Ed's Review Dot Com

Zachary Gordon, Mitchel Musso, G. Hannelius, Madison Pettis, Richard Kind, Bonnie Somerville, Richard Riehle, Wendi McLendon-Covey, Josh Flitter, Jonathan Morgan Heit, Kaitlyn Maher

In a prequel to 2009’s Santa Buddies, we find out the story of how Santa Paws, Santa’s dog, came to be. Santa (Richard Riehle) comes to New York to try to spread some Christmas cheer and is promptly knocked down in an auto accident. To make it worse, Paws, Santa’s Dog, is lost and cannot find him. At the North Pole, animals can talk, but only those with the Christmas spirit can hear and understand what they’re saying. Meanwhile, a little girl, Quinn (Kaitlyn Maher of America’s Got Talent fame) has been assigned to an orphanage with a head master as mean, if not meaner, than Miss Hannigan in Annie. Quinn and the other girls risk their necks by protecting Paws until they are able to locate Santa.

I do think they did better with this prequel than the original Santa Buddies. It’s a really good story, although not very original. It certainly steals a lot from Annie, as I mentioned, and other Christmas films where Santa develops amnesia and his friends have to help him. But the charming Paws, Santa’s Dog makes this one very charming. Kaitlyn Maher is just as charming as an actress as she is as a singer, and she’s simply adorable. Let’s face it, the kids are going to love this film by Disney, and this is one you can certainly sit through with them and enjoy just as much as they do. It’s charming, and cute, and a real Christmas masterpiece. Don’t let the CGI talking dogs bother you. Ignore it and don’t let it distract you, and you’re going to have a great time with “In Search of Santa Paws” I promise.