderland' Reviews: "it's just a bit too simplistic for its own good"

         On November 15, 2024, Hulu released 'The Night Before Christmas in Wonderland', which has earned a mixed reception from critics. In the holiday film, "St Nick (Gerard Butler) receives a delayed letter on Christmas Eve from the Princess of Hearts. He and his dedicated team of reindeer set off to Wonderland where they're greeted by the mean and miserable Queen of Hearts (Emilia Clarke) who hates all things Christmas... especially presents! Can St Nick, aided by Alice (Simone Ashley), the Mad Hatter and March Hare, show the Queen the true meaning of Christmas and save the day before it's too late?" But what did the critics say? 

Photo by Lynda Sanchez on Unsplash

        Mark Dujsik of Mark Reviews Movies says, "There's little denying the style of The Night Before Christmas in Wonderland, which looks like a children's storybook come to life. That approach is appropriate here, since the very concept of this story, a blending of the famous poem about Santa Claus visiting a home with the world and characters of Lewis Carroll's works about Wonderland, is simple enough for that kind of book. It's doubly appropriate, then, because author Carys Bexington and illustrator Kate Hindley indeed made that exact book. It's adapted here by screenwriter Sara Daddy and director Peter Baynton with several colorful characters and a bright, cheery spirit. The simplistic and flat animation helps for sure, as do some musical numbers that gradually lose their clever luster, especially since all of the characters, in traditional storybook fashion, speak in rhyme. The movie also possesses a sense of humor about itself, if only because the characters almost seem to be challenging themselves and each other to figure out a seemingly difficult rhyme, while the introduction of prose at one point lets everyone know someone's in a bad mood. The best way to describe the material is that it's perfectly agreeable. We quickly get a sense of exactly what the filmmakers are going to do with it, in terms of plot and characterization and tone, and they follow through with those expectations to the letter. This mostly feels to belong in the tradition of the animated television Christmas specials that have been doing the broadcast rounds for decades now. While the best of those were wise enough to know that a simplistic and gimmicky story could only sustain itself for so long, this one attempts to expand its concept to feature length. Sure, it's a very short feature, not even reaching 80 minutes without the credits, but even so, the thin material starts to feel repetitive and as if it's running in circles around its few worthwhile ideas." Adding, "An entire subplot is dedicated to a sickly young reindeer (voiced by Lenny Rush) attempting to bring Nick his lost emergency alarm, and once the gag that the reindeer has to use public transportation to make that journey is established, the screenplay doesn't expand the joke—not in any way that justifies the multiple cutaways and dips in momentum. The third act, which gets at why the Queen is so irritated with Christmas, is all about getting us to the big lesson here, which feels anticlimactic on its own and within the context of a movie that occasionally does indulge in some flights of fancy. Those displays of imagination are fun, particularly because the animation highlights the harmless innocence of this concept. There's a real charm to the movie's look and tone, but The Night Before Christmas in Wonderland is so set in its storybook storytelling that it's just a bit too simplistic for its own good."