Santa Buddies (G, 2009)
common sense media says
Popular puppy series adds a cheery holiday message.
parents & educators say
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that this holiday movie is generally worry free. A puppy disobeys his father and ventures out on his own, where he gets into trouble and needs to be rescued. Several scenes occur in a dog pound where dogs are in cages and sometimes sad. The villainous dog catcher sneaks up on puppies and traps them, which provides a few moments of tension. At one point Santa Claus seems comatose, which might bother or confuse younger children.
Educational value:
Not applicable.
Positive role models:
The puppy, dog, and elf characters are generally positive characters. One father and son welcome the dog catcher into their home for Christmas dinner because they realize he's alone.
Violence & scariness:
Some mild peril when Puppy Paws is caught by the dog catcher. It briefly seems like Christmas (and Santa) might be finished forever.
Sexy stuff:
Not applicable.
Language:
"Doo-doo" is the extent of it.
Consumerism:
This puppy series is highly marketed.
Drinking, drugs, & smoking:
Not applicable.
More on Santa Buddies
Review It
Most useful reviews by all members
Lindsayphoto
teen, 18 years old
teen, 18 years old
This movie is......kind of dumb. 3 of my brothers LOVE this movie but for 11+, it's kind of dumb for us.
It's a perfect christmas movie for the younger kids who can't watch some of the older kids christmas movie and it entertainment them and it's cute. I did not like the one part when the Buddies are praying to Santa. :(
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johnjt
parent of 4 and 7 year old
parent of 4 and 7 year old
Just not worth it.
I'm not a fan of any of these dog "Buddies" movies. Using stereotypical personalities for each of the dogs is the ultimate in laziness and one dimensionality of character. You'd think Disney could find writers with more imagination and depth than that.
In this particular movie they plant the seed of "Santa's not real, it's just Dad in a red suit" in the first scene with the puppies. COME ON! Do they really need to inject that into a movie that is undoubtedly going to be watched mostly by kids 6 and under? It's hard enough helping kids keep hold of their magical imaginations with all of the media they are exposed to already; a Disney G movie should not be making it more difficult.
Are the kids going to be scarred for life? No. But I don't like the characters nor the story.
Finally, the story and dog personality seems to have jumped around too much for my kids (3 and 6) to appreciate what was really going on. I think the only attraction for the kids is talking dogs no matter what is going on.
If you see this on the shelf, keep walking, playa.
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Darkandstormy
parent of 6 year old
parent of 6 year old
Made my kid cry!!
My 5 year old son was so upset by the dog being taken to the pound that he cried for at least 15 minutes and asked me to turn it off. Then he cried again. Too upsetting for sensitive kids. Also, it's just plain bad and parents shouldn't have to suffer through the indignity of watching dogs talk like playas.
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hunter98
kid, 13 years old
kid, 13 years old
not really worthy of buying or renting
this movie is not good like the other buddies its cute nothing bad in it but its bad more for the younger ones
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momma18
parent of 5 and 8 year old
parent of 5 and 8 year old
want to keep Santa? Beware
Not so very good. Other Buddy movies much better. So called "positive messages" include praying to Santa (offensive to most christian families.) Lots of talk about "true meaning of Christmas" but not sure what that was unless redeeming yourself by doing good things is considered the meaning of christmas. Psuedo-religious nature was offensive to those who actually practice religion. Also the very stark portrayal of fack Santa's and elves disturbing for younger kids and parents who are working to preserve the Santa Legend. Overall a dud. Sorry I wasted my money, more sorry i showed it too my kids.
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GwenniesMom
parent of 2 year old
parent of 2 year old
Protrays kids 'Praying' to Santa... weird.
Thought that it was inappropriate to show kids praying to Santa as if he were a God...
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Dr. Weird
parent of 14 year old
parent of 14 year old
Really bad.
Terrible.
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Nylorac
parent of 4 year old
parent of 4 year old
There's got to be something better than this...
This movie is moronic and bad. A talking Christmas dog turns a statue of Buddha into a snowman; dogs talk like valley girls and gangstas; some characters don't believe in Santa and a mall Santa has his beard pulled off which could raise some unsettling questions for very young children. While my daughter seemed to enjoy it, I was uncomfortable letting her watch it.
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boon
kid, 12 years old
kid, 12 years old
Boon's critical rating of horror!
This movie is so annoying, just like the rest of the air buddies films. why do the dogs owners have the dogs same personality as the dogs? weird. also in every single buddies movie, they always meet some dog that needs their help. so annoying. why does one dog wear a bling necklace. just cheap.
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flashinthepan
parent of 13 and 15 year old
parent of 13 and 15 year old
Fun movie and welcomed entertainment for the whole family!
A very good heart-warming story that is welcome entertainment for the whole family. I liked it better than other Buddy movies as it was more real and down to earth. Basically Puppy Paws acting out and trying to live a real life like other dogs. Nothing wrong with this story. A fun, cuddly, enjoyable story for an evening family movie that everyone will like.
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jt7ou
parent of 3 and 3 year old
parent of 3 and 3 year old
not great
brainless
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Frylock
teen, 14 years old
teen, 14 years old
Dumb.
Just plain stupid.
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Duckfloss
parent of 6 and 7 year old
parent of 6 and 7 year old
Kidsploitation
This movie is squeaky clean and my kids (then 5 and 6) loved it. For us adults, though, it was grating and tacky to the extreme. There is not an un-cliché moment in the movie and the whole thing reeks of Disney's low-budget kidsploitation machine. On the bright side, the movie is one of those that is so bad, it's unintentionally funny. So, it has that going for it.
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mrbookworm01
teen, 13 years old
teen, 13 years old
OK, but not for the youngest kids
I've seen this on ABC Family and I think it's an ok movie. It has some mildly sad moments that might make the youngest kids sad, but it's still an ok movie for Christmastime and has a positive message of seeing the true meaning of Christmas and seeing the good in people. Violence: Some mild peril when Puppy Paws is caught by a mean dog catcher, and the scene at the dog pound with the puppies trapped in cages whimpering might sadden some younger viewers. Consumerism: Part of a popular movie series.
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stereohearts
kid, 11 years old
kid, 11 years old
best
So Cute! such an improvement of snow buddies i thought santa looked scary though b ut great movie
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dutchessgrey
parent of 6 year old
parent of 6 year old
Kid viewers deserve holiday magic, not lazy cliches.
Don't waste your kid's time with this exceptionally poorly written and acted movie. The writers were clearly not even trying when the best they could come up with was a magic ICICLE that's a barometer of Christmas spirit in the world. They characters are flat cliches, the 'funny' lines aren't, and the puppy characters are pretty annoying. There's nothing offensive in terms of bad language, violence, product placement etc, but there's certainly no sense of wonder or holiday magic either. Just because the viewers are little doesn't mean they don't deserve quality.
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