The almost wonderful time of the year.

Red One, aka Saint Nicholas, aka Nick (J.K. Simmons) enjoys making a few sneaky public appearances pretending to be just another department store Santa Claus, watched over by his trusted bodyguard Callum Drift (Dwayne Johnson). While Nick is eternally the optimist believing in the best people can be, Drift can’t see it anymore, especially in callous adults. One such person who’d agree with Drift is Jack O’Malley (Chris Evans), a rogue who makes a living (and funds his gambling habit) finding anyone for the right price. Unfortunately for O’Malley, his most recent job puts him on Drift’s naughty list when Kris Kringle is kidnapped… and no one knows exactly by whom. With time ticking down to Christmas Eve, the unlikely team-up of Drift and O’Malley will encounter government operatives (Lucy Liu), Icelandic witches (Kiernan Shipka), and an exiled Krampus (Kristofer Hivju) along with other mythical creatures, all while trying to — yeah, we’re going to say it — save Christmas.

Unless you’re eagerly anticipating the 48 announced “original” features on The Hallmark Channel for 2024, fresh holiday films may not be high on your cinematic wish list. Having watched Die Hard a thousand times already, newer ideas like Michael Dougherty’s Krampus, Ryan Reynolds’s Spirited, or last year’s Violent Night seem few and far between. Terrifier 3 set records this year as a certified Christmas slasher (take that, Black Christmas!) and the most successful unrated movie ever in theaters. Once the trailers for Red One first appeared, it was hard to fathom what Jumanji-series director Jake Kasdan was going for: serious, funny, buddy comedy, adventure, or what? Looking bombastic, overproduced, and starring The Rock playing himself with a different name again, it looks as padded as the first two acts of Jim Carrey’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas. The studio has been pushing previews to combat a lackluster response, but can it conjure up enough holiday spirit to find an audience?

The worst thing about Red One may be its cheesy callsign title, because there are some interesting story ideas going on here, so cue up your favorite version of “Kidnap the Sandy Claws!” Regarding the folklore behind many Christmas traditions, knowledge of the title character’s origins and other such trappings informs some clever Easter eggs, as long as one remembers this movie exists purely for entertainment’s sake. The production team understood the assignment, especially where it exceeds the script; there’s no skimping on the worldbuilding, bigger than it needed to be but in a wondrous way. Simmons as Nick is underutilized while lending an interesting character take, but Hivju’s Krampus desperately needs his own movie, being a constant highlight whenever he appears. If you’re not catching on, Red One is darker than advertised and somewhat monstrous, so it might be a good idea to leave the littlest ones at home — parental guidance is suggested.

Red One falls thankfully short of deliberate IP-stuffed Free Guy territory, but there’s an awful lot of superhero-ish tech involved in this Santa’s work, specifically Wakandan stealth technology and a Pym-particle gift delivery system; it’s a wonder the sleigh didn’t say “Stark Industries.” Let’s also give a shout-out to Disney’s “Prep & Landing” for more than a little cinematic inspiration. When delivering gifts to children globally, any base of operations needs room to staff so large an operation, straining several plot threads to the breaking point. Not everyone may pay attention to who goes missing even after they all mysteriously reappear — they didn’t think we’d notice… but we did. Fortunately, many of these nitpicks are obscured by frequent gag-filled action sequences and a positive message on par with Ebenezer Scrooge’s lament: “Why show me this, if I am past all hope?” Johnson and Evans have just enough chemistry to make everything work, but since they’re not supposed to like one another, it’s tolerable enough.

Half of the film plants its foot in the old tradition of telling horror-filled holiday tales, what most folks associate with All Hallow’s Eve instead of a one-off from Charles Dickens. Perhaps more ambitious than it will be credited for, the film takes big swings and only asks audiences to enjoy the ride, happily imperfect and overstuffed. If it doesn’t win the weekend and show box office legs, good news: it’s being released early enough to stream by December 25th, and that probably isn’t by accident. Clever marketers!

Red One is rated PG-13 for action, some violence, language, and wanting a rematch.

Three skull recommendation out of four