I put off seeing this for a long time (a few years) because I had been told repeatedly that it was awful. Now, it might not be as good as the first two films, but it does have some sweet moments. I particularly like Lucy’s character, which is probably a good thing since Charlie is an adult now and she provides the “cute factor” for the movie. Martin Short is okay as the villain, but he’s more strange than convincingly evil, which again, is probably a good thing since this movie is aimed at younger audiences. Bernard (David Krumholtz) is noticeably absent, which is a shame, because I prefer him as head elf to Curtis(Spencer Breslin).

One thing that is fun is the It‘s A Wonderful Life inspired “what if” segment of the movie where Scott gets to see just how things would have turned out had he never picked up the coat and climbed up the roof in the first film. It’s a nice way to remind the audience just what the character was like before, as well as introduce that aspect to people who might not have seen the first film.

All in all, it’s a fun, family friendly, holiday movie. It isn’t anything special, and it definitely doesn’t hold the same charm as the original, but it is not as horrible as some people might have led you to believe.