Olive, the Other Reindeer

Rating:
Summary: Fantastic!!
Review: My son is 2 and a half and this is one of his favorite DVD's. He watched this SO MANY times before Christmas and he stills asks to watch it. He absolutely loves it!! I enjoy watching it myself. Drew Barrymore makes the character of Olive so very cute and fun to watch many times over. This DVD is highly recommended.

Rating:
Summary: Toddler Mom loves Olive!
Review: My two year old is in love with Olive, and I can only give a huge THANK YOU to the team who put this little ditty together. From catchy songs to hidden jokes, its a movie parents can enjoy right along with the kids, even after 37 or so viewings! I didn't find any of the content inappropriate for my little guy, despite another reviewer's opinion, it's all in fun for gosh sakes! Lovers of the book will find a different story here, but I don't think that diminishes this video one bit.

Rating:
Summary: New Christmas Classic
Review: My wife and I watched the Olive when it first came out on Fox several years ago and bought the video last Christmas.(I don't own the DVD yet, but will buy it before next Christmas. So, my review is really about the show itself and not necessarily the DVD). This is one of the few Christmas shows that have come out in the past few years that I see myself watching years from now. It truly works well on many levels. My kids love it for the story and the animation, my wife and I are still "getting" cultural references and jokes that we missed on earlier viewings (which flew right over my Children's heads) I strongly disagree with the reviewer that critisized this show as being "anti-Christian propoganda." As a Christian, I see nothing objectionable in it. While it is a secular Christmas show, it is no more offensive than other secular Christmas shows that focus on Santa, etc., instead of the birth of Christ. I found the overall "message" of Olive to be a positive one. I would strongly recommend this show to anyone.

Rating:
Summary: Good for adults and teens
Review: Olive is a cute and funny video about a little dog that helps to save Christmas. Adults and teens will have the most fun and understand the references (as some reviewers pointed out, there are some unfortunate off-color references that (in my opinion) make it inappropriate for youngsters).

For those offended by secular Christmas movies, this is not the video for you. However, this movie is not anti-Christian, either.

As with any video, always pre-screen and weed out those movies that you feel are inappropriate for your children.

Rating:
Summary: Olive saves Christmas
Review: Olive is a female brown and white mix, housebroken and owned by Tim. The voice for Olive is Drew Barrymore, also one of the Executive Producers along with Matt Groening (The Simpsons). Olive, The Other Reindeer is adapted from the book of the same name.

Anyone familiar with The Simpsons will enjoy the humor in Olive, The Other Reindeer, as well as the animation and witty dialogue that passes quickly in this forty-five minute movie. Either four or five times the characters break into song and dance that flows along with the story line. The neighborhood mailman is the only one who does not want Christmas to happen. He breaks into a solo song that adds its own animation portraying the heartache a Mailman goes through for several weeks each year. This is due to strain on his shoulders from the heavy bags carrying catalogs, cards and gifts.

The voice for the Mailman is that of Dan Castellaneta (Homer on The Simpsons), he is a short man with black hair and moustache that dons many disguises along this journey that takes Olive to the North Pole. One of the funniest scenes is in the beginning when Olive helps an animal family snag a Christmas tree. The problem is that the trees are too big for them, but Olive returns with a small green pine tree that is really the air freshener kind you hang on your car mirror. This gag went unnoticed by my son, but adults sure would get a kick out of this scene.

Olive is not your typical dog that barks or digs holes, instead she has a pet flea that cannot hear very well and mistakes an announcement over the radio that sets the journey for Olive, The Other Reindeer. While moving the dial around on the pink radio Olive is wrapping the slippers she is giving her owner Tim for Christmas. Tim is upset because Santa just cancelled Christmas because the reindeer Blitzen has broken a leg and Santa cannot fly with only seven reindeer.

The first time I viewed Olive, The Other Reindeer it certainly did sound like Santa stated he would have to get Olive, The Other Reindeer, but he was really saying "All the other reindeer". While this slip up seemed easy to make, Fido (the pet flea) made a few more blunders when Tim was calling into the pet house to Olive. Fido made it seem that the apology Tim was giving to Olive was the other way around and this angered Olive so much that she decided it was up to her, Olive, The Other Reindeer to make sure Christmas would come.

