Jack Frost: A Christmas Classic, Remastered

Jack Frost (1979)
Warner Bros./Rankin-Bass Productions
Starring Buddy Hackett, Robert Morse, and Larry Storch
Unrated
Running Time= 49 minutes
Now Available

I’ll be honest. I’m a huge fan of the Rankin-Bass classic Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. There’s something about Burl Ives as a friendly snowman, the Island of Misfit Toys, and an Abominable Snowman that put me in the holiday spirit. And now, I am here to say that I have added another Rankin-Bass special to my list: Jack Frost.

While it’s not their best, it is entertaining, fun, and creative. They just don’t make holiday specials like they used to. Thank goodness for repeats and DVD!

Jack Frost is the tale of winter sprite Jack Frost who wants to be human. Why? He’s fallen in love with a beautiful girl from the village of January Junction. As a sprite, she can’t see him; she can only feel his chilly presence. Father Winter grants him his wish but on one condition: he must fully realize what it means to be human by the end of winter, or will be turned back into a sprite once again.

But there’s evil afoot in the town of January Junction thanks to an evil dictator named Kubla Kraus. He taxes the townspeople to death; he takes all their resources; he prohibits them to be happy in any way. Why they don’t move, I have no idea.

The animation in these specials, whether Jack Frost, Rudolph, or Santa Claus Is Coming To Town always manages to fascinate me. There’s an elegance in it’s primitiveness that excites me each time.

If you love Christmas specials, you’ll enjoy Jack Frost. It’s a holiday classic that’s safe from the whole family.

Special features are geared toward kids and include a sing-along section and a How-to on holiday crafts.

Jack Frost gets an A-. It’s well done, I just wish the songs were a bit better.

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