Parents' Guide to

The Year Without a Santa Claus (2006)

By Emily Ashby, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 8+

Woeful Santa brings little holiday cheer.

Movie NR 2006 90 minutes
The Year Without a Santa Claus (2006) Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Community Reviews

age 4+

Based on 1 parent review

age 4+

I've been watching this since i was a kid and its one of my favorite Christmas movies.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (1):
Kids say (2):

Despite boasting such a stellar cast, The Year Without a Santa Claus is a disappointing mix of a slow plot, poor writing, and subpar visual effects. Chris Kattan's presence is definitely a high point, and his hysterical portrayal of a deviously ambitious elf looking to make his mark on Christmas often carries the scenes he's in.

Families with tweens and teens might enjoy the character-based humor this movie offers, but if your kids are little, they'll probably be turned off by the grumpy, sarcastic Santa and general lack of holiday spirit that exists for most of the show.

Movie Details

Inclusion information powered by

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.

See how we rate