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List Price: $19.97 | | Label: Weinstein Company
Salesrank: 17618
Released: October 28, 2008 |
| Our Price: $5.24 |
| Used Price: $4.71 |
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MPAA Rating: G (General Audience)
Media: DVD |
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Editorial Review:
A reindeer boy named Niko dreams about flying like his father, whom he has never met. Despite suffering from severe vertigo, he sneaks out of his home valley to take flying lessons from Julius, a rare member of a Finnish family of flying squirrels.
Stills from The Flight Before Christmas (Click for larger image)
The Flight Before Christmas Reviews:
Excellent. 
2009-12-27 - The Flight before Christmas is one of the best Christmas specials that I have seen in years. I found the plot compelling, the character's interesting, and the animation beautiful. I have no problem with children viewing this special; I agree the children should be more mature than when they first veiw Frosty and Rudolph. I am a man in my thirties and, admittedly, Flight is not like the Rankin*Bass Christmas specials of my youth.
I strongly disagree with the detractors of Flight before Christmas. I wish to remind them that many of the Bugs Bunny and Mickey Mouse cartoons the we watched as children were originally intended for a theater audience that included adults! I do not understand why so many seemingly mentally confuse made for children with made by children. I humbly suggest that the displeased reviewers should instead wacth Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer: the Movie (1998) with voices from John Goodman, Whoopi Goldberg and Richard Simmons; I'm sure they will adore this cartoon for exact the reasons that I do not.
Very good movie 
2009-12-22 - This movie was very good. Good animation. Lots of fun & adventure. And a slightly different approach to a holiday movie. Some reviewers are complaining this movie is too scary for little ones. I don't think it is. It's on par (intensity wise) with a "Finding Nemo". I'm not comparing the movie's quality to Nemo. I'm just saying if you found Nemo to be acceptable for your children, then you'd have no problem with this movie (imo). My 2 1/2 year old girl loves "The Flight Before Christmas". She asks for it almost every day. I won't get into story lines or plot elements. I simply say the movie is a lot of fun. Much more action filled than a typical Christmas movie. And something different than your typical "Santa and his flying reindeer" type of movie. Our whole family enjoyed it.
"A Maury Povich Christmas Spectacular for Kids" 
2009-12-15 - While I honestly feel for single-parent households whose children have never met one of the parents, taking traditional holiday characters and turning them into "deadbeat dads" is not the best plot idea for a Christmas special. As you read in other reviews, the basic premise is that the main character's mother (who cannot fly) by chance ran into Santa's flying reindeer after Santa's sleigh broke down. One of the flying reindeer fixed the sleigh, had a "magical time" with the mother, and quickly flew away. Months later, the main character Niko was born. When asked why the flying reindeer didn't come back to visit, the mother said that he "didn't know that (Niko) would be born months later, so why would he visit" and that "no one knows where Christmastown where the flying reindeer stay actually is".
Thus starts a long trek for Niko to find his father and understand why he has dreams of flying. Along the way, he meets a flirtatious female weasel who just happens to know where Christmastown is located. When Niko finally finds the flying reindeer in a bar, the weasel starts a sultry song-and-dance number about giving the flying team a "big surprise," and at the end of the song literally sings "one of you share the same DNA" and points towards Niko, which of course spooks the flying team. When Niko gives his mother's name and asks if any of the team remembers her, he is basically told that the entire flying reindeer team have "magical times" with the non-flying reindeer very often, and Niko is asked to perform a paternity test of showing he can fly to prove that he is actually one of their sons. Basically, to make a long story short, Niko "saves the day" and one of the reindeer steps forward very grudgingly and tells Niko that he can call him dad. Merry Christmas! Niko tries to get his father to return to the non-flying pack, the father says that he's part of a "flying team" and isn't willing to go back, and Niko tells a flying squirrel who had looked out for him since day one that he is more of a dad to him than his real dad would ever be. Then, the credits roll.
While the forced lessons of "it's ok to have a deadbeat dad" and "step fathers can be real fathers even if they look different" could be pertinent to certain families, it can also send the wrong message to children that it is ok to take advantage of others and leave without taking responsibility for your actions. What's worse is that when you watch the movie the second time knowing which one of Santa's reindeer is the actual father, you see a new perspective from the bar scene forward of the father knowingly trying to deny Niko, even going so far as denying meeting Niko's mother in the bar, letting Niko throw himself into a bottomless cliff during the "can you fly" paternity test, and basically saying "well you can't fly, guess no one here is your father" after Niko fails the test.
In all honesty, not one part of this film gave me a warm holiday spirit, and I seriously would warn parents about the movie's message before letting their children see it. Do not be tricked by the cutesy cover, characters, and descriptions... this children's flick feels like it was written and directed by Maury Povich.
AWFUL Movie about a hussy reindeer that gets KNOCKED UP by one of Santa's Reindeer! AWFUL VALUES! 
2009-12-15 - Seriously I wish the title of my review said it all BUT THERE IS MORE!
Single Mommy Reindeer has filled her bastard son's head with stories of how his dad is a big shoot...SUPER WONDERFUL reindeer that flies for Santa.....
Little Reindeer asks mom to tell him about dad....."Well son one night santa's sleigh broke down right here....Your dad "took me for a spin" (exact words) and I never saw him again.....9 months later you were born.
Little deer goes off looking for dad....
Little deer has a run in with hungry wolves on his way to Santa's house.....he gets away but doesn't know the wolves are following him.....Why are the wolves following? They want to eat All of Santa's Reindeer....then they want to EAT SANTA.....then they want to fly off in his sleigh to EAT ALL THE LITTLE BOYS AND GIRLS ON CHRISTMAS!!!!!
Little deer finds Santa and his reindeer and is told by the Deer...."We're Santa's Flying Forces.....we are with so many DOE we've will never remember just one of them.....Basically they are saying "We are SO cool we sleep with all the reindeer girls that are willing"
W-O-W.
Like another reviewer said.....the parents saying this movie is so great their kids watch it over and over....seriously MUST be sitting their kids down in front of tv...hitting play and then leaving the room. TERRIBLE TERRIBLE movie to let babysit your kids.....TERRIBLE
Are you kidding me?
2009-12-14 - What a poor excuse for a Christmas film. As a little add on they could have had Mom take the whole crew on Maury for a DNA test. If you liked this film wait until you get to see her "10000% sure that Prancer is the father". I really think the people who are thrilled to let their kids watch this are just pressing play and leaving the room. What are people thinking with this garbage?
