Click to read the article
The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause (2006)
Tomatometer
How does the Tomatometer work ![]()
Reviews Counted:63
Fresh:8
Rotten:55
Average Rating:3.6/10
Consensus: Playing Jack Frost as an evil cross between Liza Minnelli and Liberace, Martin Short is a welcome presence, but this tired series continues drawing from its bag of bland gags and dumb slapstick.
Runtime: 1 hr 38 mins
Genre: Childrens
US Box Office: $84,438,648
Synopsis: THE SANTA CLAUSE 3: THE ESCAPE CLAUSE, the third installment of the popular holiday series THE SANTA CLAUSE picks up with Everyman-turned-Santa-Claus Scott Calvin (Tim Allen) just days before... THE SANTA CLAUSE 3: THE ESCAPE CLAUSE, the third installment of the popular holiday series THE SANTA CLAUSE picks up with Everyman-turned-Santa-Claus Scott Calvin (Tim Allen) just days before Christmas. Not only is toy production behind schedule, but another special delivery is on its way--Scott's wife, Carol/Mrs. Claus (Elizabeth Mitchell) is pregnant. To add to the pressure, Carol's parents are coming for a visit, prompting an emergency make-over for Santa's Village (into a nondescript Canadian town) to protect Scott's true identity. With all this on his mind, Santa is more than happy to let his fellow seasonal icon Jack Frost (Martin Short) step in and help out. But Frost has an ulterior motive: angry over his secondary-figure status and longing to have his own holiday, he tricks Santa into giving up his reign, and Christmas falls into the hands of Frost. Scott, no longer Santa Claus, must decide between resuming his previous life or saving Christmas from the coldhearted Frost. This film conveys the message that Christmas is about family and the human spirit--not commercialism. In addition to the holiday association, the film also encourages teamwork and problem solving through positive means, even when things look like they can't get any worse. THE SANTA CLAUSE 3: THE ESCAPE CLAUSE is an entertaining holiday film, perfect for the whole family, and a fitting continuum of THE SANTA CLAUSE series. [More]
Starring: Tim Allen, Alan Arkin, Martin Short, Judge Reinhold
Starring: Tim Allen, Alan Arkin, Martin Short, Judge Reinhold, Elizabeth Mitchell, Ann-Margret, Bob Bergen, Abigail Breslin, Spencer Breslin, Wendy Crewson, Liliana Mumy
Director: Michael Lembeck
Director: Michael Lembeck
Producer: Brian Reilly, Jeffrey Silver, Allan A. Apone
Composer: George S. Clinton
Studio: Buena Vista Pictures
Reviews for The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause
The scriptwriters have continued their inventive treatment of humanising Santa, while keeping the fantasy intact. Colourful and bright, funny and witty, it's a magical fantasy that will please young and old
You look at a movie like this and wonder how some screenwriters can have the temerity to go on strike
Special effects are in abundance, but none of them are very well-produced, much like the film on the whole.
It's sad to see the life sucked out of a series that started so well.
Short's skill and total commitment to his role make him no straw-dog villain, and his chemistry with Allen helps the movie's Santa feel like a real live person and not an imperturbable icon.
Frost turns the occasion into a swag-saturated consumer orgy, which the film condemns even as it hams up product placement for Red Bull.
While it may concern elves and Christmas, 'The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause' is more dreary than cheery.
Christmas cheer is in short supply in The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause, a feeble festive farce that's more no-no-no than ho-ho-ho.
Santa's traditional cry of ho-ho-ho has never sounded more like three stab wounds of pain and horror.
Cinema is far too powerful a medium to be graded on a curve-- even when Tim Allen is involved.
You’ve got to hand it to director Michael Lembeck… he’s succeeded in persuading studio bosses to let him make not one but two sequels from premises that were dead in the water from the word go.
Badly written, shockingly acted and appallingly directed threequel that will please precisely no-one.
Latest News for The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause
February 28, 2008:
The Rock Wants Your Loose Teeth
Try and imagine, if you will, how you might have felt if you had woken up one night during your childhood to find Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson standing over your bed, holding a bag... More...
November 20, 2007:
RT on DVD: Live Free or Hairspray This Thanksgiving
Good news, blockbuster fans: this week in home entertainment features a crowd-pleasing toe-tapper (Hairspray), the return of John McClane (Live Free or Die Hard), another... More...
November 15, 2007:
Box Office Guru Preview: Beowulf Set To Conquer Multiplexes
One animated film will bump another from the number one spot at the North American box office. But the new warrior Beowulf is no B movie but an A-list production from an... More...
November 08, 2007:
Box Office Guru Preview: Fred Claus is Coming to Town
Vince Vaughn and Tom Cruise go head to head at the North American box office this weekend with their latest releases. The dodgeball champ goes for holiday laughs with Fred Claus... More...
More Movies
| Tomatometer Percentage | Movie | Date |
|---|---|---|
| 85% 85% | Cloudy With a Chance o… | 26/11 |
| 48% 48% | Antichrist | 26/11 |
| 56% 56% | The Invention of Lying | 26/11 |
| 75% 75% | Cold Souls | 26/11 |
What’s Hot On RT
Other News
Sponsored Links
Around The Network
- The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause at Rotten Tomatoes
- The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause at IGN
- The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause at AskMen
Fresh Links
Featured

The New Matilda's Lynden Barber looks at the recent success of low-budget sci-fi -- and asks the question.

TIME offers us a closer look at the characters from the latest Twilight film.

Get all the latest movie updates, reviews, interviews and features here.
Competitions

Enough Prequel, Original Trilogy and Family Guy DVDs to fill a space cruiser

Everything from Dr. No to Quantum of Solace could be yours.

We're giving away the 10th Anniversary Blu-ray, plus Braveheart and the Rocky collection



Top Critic

