Warning: Spoilers ahead for Paramount+‘sDear Santamovie, plus a brief discussion of the death of a child.Dear Santaon Paramount+ is filled with a surprising amount of lore when it comes to the Christmas movie’s magic rules, but the ending forgets Jack Black’s character’s biggest limitation. Although Black does a stellar job of leading theDear Santacast, the movie at large has a few leaps in logic and notable plot holes. It’s still a fun ride, althoughDear Santa’s endingis already proving divisive for more reasons than one.
Dear Santa’s wish rulesare laid out plainly and simply by Jack Black’s Satan, who later turns out to be a fraudulent demon named Asmodeus. While the fictitious laws are largely followed as the story progresses, the most notable rule is shelved in the movie’s final moments to allow for a last-minute injection of wholesome festive cheer. Unfortunately, the scene in question doesn’t quite gel with the movie’s lore. It’s perhaps a little picky to highlight such a heartwarming moment, but its lack of logic within the world of the movie really makes it stick out.
Spencer’s Resurrection Goes Against Dear Santa’s Rule About Changing The Past
Asmodeus makes it clear he can’t change history (but does anyway)
Dear Santabegins with Robert Timothy Smith’s Liam Turner writing his yearly letter to the North Pole, intending to tell Saint Nick exactly what he wants for Christmas. It’s revealed right near the end of the movie that Liam’s biggest desire was to have his brother Spencer (Leo Easton Kelly) back, as he died shortly before the events of the movie. Before Liam makes any of his three wishes to Asmodeus later in the film,Black’s character quite clearly states that he “can’t change history.“So, changing events to make it so that Spencer never actually died breaks that rule.
Dear Santahas a rating of 22% onRotten Tomatoes.
Asmodeus essentially describes his powers as identical to those of genies in traditional folklore and even references Disney’sAladdinat one point to drive home the comparison. With such well-known rules in popular culture,it feels like a massive oversight for Liam’s wish to be granted, as genies are also unable to raise the dead. While it could be argued that Amodeus’ contextualization of the rule by using the War of 1812 suggests “history” means anything in the distant past rather than fairly recent events, that would be a pretty thin and convenient theory.
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Asmodeus never clarifies whether changing the past falls into the category of things he is physically unable to do, or things he is not permitted to do. It could simply be something that has been achieved before, but it created too many issues with branching timelines and other sci-fi temporal tropes. If so, thenperhaps the real Satan (Ben Stiller) banned wishes that changed the past, and Asmodeus was simply following those instructions. It seems unlikely that a demon would be such a stickler for the rules, but it’s not impossible.
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Either way, once Stiller’s character had worked out that Asmodeus had been impersonating him, Black’s character ultimately had very little to lose. Therefore, although he may not routinely tamper with the past, Asmodeus may not have seen the harm in bringing Spencer back to life, especially because he had only died pretty recently. Weirdly, while the wish made Liam’s parents oblivious to the fact that their son had been resurrected,Gibby (Jaden Carson Baker) seems to have somehow retained the memory of Spencer’s death, which adds another wrinkle to the scene’s logic snafu.
Liam’s growth as a character is largely undone at the end of Dear Santa
Actor Robert Timothy Smith as Liam in Paramount+’s Dear Santa.
Dear Santais very uplifting in partsand revolves around the theme of moving past personal struggles and growing from them as a result. At other times, the movie tends to become a little confused about whether magic is strictly necessary for these battles to be fought. Liam experiences both scenarios inDear Santa, as he uses a combination of the supernatural and his inner strength to solve his issues and address his trauma. The final scene, however, completely casts aside the more grounded elements of Liam’s story, as Spencer is simply wished back into existence.
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Although it’s largely a positive moment,Spencer’s resurrection is an imperfect solution. Not only does it undercut Liam’s arc, but he’s also left with the horrific memory of grieving his brother, and he can’t really talk to his parents about it either, as they’re blissfully ignorant to the fact that Spencer was ever dead. Plus, when viewed from a certain point of view, bringing a child back to life is a bit of a dark storyline for an otherwise fun Christmas movie likeDear Santa.
Dear Santa
Cast
Due to a mix-up, young Liam, a dyslexic 6th grader, sends a letter to Satan instead of Santa, leading Satan to appear at his door, delighted by his first-ever fan letter and interested in acquiring a portion of Liam’s soul.
