Mallory Blessed
10/30/09
Literature & Composition 101
Santa Claus vs. Frankenstein
In The Santa Clause 2: The Mrs. Clause, Scott Calvin is in trouble because he is being torn into too many directions. So to compensate for his need to be home with his family and also try to find a wife before Christmas Day, Santa Claus and his nifty sidekicks, Bernard and Curtis, create a life-size toy version of Santa Claus. The creation scene of the toy version Santa and the way he becomes enlightened by the rules handbook are two examples that can easily be compared the novel Frankenstein by Mary Shelley.
In The Santa Clause, there is an intense creation scene of Scott Calvin as Santa Claus. The scene starts with busy elves running about in the room containing the panagraph or duplication machine. The camera angle is shot from a low angle to make the creation machine look menacing, important, and it takes up most of the first camera shot. This creates an air of mystery and significance to the machine. Curtis says that he has made some improvements to the panagraph by tripling the RAM and updating the system. Santa points out that Curtis has “externalized the power source to make better use of the electromagnetic energy.” But Curtis quickly points out that he has only done this because it looks “really cool.” This is actually a way that the director pulled an ironic metaphor to the creation of Frankenstein. Because the machine has big tubes with different colored fluids and bubbles running up and down it makes the machine seem mad scientist like which reminds me of Frankenstein and the creation sequence of the novel. At this point, Santa just figures out what Curtis’ idea is, that Santa will get into this machine to duplicate him and lessen his problems in his life. Curtis tells Santa that he added a fuzzy logic system which would cause the creation to look and think just like Santa. But this turns out to not be the case, but they do not know this just yet. After some convincing, Santa enters the machine to be duplicated. He steps onto the conveyer belt, nervous and preparing for the worst. There is foreboding, anxious, orchestral music playing in the background. A close up on the moving conveyer belt and Santa’s legs entering the machine. Then the viewer gets an aerial view of the machine and Santa about to go into the chamber where he will be replicated. Huge blue lightning bolts are flashing out of the top of the machine while electricity is being given off into the room. Just like in Frankenstein, the movie version, huge lightning bolts hit Dr. Frankenstein’s machine to make his creation come to life. Santa yells in pain because of the electricity that is running through his body. He comes out the other side, with smoke pouring out of the machine. This Santa coming out of the machine makes Curtis and Bernard think that the monster is perfect in every way! Then music begins to play; music that is less suspenseful and more of a funny and playful tune because the boys learn that the “creation” is the actual Santa. Then terrifying screams from the three men, the camera turns around so the viewers sees Santa’s naked bottom and plastic figure. This is the now creation of Santa or toy version of Santa. The monster then begins to talk and the real Santa begins to think that this plan of leaving the North Pole to visit with his family and keep the toy Santa to run the North Pole will actually work.
This toy version of Santa Claus is going to look over the North Pole and the elves in the chaos of the Christmas season. But when the toy-version Santa Claus begins to follow the rules handbook too closely, the North Pole is taken over by the evil Santa Claus. This then creates a similar theme to Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. Just like Victor Frankenstein creates the monster, Curtis and Bernard create a monster as well. Both monsters become enlightened by books and become intelligent from their stories. The monster in Frankenstein reads Paradise Lost and then begins to understand language and emotions. This is what sparks the monster’s curiosity for companionship and the feeling of love. The monster then proceeds to explain to Frankenstein about his encounters with the DeLacey family as he watched the family and understood their routines. The monster then learns empathy by watching how the DeLacey children struggle with their life and constant struggle to provide for their family. In The Santa Clause 2: The Mrs. Clause, Santa Claus’ toy version must take over the North Pole to make sure it is properly run and an authority figure is there while Santa is gone to see his family and meet his potential new wife. But the toy-version of Santa Claus needs to read the Rules Handbook to understand what the procedure of the North Pole is. Unfortunately, the monster then becomes out of control and takes over the North Pole with stricter rules and threatens to give the whole world coal. By the monster becoming enlightened by the Rules Handbook, it went out of control just like Frankenstein’s creation was enlightened with Paradise Lost and then experienced emotions and empathy.
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, and The Santa Clause 2: The Mrs. Clause, both have similarities that intertwine to create parallels. One being that the creation scenes between both of their creatures is very similar and includes many aspects of a typical mad scientist. Also, the way both creatures were enlightened by books creates another parallel between these two stories. When watching movies, if you look hard enough, you can see parallels between the novel, Frankenstein, and many other movies and even including The Santa Clause 2.
