I am Santa Claus, review of the latest film by Gigi Proietti

I am Santa Claus

Christmas, as we know, is a magical period: a period full of emotions, lights and colors, in which the atmosphere smells of ginger and cinnamon and the air becomes so cold that you want to spend time on the sofa at home with a hot chocolate in hand and the TV on. And can there be a Christmas without themed films? Obviously not, but instead of the classic An armchair for two, which is obviously a must-watch in this period, today we want to focus our attention on I am Santa Claus, a different, light and fun Christmas film that mixes the traditionality of typical films of this atmosphere with more contemporary and current themes. But the real peculiarity of I am Santa Claus, in reality, lies not so much in the fact that it is not a different product from the usual Christmas fairy tale, but it is mostly a film that will be remembered as the last interpretation of a beloved and acclaimed actor. , whose death we still mourn today: the great Gigi Proietti.

Presented at the Rome Film Festival 2021, I am Santa Claus is a comedy written and directed by Edoardo Falcone, produced by Lucky Red in collaboration with Rai Cinema, screened in cinemas from 3 November 2021 and landed on the platform Amazon Prime Video streaming from last December 6th. The film sees as protagonists the timeless Gigi Proietti flanked by Marco Giallini, who together undoubtedly form a comic duo with Roman verve that surely, if fate had allowed it, could have given as many emotions if placed side by side again.

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A Christmas fairy tale with current elements

I am Santa Claus is presented through a flashback in which we see a young Ettore (Marco Giallini) writing a resentful letter to Santa Claus, with the right reason for not having never even got a gift for Christmas. Growing up, Ettore continues to feel resentment, but this time for his life, made up of robberies and criminal activities, which make him abandon his partner Laura (Barbara Ronchi) and little Alice, his daughter, due to his detention in the house. district of the Regina Coeli.

Once released from prison, Ettore resumes his life as a criminal until he meets a very kind and apparently normal elderly gentleman, Nicola Natalizi (Gigi Proietti) who hosts him in his house believing in his good intentions , which obviously were not good. The elder, however, will reveal his true identity to our protagonist, namely that of being Santa Claus and will instruct Hector to be able to replace him during his Christmas night raids, albeit with many problems and difficulties.

Ettore, by accepting this role, will help Santa Claus in his classic task, while at the same time trying to redeem himself and regain the trust of his ex-partner and daughter again, but bad habits die hard, so he will face some problems and some "demons" of his tormented past, but this time in other guises.

In order not to spoil you, let's not add anything else to the plot of this particular film, but it is enough to know that in addition to the classic American Christmas atmosphere of the 80s, I am Santa Claus are added current themes, which can be the bad education by lewd parents who lead their children on the wrong path of delinquency and other issues which we will explain shortly.

Not the classic Christmas movie

There is not much to say about the script, I am Santa Claus is well written and well structured both as a story and rhythmically speaking: the sequences advance fast and they are clear and concise. All the elements of a classic Christmas film are exploited: music, atmospheres, scenographies and places are perfectly in line with what can be stereotyped elements from Christmas films, from warm lights, to Christmas soundtracks that can sometimes be heard echoing like background to the most dramatic scenes.

All this is in contrast with the particularity of the film, in fact, to the purely Christmas and almost muffled atmosphere of I am Santa Claus we can see alternating moments in which action scenes and chases worthy of the classic of the most classic prevail Italian crime films, so to speak, those of the 90s where we could find characters of the caliber of Raoul Bova or Ricky Memphis.

What, however, strikes the most, are the "Roman-style" curtains that are created between the two protagonists: Giallini and Proietti together give fun, light moments and that snatch a smile from even the most gruff spectator . This is one of the strong points of I am Santa Claus: the comedy that Giallini and Proietti have given us together, rarely can we find it in other products of this kind. In short, a full-fledged Christmas comedy that did not miss out on dramatic and dynamic moments, with lights, colors, Christmas elves and all the typical elements of a perfect film for this time of year.

Santa Claus has super powers

Undoubtedly, I am Santa Claus is a product born in this era and despite the classic "problems" of being Santa Claus are faced, as they can be descending from the chimney, delivering gifts on a sled and reading the letters of children from all over the world, the Santa Claus that is presented to us is a bit anomalous, precisely as a consequence of the historical period in which we live and in which it was produced the film.

We have, in fact, an elderly but modern Santa Claus, with an email address, a hyper-fast and technological sled without the classic reindeer, who moved from Lapland to a chaotic Rome that despite "the traffic, the garbage and public transport ”, all in all he likes it. And we really liked this representation of the elderly and overweight Father Christmas.

Also gifted with super powers, such as invisibility, the ability to walk through walls, and the transformation into the classic Santa Claus look when wearing the iconic costume, the character depicted in I Am Santa Claus also wants lead to important and profound reflections: current issues are addressed such as the miseducation of children by unsuitable parents, who make sure that their offspring choose the path of delinquency and that they carry a sad and strong resentment towards life . Or the theme of redemption is also analyzed, in this case of the protagonist Ettore who, thanks to Santa Claus and his responsibility, tries to redeem himself and recover the relationship with his family, as well as foiling a robbery, albeit in an unconventional way. | will always be overshadowed by the moving interpretation of Gigi Proietti. In fact, this film is the last in which we can see the beloved actor acting. For the duration of the film it is inevitable not to think about the fact that we will never see him again and the more the film goes on, especially in the heartwarming and touching scenes, the more this strange feeling of emptiness becomes devastating, especially if you were a big fan of what he was. an artist at 360 degrees.

The Christmas air, already melancholy in itself, is strongly accentuated every time the thought is turned to the fact that this one of I am Santa Claus was the last interpretation of Proietti and this feeling of lack makes to strongly affection the viewer to the film, which will undoubtedly be remembered for this reason rather than as yet another Christmas film. Furthermore, we like to think that the ending of the film, which obviously we will not reveal to you, is really the epilogue in the life of an actor who, at least in our memories, will remain eternal forever.

Conclusions

In short, dear readers, if you want to spend about an hour and a half lightly and in full Christmas spirit, we strongly recommend the vision of I am Santa Claus, especially if you want to spend it in the company of one of the actors we loved most and who will remain forever in our hearts.

We remind you that you can retrieve I am Santa Claus on Amazon Prime Video from December 6th and, if you have not already done so, you can subscribe to not miss all the news of this month.