Dashing Through the Snow Review

Summary

• Dashing Through the Snow is a heartwarming Disney+ holiday comedy with a clever spin on the usual Christmas fare.
• Lil Rel Howery continues an incredible year (with Poker Face and The Mill). He steals the show as Nick, aka Santa, while Chris “Ludacris” Bridges delivers a solid performance as a troubled divorce dad.
• The film offers an engaging story with twists, introducing new characters and a magical Santa paradise, all wrapped up with charm and humor.

Chris “Ludacris” Bridges leaps off Fast X and morphs into a troubled divorce dad who’s lost the Christmas spirit in Dashing Through the Snow. But the stellar performer lets his costars Lil Rel Howery and young Madison Skye Validum steal the show in the heartwarming new Disney+ holiday family comedy that puts a clever spin on the Christmas-verse.

For starters, Lil Rel Howery (Get Out, Free Guy) is Nick, aka Santa. Ludacris’ Eddie can’t bring himself to believe that, and who can blame him? Something bad happened to Eddie and his family one Christmas long ago and the trauma is still omnipresent. But there’s Nick, right there in the living room of Eddie’s neighbor’s home. Outside, hired thugs want something from Nick. And Eddie’s daughter Charlotte, who gets pulled into the growing caper, suddenly wants to know more about Nick.

That premise sets up a story about a trio attempting to outrun mysterious foes, but Dashing Through the Snow offers just enough twists in its story to make for an engaging story worthy of our time. Between its three lead players and all the right sprinkles of, well, Disney, the film is undeniably sweet; heck, it may form cavities. But it’s Christmastime. What’s one more creative cookie?

Santa on the Run

Disney+

Dashing Through the Snow is directed by Tim Story, who had audiences at the edge of their seats with The Blackening earlier this year. Written by Scott Rosenberg (Cowboy Bebop, From), the heart of the tale revolves around Eddie coming to terms with his past trauma and strengthening his relationship with his nine-year-old daughter Charlotte, and, in turn, his ex-wife Allison (Teyonah Parris). From the get-go, Eddie, who’s a social worker, believes Nick is suffering from a mental illness (it’s like a Christmastime Fisher King). He wants to take him to a shelter. Not going to happen.

A shady politician (Oscar Nuñez deploying just enough sleaze) wants to retrieve an iPad and his gaggle of thugs (24’s Mary Lynn Rajskub among them) believe Nick has it. Chase scenes ensue. Nothing overly inventive here, but it will suffice as it keeps Nick, Eddie, and Charlotte moving. It also gives the screenwriter more time to explain who Nick really is and what’s really unfolding.

Related: Best Santa Claus Movies of All Time

Have patience with that. Dashing Through the Snow indulges itself in what initially feels like a film that will always be about Nick et al. on the run. But it’s in this half of the film that, like The Santa Clause movies, and to some extent Home Alone, we’re off on an adventure with nary a sign of where it might really go. In fact, think of this outing as an amalgam of The Santa Clause and Home Alone. Except the criminals aren’t given all that much to do here other than chase people (hence the title, we suppose). Hang tight, the night is young.

The Big Shift Midway Through the Film

There is an interesting tonal shift nearly midway through Dashing Through the Snow. Suddenly, this movie becomes something more than just a trio on the run who are trying to fend off those thugs. It’s surprising, perhaps refreshing, because it introduces an entire new set of characters from Nick’s life — basically, the cool folks who keep Santa’s life operating smoothly.

Among them are a ragtag teem of Claus-y geeks, who drive around in a mystery van — think Scooby Doo by way of a watered down Mission Impossible with a comedic twist. These nerds are so into Nick. He’s the man, after all. Don’t be bothered with trying to understand what, exactly, these folks do in the van with their computers and tech gadgets. It’s not fully flushed out, but that’s okay. They do things. It’s important. Got it. And it adds a level of gravitas to Nick, and eventually gets Eddie on point, thinking, “Yeah, this guy could be Santa.”

Related: Best Christmas Comedies for a Good Ho Ho Ho This Season, Ranked

Elsewhere, there’s a secret magical Santa paradise nearby. Convenient, but roll with it. This is a Disney outing, so expect colorful panache and the typical Santa workers you’d find in such a setting. Some of them appear to have more of an edge though. However, the audience doesn’t spend all that much time with these groovy cats, so it’s hard to know more about them than you do in, say, The Santa Clauses franchise, which has more time to go deeper into the Santa-verse. Fear not, sugarplums. Disney loves sequels and depending on how this film charts, we’re guessing there’ll be more Dashing in the future, so perhaps this world will expand.

Disney

In the meantime, Dashing Through the Snow saves some of its best scenes for last, leaving it to Nick’s eight intrepid reindeer (and special effects — at last!) to arrive just in the nick of time to wrap this entire thing up and place a pretty little bow on top of it. Again, The Santa Clause films come to mind here, too. But while this film doesn’t offer that much new in terms of the reindeer or moving beyond some holiday tropes, it does stand out for being a fully embraceable comedy with a wonderful cast that you can watch with the entire family. There’s also just enough Christmas magic (i.e. special effects) to make you smile.

Dashing Through the Snow also boasts plenty of charm and heart, and there’s enough fun to be had. Lil Rel Howery elevates the overall story as Nick — fun and funny — and it’s nice to see relative newcomer Madison Skye Validum generate as much spunk as she does. So, grab some gingerbread cookies, sit back, and enjoy.

Dashing Through the Snow is available to stream on Disney+ beginning November 17.

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