'Teddy's Christmas' is a Holiday Delight

         On December 1, 2024, with a streaming release two days later, Capelight Pictures and Blue Fox Entertainment released 'Teddy's Christmas', which proved to be an unexpected holiday delight. In the film, "While visiting a Christmas market in her Norwegian town, eight-year-old Mariann suddenly sees an unbelievable sight: on the top shelf of a carnival game booth, the most adorable stuffed teddy bear has just moved his head and sneezed. Feeling an instant connection with the living stuffed-animal, Mariann can't think of any better Christmas wish than to win him as a prize. But when someone else wins Teddy, it's up to him and his new hedgehog friend, Bolla, to reconnect with Mariann and discover the true importance of family and friendship." The ensemble cast includes Zachary Levi, Marte Klerck-Nilssen, and Jan Gunnar Røise. But what did the critics say?

        Leslie Felperin of Guardian says, "Teddy has a “B” plot adventure as he is bought by an international man of mystery and meets a chatty plush hedgehog, while Mariann learns why breaking and entering is wrong, a life lesson surely all parents will get behind. Grandparents come to visit, little brother has an existential crisis over whether Santa is really his father, his actual dad (Jan Gunnar Røise) takes a bravura pratfall over the newly decorated Christmas tree, and mum (Mariann Hole, sporting a truly gorgeous teased-up tousled blond bob) manages not to burn the rice pudding. This one has all the Norwegian drama of Yuletide in one tidy package, yes sir. If you are not a child under the age of eight or nine, you may find yourself distracted by scrutinising how the film-makers have tried to disguise the disconnect between the actors speaking their original Norwegian and the requirement to dub into other languages. This means no one’s mouth is visible for too long, and if possible moustaches are deployed to disguise lip movements. Obviously, that doesn’t work so well between children and women, so they mug a lot for the camera in order to distract attention from their mouths. The animation, incidentally, is seamlessly executed and quite charming."

Photo by Monika Grabkowska on Unsplash

       Avi Offer of NYC Movie Guru notes, "Co-screenwriters Lars Gudmestad and Harald Rosenløw-Eeg keep the plot simple, easy-to-follow and lighthearted. Young children will be enchanted and amused. However, older audiences looking for something as witty and entertaining for the whole family along the lines of Paddington won't find much to hold their interest. What makes the teddy bear so magical, you ask? It's alive and can speak. Beyond that and how cute it looks, there's nothing really that special about it. Marianne spots it at the Christmas market and instantly forms a bond with it which fuels her desire to have it all for herself. The teddy bear goes on a bit of an adventure as well as it meets a hedgehog named Bolla. His adventures aren't very exciting, though. That said Teddy's Christmas does have some uplifting messages about the importance of family, friendship, the spirit of Christmas, joy and the power of one's imagination. Teddy's Christmas is presented in a version that's dubbed in English; the original is in Hungarian. That's a double-edged sword because, on the one hand, it makes the film accessible to children who wouldn't be able to read English subtitles. On the other hand, though, the dubbing is very subpar and clunky except for the voice of Zachary Levi. The pace moves briskly, there's some lively music and the decent CGI effects, but in terms of production values there's nothing exceptional that stands out. Perhaps Teddy's Christmas would've worked better as an entirely animated film like the recent Glisten and the Merry Mission which would pair well with it in a double feature. At a running time of just 1 hour and 20 minutes, Teddy's Christmas is a wholesome, harmless and enchanting adventure that will delight and amuse young audiences."