Santa Claus (1959 film)
| Santa Claus | |
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U.S. marquee poster
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| Directed by |
René Cardona English version: Ken Smith |
| Produced by | Guillermo Calderón |
| Written by | Adolfo Torres Portillo René Cardona |
| Starring |
José Elías Moreno José Luis Aguirre Armando Arriola Cesáreo Quezadas |
| Narrated by | Ken Smith |
| Music by | Antonio Díaz Conde |
| Cinematography | Raúl Martínez Solares |
| Edited by | Jorge Bustos |
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Production
company |
Cinematográfica Calderón S.A.
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| Distributed by | K. Gordon Murray Productions |
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Release date
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Running time
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97 minutes |
| Country | Mexico |
| Language | Spanish |
Santa Claus (sometimes known as "Santa Claus vs The Devil") is a 1959 Mexican fantasy film directed by René Cardona and co-written with Adolfo Torres Portillo. In the film, Santa works in outer space and does battle with a demon sent to Earth by Lucifer to ruin Christmas by killing Santa and "making all the children of the Earth do evil."
A dubbed and slightly edited English language version was produced for U.S. release in 1960 under the direction of Ken Smith. It was lampooned on an episode of Mystery Science Theater 3000.
On December 24, Santa prepares for his yearly journey at his Toyland castle in space. He plays the organ while his children helpers from all over the world sing. Meanwhile, in Hell, Lucifer instructs his chief demon Pitch to travel to Earth and turn the children of the world against Santa.
In a busy marketplace, Pitch attempts to convince five children to "make Santa Claus angry": Lupita, a poor girl; Billy, the son of wealthy but negligent parents; and three troublemaking brothers. Pitch fails at convincing Lupita to steal a doll from a vendor but succeeds in convincing the brothers to break a shop window. Santa's child workers alert him to these events.
Unable to travel to Earth before nightfall on Christmas Eve, he instead uses equipment to watch Pitch and the children. One device allows him to view Lupita's dream, induced by Pitch, in which she is tormented by life-sized dancing dolls who entice her to steal. He also listens as the three brothers plot to break into Billy's home and steal his presents. They also attempt to write a letter to Santa claiming they have been good, but Santa's voice informs them that he can see all they do.
Merlin the Wizard, Santa's most trusted assistant, gives Santa a sleep inducing powder and a flower that allows him to disappear. He then retrieves a magic key that will open any door on Earth from Vulcan and prepares his mechanical reindeer. On Earth, the three rude boys plot to capture and enslave Santa. Meanwhile, Lupita and her mother say a prayer and Lupita says that she has wished for two dolls, one of which she will give to Baby Jesus.
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Wikipedia