For many people, they are as much a part of Christmas as gifts and good food: the right holiday films! Every year the studios and streaming providers release fresh Christmas film fare. There are also a number of animated, family-friendly works for the target group of very young cinema viewers – and in many of these productions, Santa Claus' “classic” helpers, elves and reindeer, are among the main protagonists.
In recent years, for example, there have been time-traveling elves (“Saving Santa”) and ponies who fulfill their biggest dream and pull Santa Claus’ sleigh (“Elliot – The Littlest Reindeer”). And who doesn't remember the reindeer boy Niko, who surpasses himself in “Niko – A Reindeer Takes Off” (2008). An elf who steadfastly believes in the magic of Christmas and a reindeer calf play the most important roles in “Mission Santa – An Elf Saves Christmas”. The German-American-Indian animated adventure tells an unusual, updated version of the classic and well-known Christmas story. Because hectic pace, modernity, artificial intelligence and high-tech have arrived at the North Pole!
The high-tech Christmas workshop of 2025 no longer has much in common with festive homeliness.
A new generation of tech-savvy elves are now in charge of the gift workshop at the North Pole, while Santa Claus has apparently retired. For Yoyo (German voice: Julius Weckauf), a good-natured but somewhat clumsy elf, his first day at work is a dream come true. Because his greatest wish has always been to be Santa Claus' right hand man. When the unscrupulous hacker Cyber Scrooge (Bettina Zimmermann) invades the North Pole IT and takes over the entire system, the festival of love is threatened with an end. Together with the cynical, constantly stressed manager Coco, a rebellious packaging drone named Snowflake and the little reindeer Krümel, Yoyo tries to find the missing Santa Claus (Michael Mendl).
With “Mission Santa,” screenwriter Jamie Nash and the directing duo Ricard Cussó and Damjan Mitrevski have come up with a global, universal and highly enjoyable story. Their contemporary allusions to our digitalized world are one of the film's great strengths. Yoyo quickly realizes that Christmas today works completely differently than he imagined – time does not stand still, on the contrary. Society – and with it Christmas – is evolving at such a high pace that some people are in danger of missing out.
Automation, bots and drones: Christmas 2025!
A hyper-modern, electrified employee bus with a bot at the wheel takes the elves to their work. A huge visitor hall with glittering technology and huge holograms welcomes employees and tourists alike and leaves them in disbelief. But that's not all: delivery drones fly around in the fully automated workshop and the AI systems always have everything in view. Synchronicity, productivity, adherence to deadlines and efficiency determine everyday working life. Yes, we have arrived in the Christmas workshop of 2025. Gingerbread, wrapping paper or homely, sentimental Christmas sounds à la “Last Christmas”? None!
The career-driven Coco, who is always concerned about her reputation, determines all processes and is rarely seen at the beginning without a tablet or cell phone full of smart tools. With the workshop, Coco and their precisely planned behavior, Nash, Cussó and Mitresvki allude to topics such as (pathological) optimization compulsion, cyber threats, AI superiority and technological madness in a tongue-in-cheek and precise manner. However, the animation doesn't always turn out to be successful. Some figures appear strangely stiff, lacking liveliness and playfulness. The individual backdrops and worlds, from the workshop to the snow landscapes to Santa Claus' whereabouts, are visually appealing – but they never even come close to the opulence and charisma of large Disney productions.
Eleven Yoyo and Reindeer Krümel were so excited about the upcoming festival – but because of the unscrupulous hacker Cyber Scrooge, everything is suddenly at stake!
The makers let the storylines surrounding the cyber attack and the search for Santa Claus run parallel. The first-mentioned sideshow becomes a bit bland, as not much exciting happens during the hacker attack. Scrooge demands that Santa Claus be delivered and, to emphasize his threatening gestures, destroys one present after the other. Not much else is going on in the workshop during the “hostile takeover”. But Coco, Yoyo and Co. get down to business properly – and quite fantastically.
During their adventurous venture, the motley team undertakes, among other things, a surreal-seeming snow globe journey and a ride in a somewhat dusty, but wonderful to look at, retro sleigh. There are also parallel universes and mysterious portals that radiate magical Christmas magic. The directing duo goes phenomenally against the grain of common Christmas clichés and well-known traditions when they suddenly bring in an armada of “heavy metal”, tattooed and pierced biker Santa Clauses. Not only do they look super cool, but they also have really good taste in music. The muscle-bound Santa Clauses love Kiss, ZZ Top and other (hard) rocking combos!
The supporting characters are the real stars
In addition, the quirky sidekicks and cheerful supporting characters are primarily responsible for the humor in this dramaturgically largely predictable film. The rude, hilarious appearance of Yoyo's grandfather, who used to be Santa Claus' most loyal helper, is particularly memorable. As a crazy, droll fellow, he sometimes seems like a Doc Brown on drugs – thanks to hyperactivity and an almost uncontrollable energy and love of life. And then of course there is the cute reindeer Krümel, the secret star in the illustrious cast of characters. Krümel is a loyal soul and is always at Yoyo's side. With its natural urge to discover and always present openness, especially when it comes to new acquaintances, the animal quickly has everyone's sympathy on its side.
Conclusion: Tradition and sentimentality are a thing of the past! The enjoyable animated film, which alludes to the advantages (and dangers) of our time, appeals with its topicality and unconventional narrative. Refreshingly non-conformist and ironic, it is about change, traditional ideas, but also about solidarity and friendship. Qualitative deductions arise due to the not entirely convincing technical implementation and some immature plot elements.