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The Snowman

The Snowman

Adventure · Animation · Family · 1982

A young boy makes a snowman one Christmas Eve, which comes to life at midnight and takes him on a magical adventure to the North Pole to meet Santa Claus.

Movie details

The Snowman

1982 Adventure · Animation · Family 25m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

7.6 / 10

Community rating

A young boy makes a snowman one Christmas Eve, which comes to life at midnight and takes him on a magical adventure to the North Pole to meet Santa Claus.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over The Snowman?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer

Animation · 1964

Sam the snowman tells us the story of a young red-nosed reindeer who, after being ousted from the reindeer games because of his glowing nose, teams up with Hermey, an elf who wants to be a dentist, and Yukon Cornelius, the prospector. They run into the Abominable Snowman and find a whole island of misfit toys. Rudolph vows to see if he can get Santa to help the toys, and he goes back to the North Pole on Christmas Eve. But Santa's sleigh is fogged in. But when Santa looks over Rudolph, he gets a very bright idea...

That Christmas

That Christmas

Animation · 2024

It's an unforgettable Christmas for the townsfolk of Wellington-on-Sea when the worst snowstorm in history alters everyone's plans — including Santa's.

Trolls Holiday in Harmony

Trolls Holiday in Harmony

Animation · 2021

Queen Poppy plans the first annual Trolls Kingdom Secret Holiday Gift Swap, but things don't go quite as expected.

The Year Without a Santa Claus

The Year Without a Santa Claus

Animation · 1974

Feeling forgotten by the children of the world, old St. Nick decides to skip his gift-giving journey and take a vacation. Mrs. Claus and two spunky little elves, Jingle and Jangle, set out to see to where all the season's cheer has disappeared. Aided by a magical snowfall, they reawaken the spirit of Christmas in children's hearts and put Santa back in action.

A Garfield Christmas

A Garfield Christmas

Animation · 1987

Garfield, Jon and Odie go to Jon's family farm for Christmas, where Garfield finds a present for Grandma.

Robin Robin

Robin Robin

Animation · 2021

A bird raised by mice begins to question where she belongs and sets off on a daring journey of self-discovery.

Prep & Landing

Prep & Landing

Animation · 2009

Wayne gets a new rookie partner, Lanny, after his previous partner got the promotion he wanted. Lanny has to remind Wayne of the Spirit of Christmas and the importance of being an elf in Santa's Prep and Landing elite unit.

Toy Story That Time Forgot

Toy Story That Time Forgot

Animation · 2014

During a post-Christmas play date, the gang find themselves in uncharted territory when the coolest set of action figures ever turn out to be dangerously delusional. It's all up to Trixie, the triceratops, if the gang hopes to return to Bonnie's room in this Toy Story That Time Forgot.

Mickey's Magical Christmas: Snowed in at the House of Mouse

Mickey's Magical Christmas: Snowed in at the House of Mouse

Animation · 2001

When a huge snowstorm leaves everyone stranded, Mickey and all of his guests at the House of Mouse, including Pooh, Belle, Snow White, Cinderella, Ariel and many more of his old and new friends, break out the cookies and hot chocolate to help Donald mend his tattered Christmas spirit.

Frosty the Snowman

Frosty the Snowman

Family · 1969

A discarded silk top-hat becomes the focus of a struggle between a washed-up stage magician and a group of schoolchildren, after it magically brings a snowman to life. Realizing that newly-living Frosty will melt in spring unless he takes refuge in a colder climate, the magic snowman and Karen, a young girl whom he befriends, stow away on a freight train headed for the North Pole. Little do they know that the magician is following them, and he wants his hat back!

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Dianne Jackson

Raymond Briggs

Raymond Briggs

Older James / Narrator (uncredited)

Court is in session

Put The Snowman on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Sentimental Softie

“Sincerity is not manipulation.”

The film risks embarrassment to make emotion communal, and that openness is harder than fashionable detachment.

The prosecution The Cool Ironist

“The strings are showing.”

Every cue tells you exactly what to feel and when, leaving sentiment to do the work character should have done.