“Arthur Christmas” is a cheery, little holiday flick that I’m sure will delight young children and it’s entertaining enough to keep adults satisfied. At the centre of the movie is a charming and likeable character and that is all you really need for a film such as this.

Santa Claus (Jim Broadbent “Moulin Rouge!”, “The Iron Lady”) no longer just has a little sleigh to deliver presents, he has a computerised system, an airship and an army of elves that act like a special forces team. However, something goes wrong and one child ends up without a present. Santa’s son, Arthur (James McAvoy “Split”, “X-Men: First Class”), is determined to make sure every child receives their present from Santa.

Arthur Christmas is a wonderful, heart-warming character. He clearly loves everything about Christmas and he will not give up until he is certain that everybody gets their gift. McAvoy does a good job providing the voice. I also really like Jim Broadbent doing the voice of Santa. Bill Nighy (“Love Actually”) was okay as Grandsanta. I was less impressed with Santa’s other son, Steve (Hugh Laurie “Stuart Little”). However, I did like the idea of the three generations of the Claus family all interacting with one another. I did not care for the female elf that tags joins Arthur on his adventure. The animation on the characters is pretty good.

The animation throughout is quite impressive, some of the gags are quite amusing and the film will leave you with a pleasant Christmas feeling. I also found the idea of Santa having an airship quite funny and it’s definitely unique. It’s not as good as more traditional Santa films such as “Santa Claus: The Movie”. If you are looking for a happy and fun movie about Christmas for the whole family then “Arthur Christmas” will do just fine.