Evengyny Thanks for the memories!

Spidersecu Don't Believe the Hype

Usamah Harvey The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

Rosie Searle It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

mike48128 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.

Robert W. Hey I'm just being honest. This review is probably less about the actual quality of this movie and more about how it makes me feel because I grew up with Ernest like many of us did. I probably watched Ernest Goes To Camp and this film a thousand times at least, not to mention his Saturday morning TV Series. It has been years since I watched any of Ernest's antics and decided to check out the old Christmas classic this year. What a terrific movie for families and what a talent Jim Varney was. Ernest (in general and in this movie) is so ridiculous, campy, cheesy and its just the perfect blend of all of that with a healthy dose of true comedy. The movie is cute and fun full of adventure and magic and holiday spirit. It isn't sappy but if you look under the surface there really is a sweet story there and has several different characters going through different things throughout the film. For what some might call a "silly" comedy, it is actually smartly written. It knows exactly its demographic and most importantly it knows what fans of Ernest want to see. It is a Christmas movie at its heart and soul and yet doesn't forget to include everything you love about Ernest and his adventures.I forgot just how amazing Jim Varney was in this role. His physical comedy is really something to see, whether he's pretending to be a silly character (snake farmer, old lady etc) or he's on a rant through Vern's house or trying to save a Christmas tree from the highway. He's simple and yet brilliant and full of heart. Its a great character and I forgot just how much I liked him. Ernest is the perfect character to put into a Christmas film and no one could do it like Varney. Not to be outdone the supporting cast is so good in their roles. Douglas Seale is amazing as Santa who is ready to retire and looking for his replacement. He is so out of place in the fast paced world but a strong person who is being treated so poorly. The chemistry with him and Varney is perfect for the film. Oliver Clark is the "Mister Rogers" type TV personality that Santa wants to replace him. Clark is good, although a little toned down compared to some of the other performances in the film. He is still very good in the movie. One of the first crushes I remember having was on Noelle Parker's Harmony. She is a wayward kid that lies and steals and happens to come across Ernest and Santa and learns the errors of her ways. She is the perfect personification of an 80's kid with the side pony and the clothes she wears. She nails the role and while its a very cookie cutter role, she is does it well (and she's as cute as she was back then.) Ernest regulars Bill Byrge and Robert Lesser show up as Bobby and Marty in a silly little side story that happens to be hilarious.I just don't know how anyone can't like this movie. I mean it isn't an Oscar winner and if you're looking for raunchy comedy you won't find it anywhere here at all. This is a clean cut family film with some really smart comedy and brilliantly they made sure John Cherry (who is an Ernest director staple) direct this one. He has done Ernest films and TV Shows since its conception it would seem and so he knows the character and likely worked well with Varney. If you're going into this with the right expectations you can't possibly be disappointed. If you don't know anything about Ernest or you're expecting some modern day raunch comedy then you'll hate this. This has everything you could possibly want from a comedy like this. I will be making my rounds of Ernest films starting now because I forgot how much I enjoyed the sheer silliness and this will be a Christmas staple in my house for certain. 8.5/10

Toronto85 Ernest Saves Christmas is a good natured and fun holiday movie about Ernest P. Worell helping an aging Santa Claus to find his successor before it's too late. Santa Claus is getting older and is forgetting such important things like who's naughty, and who's nice, and who asked a toy truck, etc. These of course are very important things for Santa to have stored in his memory. So in order to keep Christmas going at a rapid pace, Santa sets his sights on Joe Carruthers (a children's ) to take over the very important job. Problem is that Joe is so busy with his acting career that each time Santa tries to tell him about the gig, he either leaves in a rush thanks to his money hungry agent, or doesn't believe that what Santa is saying is real. That's where Ernest and a runaway teenage girl named Harmony come into play. They go on a journey with Santa to make Joe the new Santa Claus thereby saving Christmas.I really enjoyed this Ernest film. It isn't as dumb and pointless as some of the other Ernest films done before and after, it has a really nice message and is a heart warming Christmas movie. Jim Varney does his usual Ernest part to perfection and I really liked the dynamic between him, Noelle Parker (Harmony) and Douglas Seale (Santa Claus). You can see that they really believe in Santa eventually and come to care about him and saving Christmas. There are some laughs in this as well, I always loved when Ernest would dress up as the old woman with the wig and neck brace. Pretty solid comedic moments in this one for sureI highly recommend anyone looking for a good Christmas movie to see 'Ernest Saves Christmas'. Douglas Seale may be the most realistic Santa Claus I've seen in more recent Christmas movies. He has a classic look to him in this film that I love, it adds to the story wonderfully. It isn't the huge belly/bright white beard look, it's a more old styled Santa Claus character which was refreshing to see. Check it out!7/10

ccthemovieman-1 This movie started off great; the first 30 minutes are very funny and clever with some interesting characters. That's the good news. The bad news is that the film then gets too repetitive and then it gets downright stupid. What we wind up getting is a Santa Claus with "magical" powers with a lot of New Age baloney thrown in the mix. It's just ridiculous and hardly the kind of "Christmas movie" I would expect from Jim Varney's "Ernest."To be fair, it still had a decent amount of laughs and is profanity-free but just not a film I could recommend.