Just what I expected

Best movie ever!

Not sure how, but this is easily one of the best movies all summer. Multiple levels of funny, never takes itself seriously, super colorful, and creative.

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

Based on an 1897 editorial in The New York Sun, eight-year-old Virginia O'Hanlon believes in Santa Claus but it seems few others do. Her little brother suggests the skinny vagrant in the dirty Santa suit as the real Santa Claus. Her friends don't believe. She can't find any definitive answer in any book. Her father suggests writing to the newspaper. The editor is dismissive at first but eventually, with the vagrant Santa's urging, writes the iconic editorial.The animation is second tier even for a TV special. It's a little dirty and grim. The story is really simple. The editorial is where the heart is and a larger portion of it has to be read. Like Linus reciting the biblical passage, the words have great power. This is a lesser level Christmas special but it's very sincere in its sentiment.

"Yes, Virginia" is an American short film from over 5 years ago, for the holidays 2009, that deals with the (non-)existence of Santa Claus. A bitchy (slightly older) girl tells Virginia, our title character, that Santa Claus is fiction. All her attempts to gain trust in Santa again fail as her parents are fairly helpless too, so she decides to write a letter to a newspaper and ask for a definite answer. Unlucky for her, the newspaper editor is a bit of a Grinch or is he really? This was a solid little film. I liked pretty much all aspects about it, but I wish the animation could have been a bit better, so this film may have delivered more on the emotional side. I am not too sure if I liked the looks of the main character. In terms of voice acting, there is nothing wrong with this movie here. Some fairly famous names in the cast and the lead actress also has some decent experience already despite her age. Even if this 22-minute film did not win an Emmy like a previous version of the story did, it is still a pretty good watch for the holidays. Recommended and especially impressive since the director and writers all have little to no experience in terms of filmmaking. I wish them they can rekindle their careers again.

This is a beautiful, heartwarming story that is great for the whole family. The animation is very well done and the Believe Meter helps even young kids understand what is happening throughout the story. I understand they used children to voice all of the kids roles and the wonder and delight, as well as the disappointments, clearly came through the roles. The characters are charming and endearing and all of the children who I've seen watch it have loved it. It's a great way to start off the holiday season and we plan on making it a family tradition to help us kick off our holiday cheer. I hope it will remain a holiday tradition for many years to come.

This short (only a 1/2 hour with commercials) telling of the now-well-known letter to the editor of the New York Sun written by 8 yr old Virginia is a well-told and touching special. The animation is great, it is almost claymation-like (similar to a Tim Burton movie). The characters are voiced by entertaining actors, including Neil Patrick Harris and Alfred Molina, as well as Jennifer Love Hewitt and Mike Buscemi (Steve Buscemi's brother). The writing is spectacular (newcomer Chris Plehal delivers a wonderful holiday tale). This was produced and supported by Macy's, but other than a very subtle "RH Macy's" sign in the background of a few scenes, it does not feel forced nor does it scream "product placement." Everyone should add this to their yearly Christmas traditions!