Not to be confused with the animated TV special, or the nasty horror with a killer snowman, I had seen this film once or twice before, I certainly remember it being cheesy, but I wanted to watch at least one more time, to get a decent opinion, directed by Troy Miller (Dumb and Dumberer: When Harry Met Lloyd). Basically Jack Frost (Michael Keaton) is the lead singer of rock band "The Jack Frost Band", based in Medford, Colorado, they make their living covering songs, and some of their own, and hope to sign a record deal. But Jack's commitments to his music stop him spending time with his family, wife Gabby (Kelly Preston) and son Charlie (Joseph Cross). Jack and Charlie spend some quality time together, they build a snowman together, then as Charlie settles into bed, Jack gives his son his harmonica, telling him its magic, and he'll be able to hear it wherever he is. Jack misses a hockey game Charlie is playing in, that he promised to attend, in favour of recording a song, so he promises to take his family on a Christmas trip to the mountains. But then Jack is called to a gig that could make or break his career, on his way however he realises his mistake, so he borrows a car from band member and best friend Mac MacArthur (Mark Addy) to get home. Unfortunately, while driving, Jack is caught in a bad storm, he cannot see through the snow, and his windscreen wipers are faulty, as a result, he crashes the car and killed instantly. One year later, Charlie is depressed about his father's death, one night he builds a snowman, like the one he and his father did before, and he plays Jack's harmonica as he settles down to sleep. The harmonica turns out to be a magic after all, it sends a gust of snow swirling around the snowman, it resurrects Jack, his spirit awakens in the snowman. Jack is thrilled to be alive, he attempts to greet Charlie, but he ends up terrifying his son, realising he is a snowman he walks around and contemplates his fate. The next morning, Charlie confronts the snowman with a hairdryer, threatening to melt him, Jack wakes again, scares him and makes him run away. Charlie ends up running into a snowball fight battlefield, but Jack pelts local bully Rory Buck (Taylor Handley) and his friends with snowballs, he and Charlie manage to escape on a sled, while Rory and the others pursue them. Eventually they lose their pursuers, Charlie realises the living snowman is indeed his father, after he calls him "Charlie boy", they embrace with a hug, they both realise that it was the harmonica that brought him back. Jack and Charlie reconnect, he teaches him the values he never got to teach him when he was alive, including hockey lessons, Jack convinces his son to rejoin the hockey team. Gabby is concerned about Charlie's behaviour recently, especially seeing him interacting with the snowman, so Mac, who continues to be a friend, becomes a father figure of sorts to see what's going on. Winter is almost over, Jack begins melting, but is determined to watch Charlie's return to hockey, afterwards Charlie decides to take his father to the mountains, where it is colder, Charlie tries to convince his mother to help, but does not believe him, assuming he is just grieving. Charlie then comes across Rory Buck, who insults the snowman, but Jack speaks and reveals to be alive, Rory sympathises with Charlie when he talks about not having a father, he helps to sneak Jack onto a truck heading to the mountains. Reaching the mountains, Jack and Charlie arrive at an isolated cabin, the one that they were to stay in before he died, Jack calls Gabby, so she can come and pick Charlie up, Gabby is shocked to hear his voice and obliges. Jack tells a disheartened Charlie that he must leave, Gabby arrives as Jack begins to dissipate, revealing Jack as he appeared in life, in ethereal form, he gives both his wife and son a message, telling Charlie he will always be in his heart, Jack bids farewell and returns to the afterlife. In the end, Charlie has returned to playing hockey with his friends, which includes Rory, with Gabby and Mac watching, and the final shot sees snowmen in the front yards of every house on the street. Also starring Henry Rollins as Sid Gronic, Bean's Andrew Lawrence as Tuck Gronic, American Pie's Eli Marienthal as Spencer and Will Rothhaar as Dennis. Former Batman star Keaton is okay both in human and snow form (it was originally going to be George Clooney, who ironically dropped out and went on to do Batman and Robin), Preston only gets a little to do, at least Cross is reasonable as the grieving son, and Addy adds a little comic relief. The story can easily be described in a few words, "Ghost with a snowman", that is essentially what it is, a man dies and comes back as a snowman to get a second chance at being a father, there are fun sequences, including the snowball battle and toboggan chase, but there is a lot of sentimentality that makes you feel icky, it is a big leap of imagination, a mushy fantasy drama. Adequate!

