After losing his reindeer, getting arrested, then being forced to deliver all the Christmas presents in under an hour, it’s hard to believe that Christmas Eve could get any more hectic for Santa. Two years later in The Christmas Chronicles sequel, Santa has a whole new obstacle to overcome, and this time he needs a lot more than Kate and Teddy’s Christmas spirit.
The Christmas Chronicles 2 finds Kate and Teddy on vacation in Cancun with their mother’s new boyfriend and his “scaredy-cat son” Jack. Meanwhile in the North Pole, Santa is facing the threat of Christmas being cancelled forever by his once-loyal elf protégé Belsnickel. In order to save Christmas, Santa must rely on the help of a True Believer – Kate Pierce, who is now a cynical teenager.
Driven by action-packed adventures and Christmas magic, The Christmas Chronicles 2 is How the Grinch Stole Christmas meets Home Alone. Though it takes a step back from the traditional archetypes of Christmas classics, the film still retains the heartwarming, feel-good vibe of its 2018 installment, and is a refreshing Christmas movie to watch with older kids. Here’s everything parents should consider before letting little ones watch The Christmas Chronicles 2.
- There’s a fair amount of emphasis on Kate’s teenage angst.
In accordance with the fact that Kate, the protagonist of The Christmas Chronicles 2, has grown up since her last Christmas adventure, the dialogue in this film is more in line with her teenage perspective and attitude. - The darkest theme it addresses is the betrayal of an evil elf.
The story behind The Christmas Chronicles 2 unfolds due to the betrayal of one of Santa’s former elves, who wants to take control of Christmas and replace Santa. The Belsnickel character isn’t aggressively villainous, so although the elves, Santa, and Mrs. Clause aren’t perfectly consistent with traditional portrayals, there shouldn’t be any concern over this film being too dark or twisted, though it may warrant a conversation about loyalty. - It frequently depicts children using (magical) weapons.
In order to confront Belsnickel’s threat to cancel Christmas, Santa equips his village with all types of magical weapons, drones, and cannons. There are a number of explosions and dramatic fight scenes, and though it’s definitely more physical than a regular snowball fight, it’s not excessively violent, and it’s all supervised by Santa and orchestrated by Christmas magic. - There’s a scene that highlights Kate shoplifting.
When Kate time travels to the 1990s, she has no choice but to shoplift, because her modern money is deemed counterfeit. Just as in the first Christmas Chronicles movie in which Teddy steals a car for Santa, this illegal activity is justified by it being done for the sake of saving Christmas, though it still may be worth talking to kids about why the behavior is wrong. - The plot might be hard to follow for little ones.
This movie doesn’t exactly follow a linear timeline, and therefore it can get confusing, especially with a cast that’s significantly larger than in the first movie. Time travel, teleportation, and flashbacks take the story to 312 AD, 1990, present day, to and from the North Pole, Cancun, and Boston. As thrilling as these adventures are, there’s a lot going on for its two-hour duration. Nevertheless, it’s also filled with fun musical numbers that’ll easily put kids of all ages in the holiday spirit.
