What Is It?
Dear Santa is a Made for TV movie produced for Lifetime network in 2011. It stars Amy Acker of Dollhouse fame and David Haydn-Jones of nothing fame. The basic story is a typical schmaltzy Christmas Lifetime thing about a kid’s letter to Santa asking for a new wife for her widower father being read by this klutzy yet relatable fashion school dropout who somehow lives in this great apartment despite never seeming to go to work and maybe they explain this but cards on the table I wasn’t paying a whole bunch of attention. I think her parents were supporting her. As a subplot this guy that Crystal (that’s the heroine) falls in love with runs this soup kitchen that’s about to go under because, like a moron, he hasn’t secured any funding for it and somehow he’s fallen behind on the rent by $10,000. Crystal adopts the “become the child’s favorite” style of flirting, which I’m sure has never worked ever. Will they find love? Will the dad decide that his current bitchy girlfriend is wrong for him? Will the shelter say open? Who knows?
What Can Be Salvaged?
There’s a reason that the love story of klutzy brunette girl falling for down to earth widower is so often used, and that’s because it’s fundamentally compelling. Everyone loves a good story of redemption and everything from Pulp Fiction to Knocked Up is based on it. Also, the sub-plot of a failing soup kitchen is pretty interesting and under-served in the narrative, especially it its depiction of homeless people. Also under-served? Most of the secondary characters including the somewhat offensive gay cook and especially the bitchy, somewhat bro-zoned female friend that helped Accounting Illiterate Dad (or AID) through his wife’s death.
What Could It Be Like?
First and foremost, it would be a movie about running a soup kitchen. The under thought love story simply isn’t enough to structure an entire film under the best circumstances, so the operation of a soup kitchen could provide a structural backbone to build a film around. The second half of Chungking Express, for example, is a love story but it’s set around the operation of a midnight snack stand. It provides the opportunity to indulge in cute and funny tangents without getting unhinged from the film. The homeless people would be more realistic, sort of like in The Lovers on the Bridge.
Second, I would get rid of the silly “lady reads letter to Santa and decides to marry guy” thing, although it’s almost certainly what got this movie made. Instead, I’d probably change Crystal to an irresponsible party girl who gets sentenced to community service for public drunkenness. Instantly, the script is rid of the huge amounts of creepiness inherent in its premise (the script tries its hardest to make Crystal seem not creepy, but it doesn’t work). Plus, it gives AID’s female friend a reason to be suspicious of Crystal.
Recast It?
There’s really no reason to, the problems with the movie boil down to the writing.
Who Would Direct It?
Well, I’d say Wong Kar Wai, but I’m not sure how great he’d be at portraying homeless people. His style has been said to be “beautiful people looking sad.” I honestly don’t think he has the inclination to do a movie about homelessness. So, I’d try somebody who is good either at elevating soapy material like Susanne Bier or someone who has demonstrated proficiency at disadvantaged romance like Leos Carax.
What Would It Be Like?
After The Wedding meets The Lovers on The Bridge
Peter Guilherme 