Jack Frost (1998): Dir: Troy Miller / Cast: Michael Keaton, Joseph Cross, Kelly Preston, Mark Addy, Henry Rollins: Depressing family film with a character given the title name. What kind of nit-pick bullshit is that? Could they not give him a name of more normal presentation? It just sounds like cruel parenting. The concept fails because the magic harmonica is never explained and just sounds like a dumb plot device. Instead it gets reduced to formula that becomes as much fun as a snow covered rock to the head. Michael Keaton plays Jack Frost, a musician who spends less time with his family. A nasty storm sends his car off the road and he is pronounced dead. His son plays the magic harmonica and the result is a talking snowman. We know that he will attempt to conceal him from his mother, and he will eventually melt giving an ending of all the quality of yellow snow. Director Troy Miller has fun with the visuals but that is pretty much all the film has going for it. Keaton is a likable comic actor but this is far beneath his talent. In flat supporting roles are Joseph Cross as his son. Kelly Preston is cardboard as his wife. Mark Addy has the thankless role as best friend who sticks around after the accident. One could say that he stuck around too long if he had any hint that this sh*t storm would be good. The snowman doesn't melt nearly as fast as the screenplay. Score: 2 / 10

Truly bizarre WTF? plot aside, "Jack Frost" has a good cast willing to endure it for the sake of a family friendly experience for the right kind of audience who can look past the spirit of a musician/father entering the snowman outside in the yard of his wife and son. You get Michael Keaton doing voice work for the Frosty the Snowman look-a-like (there's even a funny moment where his son comes across the Frosty Christmas special on the tube much to Keaton's chagrin), but at least he had a chance to get in a good forty minutes work in his own skin as a dad struggling to get his Jack Frost Band (his name is actually, really Jack Frost!) a music deal after a lot of neglect to his boy. His son and wife have tolerated his missing the big goal in the little league hockey game and the snowball fights with the neighborhood bullies, so in the form of Frosty, Jack tries to make up for lost time. What does come out of the weird plot is the "dad gets a second chance to be there for his son in a winter bonding missed while in human form" and the leads do what they can to make it work. The snowball fight with the bullies as Jack comes to his son's aid, and the subsequent sledding escape from those snowboarding pricks could be perceived as highlights if they weren't so strange (I had a hard time suspending disbelief as Jack the Snowman uses his stick arms and muffin hands to hurl snowballs at an accelerating rate, and "skinnied" after squeezing between two close trees (and snowboarding when the sled splits in two for that matter)). When Jack and his son get away for one last adventure and Kelly Preston (as the mom) hears her husband's voice across the phone when he calls from their cabin, it is a really emotional moment that is actually poignant…give it to the cast to really take their parts seriously even though the plot is so ridiculously absurd. One scene has Jack the Snowman melting while watching his son playing hockey that, again, is kind of surreal but makes sense considering how the father was often absent when his boy wanted him there so badly. I think for many it will take a hell of a lot to shake the premise, but maybe if you can, then "Jack Frost" might just be an agreeable bit of whimsy that seems best watched during the Holidays.

Jack Frost (1998) *** (out of 4) Musician Jack Frost (Michael Keaton) has neglected his kid Charlie (Joseph Cross) for years and one day before Christmas he's killed in a car wreck. Flash forward a year when Charlie builds a snowman who is magically taken over by the spirit of his father and two begin to spend some quality time together. You can read just about any review out there for this film and words such as disgusting, creepy, ugly, rude and traumatizing are going to be used. I must admit that there are times when I watch movies and I just can't see what people see in them and there are times when I view a movie where I can't see why people hate them so much. Look, I agree that this kids film has a rather ugly subject in regards to a kid losing his father but for the life of me I can't figure out why there's so much hatred thrown at this film. I thought the film was very sweet, featured some good performances and I think its heart is in the right place. I really don't understand why some are taking such a strong moral clause with this film and throwing a judgment on it as to what damage it might do to kids. Really? Countless Disney films have scared young children yet no one says a word about them. E.T. scared me to death as a child but no one bashes that film. Is JACK FROST in their level? Not even close but no matter the quality I don't see the need for the moral police. Again, I thought the film was innocent enough and had a good heart. I thought Keaton did a very good job early in the film when we actually see him and I thought his vocal work as the snowman was terrific. I found him to be fun to watch and I thought the relationship between him and the son was quite good. Is JACK FROST the next IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE? Of course not but I don't see the need for calling this movie child abuse.