The character of the Mailman is a bit evil and treats the animals badly, so this might be hard to watch for smaller children. In Olive, The Other Reindeer the roles are reversed and instead of the Mailman being scared of the dangerous attack dog, it is the Mailman we need to keep an eye on. It turns out that all the letters Santa has received were really the work of the Mailman, each one telling Santa how much they hated Christmas. While the journey to get to the North Pole is going on we also see news media camped on the hill at the North Pole while Santa and the reindeer discuss what to do.

This is certainly a holiday film worth purchasing for the family or grandkids to watch the days and nights leading up to Christmas. The animation was reminiscent of The Simpsons, with the same brand of humor mixed in. Edward Asner is the voice of Santa Clause. The color is vibrant through out the movie with a fast pace of silliness thrown in.

Rating:
Summary: Drew Barrymore almost ruins this otherwise great movie
Review: Olive The Other Reindeer is a very cute movie with one big problem....Drew Barrymore. When it comes to envisioning Olive's voice, they should have gotten someone who can do a voice that is neither male nor female. It needed to be a mix of the two, because it's a cartoon dog! With a female or male voice, it seems too human, and that's where this movie goes wrong. Some people have a good voice for animated characters, Drew Barrymore does not. I know I'm going on and on about Barrymore, but she just does not work in this role at all, and I was kind of disappointed, because the movie could have been so much better. Olive has a great story, and the rest of the casting is perfect. The movie is mainly for kids, but I enjoyed it just the same. The animation is really cool, and very unique. Overall, it's a fairly good movie that could have been a great movie if not for Barrymore.

Rating:
Summary: My New Favorite Christmas Tale (Tail)
Review: Somehow I stumbled across "Olive, The Other Reindeer" when it was shown on Fox and got instantly sucked in. The 2D computer animation was amazing. It had such a strange and interesting appearance compared to either traditional 2D or "Toy Story" type 3D and was the perfect medium for bringing an originally illustrated story to life. Unlike the picky people here who resent Drew Barrymore voicing Olive I didn't know who pretty much any of the actors were when I first saw this movie and enjoyed their work an awful lot. Yes it got a little rough at times in that you don't expect to see reindeer roughing anyone up in a standard Christmas story but I felt it was not objectionable. And yes Olive has a really tough time getting past all the difficult and cynical people she comes across, but guess what people? That's just like life! Olive perseveres and with the help of her trusted friend succeeds. A sweet Christmas story and a good lesson all wrapped up into one.

Rating:
Summary: My New Favorite Christmas Tale (Tail)
Review: Somehow I stumbled across "Olive, The Other Reindeer" when it was shown on Fox and got instantly sucked in. The 2D computer animation was amazing. It had such a strange and interesting appearance compared to either traditional 2D or "Toy Story" type 3D and was the perfect medium for bringing an originally illustrated story to life. Unlike the picky people here who resent Drew Barrymore voicing Olive I didn't know who pretty much any of the actors were when I first saw this movie and enjoyed their work an awful lot. Yes it got a little rough at times in that you don't expect to see reindeer roughing anyone up in a standard Christmas story but I felt it was not objectionable. And yes Olive has a really tough time getting past all the difficult and cynical people she comes across, but guess what people? That's just like life! Olive perseveres and with the help of her trusted friend succeeds. A sweet Christmas story and a good lesson all wrapped up into one.

Rating:
Summary: How the Postman Stopped Olive
Review: The animation looks nothing like The Simpsons, which shows Matt Groening's versatility in the animation business. The story is warm and sentimental (like the specials Rudolph and Frosty) with a touch of cynicism. There seems to be a debate here whether or not Drew Barrymore was an appropriate choice as Olive. I'll just say I think she is and we'll leave it at that. However, Dan Castellaneta (aka Homer Simpson) steals the show as the disgruntled Postman ("Bah, bug, and hum!"). Like the Grinch and Scrooge (classic Christmas crabs), he's a mean one- and determined to ruin Christmas and Olive's chances as the "other reindeer"! Also, Michael Stipe (REM) plays Schnitzel in the bar scene. Kudos to Matt Groening and merry Christmas to all!

Rating:
Summary: A classic
Review: The best childrens christmas video I 've seen. We-my son is 5 and a half-watch it throughout the year because it is one I never get tired of and laugh every time. It is not just comedy either but very sweet and filled with feeling. Same quality as the British Wallace and Gromit videos. A gem!