Ernest Saves Christmas (1988)

Too much of everything

The Age of Commercialism

Memorable, crazy movie

True to its essence, the characters remain on the same line and manage to entertain the viewer, each highlighting their own distinctive qualities or touches.

Imagine that, I only first saw "Ernest Saves Christmas" for the first time during the Christmas season of 2016. Yep, I know, way overdue. And it was only because it was part of a Christmas movie marathon with the family that I got around to watching this movie.Now, I am vaguely familiar with the Ernest character (played by Jim Varney) from my childhood, as I remember watching some of the movies back then, though the only title that comes to mind is "Ernest Goes to Camp".While "Ernest Saves Christmas" hardly is a Christmas Classic, it is still a funny and entertaining movie. Especially if you like the kind of slapstick comedy used there. And yes, there are a lot of funny situations, and I did laugh often and enjoyed the silliness of the movie, for sure.Despite being funny, then "Ernest Saves Christmas" wasn't exactly the type of movie that stood out as being memorable. I think you might actually watch it more than once, but with years in between each viewing.One of the good things is that you can sit down and watch "Ernest Saves Christmas" without having watched other movies in the franchise, as they work well as stand-alone movies."Ernest Saves Christmas" is a movie that can be enjoyed by virtually everyone in the family. And it is a fun enough movie to put on for some Christmas time comedy.

The best role that Jim Varney ever had was as Jed Clampett in the "Beverly Hillbillies" movie. A great acting talent that was sadly wasted and underutilized in a long series of Disney "B" films. A mixed bag-of-a-film from the Disney "Touchstone" logo. It starts out with a cruel edge as cab driver Ernest rushes an obnoxious passenger to the airport in a big Yellow Cab. The passenger wears no seat belt and is bounced around the back seat. He (apparently) dies or ends up in a catatonic state and Ernest dumps him into the baggage chute along with his ripped luggage. Right up there with the terrible start of "The Santa Clause" when Santa falls off the roof. It's just not that funny. The other part of the film than stinks is when "Joe", the ex-kiddie show host, makes a film called "Santa Slay" which is beyond dreadful. The part that works is the Johnathan Winters-like warehouse man who doesn't know how to deal with 8 flying reindeer and Santa's Elves. Good and bad acting abounds. "Santa" acts and looks quite genuine and sincere. The teenybopper runaway practically falls out of her peekaboo tank-top shirt. Sure she's cute, but distracting. A simple plot, as old Santa attempts to pass-the-torch to a new "Santa". The last third of the movie finally redeems itself with wonderful Disney Magic as Ernest truly does save Christmas with Santa's runaway sleigh and 8 hyper-active reindeer. Filmed in Orlando, Florida and much of the film looks very cheaply made.

I have been an Ernest P. Worrell fan since my teens and Ernest Saves Christmas is a funny holiday movie. After serving as a camp counselor in Ernest Goes To Camp, Ernest crosses paths with Santa Claus while working as a taxi driver in Florida. Santa is eager to retire from his job and pass the torch to his would-be successor, Joe Carruthers, the star of a children's television show. Ernest, along with a teenage girl he encounters, must help Santa fulfill his mission. Time is running out, as Christmas will be gone if Santa fails in his quest.The late Jim Varney was funny and great as Ernest. His talent made the character shine through, especially in Ernest Saves Christmas.

How one responds to the character of Ernest P. Worrell and his feature film vehicles may depend on personal taste. If you enjoy the shtick of the late Jim Varney in this role, you may very well enjoy the movie. It goes without saying that it's going to be awfully silly at times, and it does get rather repetitive as it plays out, but there's still a fair amount of charm and good intentions to the material. Ernest in this case is a good hearted cab driver who makes the acquaintance of Saint Nick, wonderfully played by Douglas Seale. Saint Nick now realizes it's time for another person to take on the persona and perform the duties required, and he believes that person is local children's show host Joe Carruthers (Oliver Clark). Assorted wacky escapades, including an out of control sleigh ride, an airport hanger full of reindeer, and Ernest donning various disguises and pulling various scams, occur along the way. Varney is as enthusiastic and upbeat as ever, and receives decent support from the other actors, especially Seale and Clark. Robert Lesser is amusing as the stereotypically sleazy agent, and the ever delightful Billie Bird can be seen in one of her sweet old lady roles (she and her contemporary Frances Bay really cornered the market on this sort of thing). The screenplay also works into the story, among more traditional Christmas themes, the idea that people shouldn't be too quick to think cynically, or too quick to judge someone, and learn to trust them, as well as the idea of regaining a degree of childhood innocence; this is all applied to the "little girl lost" character of "Harmony" appealingly played by Noelle Parker. One of the nicest parts is when a businessmen (from Canada!) had declared to Santa that if anything he wanted to see snow for Christmas, and gets his wish. Some of the comedy really is too much at times, for example the reindeer scenes with some shameless goofy mugging (not to mention eyeball gags) from Gailard Sartain and Bill Byrge. The business with the horror film within the film may also be seen as questionable; try explaining it to the younger kids, even if it's deliberately designed as being very low rent and cheesy. It's interesting to see that the composer is the aptly named Mark Snow, who went on to be the in-house composer on 'The X-Files'. Overall, a reasonably engaging bit of holiday fare, even if just for nostalgic reasons for those who saw it at a younger age back in '88. Six out of 10.