Through some links at Cartoon Brew, I discovered the name K. Gordon Murray who was known for some of the schlockiest films of the '60s and early '70s. Santa's Magic Kingdom was the first of these I found on YouTube. It basically takes place in Santa's Village in the summer in either the Midwestern or southern California U.S. since it was filmed in those places. There's also Puss in Boots, the Easter Bunny, Stinky the Skunk (familiar to Murray enthusiasts), the Ferocious Wolf (really a softie), and "the greatest magician of all" Merlin. It seems an ogre (a wooden dinosaur in one scene) is threatening to make the children bad "like me" so Merlin tries to put a stop to that while everyone watches. Then we hear a sappy song from the princess about "whistlin" as this painfully amateurish short mercifully ends. The obvious bad dubbing of the voices do not match the faces here at all and every scene screams "one-take". Makes me wish "Mystery Science Theater 3000" was still on the air because this one definitely calls for riffing by Joel/Mike and the 'bots. Merlin, especially, deserves all the talking back with his attitude! Avoid at all costs.

My words cannot do this movie justice. Santa's Magic Kingdom (or "Santaland," as its true fans call it) stands alone as a cinematic triumph, needing neither a Hollywood budget nor smooth editing to achieve immortality.You may recall a Simpsons episode, where Principal Skinner plays a low-budget Christmas film for students titled "The Christmas that Almost Wasn't, but Then Was." That video, without question, was inserted to pay homage to this K. Gordan Murray masterpiece.As with that film short, "Santaland" introduces us to several characters that you might not typically associate with Christmas. Mr. Ferocious Wolf, the Easter Bunny, Puss'n Boots, Cinderella, and Merlin (the greatest magician of them all!) all make appearances. The wonders of Merlin's dazzling magical capabilities are put on display from the get-go, when he pulls a magic handkerchief out of his sleeve and takes us on an enchanting tour of the village through the Fifth Dimension.Like any film worth its salt, a compelling conflict grips the viewer shortly after the magical tour. A very frightening ogre approaches the village, threatening to destroy Santa and ALL of his many villages. This ogre expresses his anger with Mister Santa "For making children good, when I want them to be BAD, like ME!" Thankfully for us, Puss'n Boots takes matters into his own hands and gathers not only Santa's helpers and friends, but all of the children over all of the world, forging an army to engage the ogre in bloody battle. Santa is touched that the world's children are prepared to die to preserve one of his many villages, but instead enlists the services of Merlin (the greatest magician of them all!) to dispense of the wooden antagonist.A very cocky Merlin (the greatest magician of them all!) accepts his mission, as he has "just the medicine that ogre needs." The nature of this medicine is unclear (presumably a liquid or powder) but its effectiveness is quite apparent. Soon after Merlin (the greatest magician of them all!) leaves to engage the monster, we can hear the screams of "No Merlin, don't throw that at me! NOOO!!" Unscathed and victorious, Merlin (the greatest etc.) struts back into the village to the cheers and jubilation of Santa and his helpers. You can imagine how his night went… let's just say he didn't need to open a bottle of Love Potion #9.In closing, we are serenaded by Cinderella to the tune of "Give a Little Whistle," her voice angelic. Viewer beware, this infectious little tune is likely to get stuck in your head, so listen with caution.What else can be said, Santaland has it all! Whether you're looking for inert villains made of wood, a self-professed "greatest magician of them all" whose magic is limited to bizarre tours of Santaland, creepy non-Christmas-related characters in crappy costumes, or even a mall Santa who looks like he's been dead for 30 years, this film has it! The only way to top this movie would be to follow it up with a giant slice of cyanide cake.http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1645509695606665563 - Santaland meets We are the World - a musical tribute.

I watched this late one night after seeing it listed in the "Something Weird" section of On Demand. This was supposed to be a kid's Christmas short. It was just plain BIZARRE. It was a combination of costumed characters I remember from my childhood, low budget horror soundtrack, and Blair Witch camera work. I LMAO and got creep-ed out all at the same time. What more could you ask for? If you grew up thinking Walt Disney was the best thing going, leave this one alone. If, like myself, you think John Waters is a film genius you MUST see this. I swear there were clips of this in "A Dirty Shame". I'm still not quite sure why the Easter Bunny lives in Santa's Kingdom..

This film is currently (Dec. 2005) airing on ComCast On Demand under the Something Weird section. (Good ol' Something Weird Video.) Apparently it was made to be shown at various Santa's Villages and Santa-themed children's parks. (You'll notice that Santa says things like 'This is what you might see at one of my many villages', suggesting that it was meant to shown without any specific park being mentioned.) Basically, its meant as an introduction/commercial for such establishments.The production value is laughable, coming off as a home-movie that had sound dubbed in later. Many bizarre creatures (Easter Bunnies, an ugly Cinderella (with a sickly green face thanks to faded film color), and a Merlin the Magician make appearances. The 'plot' has the creatures and their Santa fighting off an Ogre, who is never actually seen. (Because the people that made this didn't have the extra 5 bucks to make an Ogre costume heh.) Totally ridiculous, totally cheeseball, and lots of fun, especially since not many 'Santa's Workshops/Villages' seem to exist anymore.