The Christmas Chronicles 2
- Dec 15, 2025
- 3 min read
A perfect blend of humor, family fun and fantasy with heart to spare, THE CHRISTMAS CHRONICLES 2 filled us with holiday spirit.
Writer/Director Chris Columbus (Home Alone, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, Mrs. Doubtfire) always delivers, and he's in fine yuletide form taking the reindeer reins for this beautifully produced sequel.
I loved the first one, with Kurt Russell delivering one of the best Saint Nicks of all time. How do you top the original? A bigger adventure, higher stakes and Goldie Hawn joining all the holiday fun as Mrs. Claus.
These two exude love and charm in real life and they're the same on screen.
We catch up with Kate (Darby Camp) from the first film, now a more skeptical teen, unhappy on her Christmas vacation in Cancun with her family and Mom's new boyfriend Bob (Tyrese Gibson). Kate's missing her Dad, who passed away. Everything seems to remind her of him and she's none too pleased to be away from her friends. Mom seems to be moving on too quickly for her.
Meanwhile, naughty elf Belsnickel (Julian Dennison from "How to Train Your Dragon") is on a quest for personal revenge against his former mentor Santa Claus.
That plan for revenge is some crazy fun involving Christmas hued wormholes and a lot of spy level intrigue that I'll leave for you and the kids to discover.
Columbus had a hand in the screenplay as well and he keeps things hopping all over the globe, while providing some truly heart tugging scenes that come out of nowhere.
The man wrote "Gremlins" and "The Goonies". Enough said. He knows how to craft a family tale that will entertain every age and generations to come.
Those elves reminded me a lot of Columbus's gremlins and serve up some serious comedy and trouble to tide us over until the new Gremlins 3 arrives that Columbus has just announced he's working on.
The big holiday heart of the film is Kurt Russell's fantastic performance as Santa Claus. Of all the celluloid St. Nicks, Russell's is the mountaintop. Funny, quick witted, charming and full of emotion, Russell is back and having the time of his life.
Goldie is no slouch either. Her Mrs. Claus is a force to be reckoned with throughout.
Kid actors can make or break a film.
They're ALL great here and very well cast.
Judah Lewis returns as Teddy, Kate's older brother, wiser and more caring since his Dad passed away.
Camp is fun, believable and up for anything as Kate.
Jahzir Bruno (The Witches, Atlanta) is a find as Jack, Bob's son who's afraid of everything but anxious to fit in with his new potential siblings.
There are some great family messages within and one moment in an airport between Kate and another character that punched me in the heart. Great writing, smart acting and no pandering, Columbus nails it.
Of course he's also just rocked you with a fun and funny musical number from Santa and an airport gate agent played by legendary R&B singer Darlene Love. The action rarely takes a breath.
The set design, production design and special effects are all first-rate, as is the music score by Christophe Beck (Ant-Man, Frozen).
Steven Van Zandt, who had a cameo as guitarist Wolfie in the "Santa in jail" scene in the original film, produced and wrote the song "The Spirit of Christmas" for this sequel. Russell and Love and an airport full of stranded passengers really deliver it.
What a holiday blast of warmth and fun. If you don't smile watching this heart warming and fast paced adventure, you are officially a Scrooge!
Just like the original. PART 2 gets a tinsel wrapped A.
Mr. Columbus, get Kurt and Goldie on the phone and get to work on a third installment, it too will become a perennial holiday favorite.
Merry Christmas all!
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