Review of Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale (2010) by Neum D — 16 Dec 2010

Hee hee.

So, Rare Exports is the rare import from Finland that actually makes it Stateside in the theaters. And it is quite the Christmas treat. Both bracingly hilarious and hilariously bracing (does that work?), this film takes the Halloween movie template and decorates it with Christmas lights, making Santa a fairytale beast - a kind of demonic warlock that truly does see you when you're sleeping - rather than his jolly cheery Coca-Cola self. An excavation team is working the December shift on a rural mountain in frosty Finland, a veritable winter wonderland except there's that creepy overtone right from the get-go. The film stages the parts: a rich weirdo is financing the dig, the miners grow suspicious, and nearby kids - including young Pietari - witness the early stages of this bizarre archaeological endeavor. Pietari is young enough to still believe in the good ol' Santa, only to have his friend tease him about such naivete, spoiling the Santa visits of the past. Pietari then spends the opening credits researching the disturbing and utterly comical mythology of the *real* Santa Claus, and how he may have ended up at the bottom of a nearby mountain.

Thankfully, the movie is self-aware enough to furnish itself with all the appropriate B-movie trappings: ominous music, disarming close-ups, and gut-busting one-liners. The surprise here is that the film never tries to over-work the gimmick of "Santa as Hannibal Lecter," and thoughtfully builds in a father-son dynamic that's sweet and sincere and believable. Woven into the film are clever recurrances of gingerbread cookies, jokes about VAT (Value Added Tax), fear of the final advent calendar door, reindeer corralling, and Santa's creepy "Little Helpers." And - this may strain belief - it all works.

Strewn in balance within is a healthy dose of tension, well-timed hilarity, a genuine connection to the characters, and the rather brilliant coda (one that single-handedly bumps the film's rating up a point) as the final impressive gewgaw in a film with its stocking full of them. The pacing is slow at times, but once the final act hits, the film truly comes together. The childlike vulnerability of Pietari is spot on, and his coming-of-age turn - while laughable and amusing - also works for the narrative, leaving an unexpectedly nice little gift at the film's conclusion. You better watch out, moviegoers. This Santa Claus movie is the real deal.