24 October · 62 days to ChristmasThe advent calendar opens 1 December →

An unfinished paper sledge and open red toolbox sit on a snowy driveway. A blank-screen laptop rests on the porch step beneath a window glowing with Christmas tree lights.

Not really, no · 2022

I Believe in Santa

Name: I Believe in Santa
Released: 2022
Duration: 90 min
Cast: Christina Moore, John Ducey, Violet McGraw

59/100Festive FactorWhy it scores 59 ↓

UK certificate 1290 min
Comedy · Romance

A festive romcom built on one decent idea: a sceptic falls for a grown man who sincerely believes in Santa…

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Explore this film 9 sections

The CineClaus Christmas score

Festive Factor

Christmas in good measure.

Two paper elves inspect a snowy house model with an unfinished red-runner sledge and toolbox. A tiny blank laptop sits on the porch, and a Christmas tree lights the front window. — A little magic in the making.

Five ingredients make the Festive Factor.
Open an ingredient to find out more.

Christmas in the storyChristmas drives it, firmly.25/30

What we ask: Take Christmas out. Does the plot survive? Worth up to 30 of the 100 points.

A world dressed for ChristmasVisibly Christmas for about half.10/20

What we ask: How much of the running time is visibly Christmas? Worth up to 20 of the 100 points.

The little seasonal details4 of the 10 kinds of Christmas icon we count turn up on screen.6/15

What we ask: How many kinds of Christmas icon turn up on screen: trees, lights, snow, carols and the rest? Worth up to 15 of the 100 points.

A Christmas heartHow far the ending rests on goodwill, family and belief: substantially.15/20

What we ask: Does the ending depend on what Christmas means: goodwill, family, redemption, belief? Worth up to 20 of the 100 points.

A returning traditionNiche at Christmas (under 25,000).3/15

What we ask: Is it actually watched at Christmas in the UK? Worth up to 15 of the 100 points.

82/100

Cosiness Rating Rating

Warm in tone. Nothing bad can really happen. A happy ending.

How we score →

What do these scores mean?

Festive Factor measures how Christmassy a film is. Five ingredients add up to 100: story (30), setting (20), seasonal details (15), emotional heart (20) and returning tradition (15).

Cosiness is a separate score for warmth of tone, sense of safety, visual comfort, a reassuring ending and how easily you can settle into it.

How the Festive Factor works →

The story

About I Believe in Santa

A divorced mother who works for a click-hungry magazine meets a single lawyer on the Fourth of July and falls for him over the summer, only to discover as December arrives that he lives for the season and sincerely believes in Santa. As his round of decorating and daily festive outings, shared with her young daughter, starts to overwhelm her, their difference in belief threatens to end the romance before the big day.

The CineClaus verdict

A festive romcom built on one decent idea: a sceptic falls for a grown man who sincerely believes in Santa, and has to decide whether she can live with it. John Ducey wrote the script and plays the believer opposite Christina Moore, his wife off screen, and the ease between them is its strongest suit.

The rest is thin. The first act burns time in summer, and when December finally arrives it comes as a string of outings rather than a story. Reviews were rough, with reason. Fine as background while the tree goes up, and no more.

The family desk

Can the kids watch?

Our take: mild language is about the worst of it, with a US PG rating, though the grown-up romance will lose anyone under ten long before the end.

Content advice & accessibility

Our age guidance: Editorial, separate from the official 12 certificate, and never looser than it.

The people behind the film

Cast and crew

The faces in front of the camera, and the people who brought the story to life.

Main cast

In billing order

Smiling portrait of Christina Moore with long blonde hair, wearing a sequinned star-pattern top and a flag-print scarf.

Christina Mooreas Lisa

John Ducey

Head and shoulders photograph of a young woman with dark hair pinned up, wearing a strapless raspberry-red satin dress with a small bow, in front of a grey event backdrop.

Violet McGrawas Ella

Behind the camera

Directed by

Alex Ranarivelo

Original score

Jamie Christopherson

Writing & production credits

Writer: John Ducey

Keep the Christmas feeling

Music & soundtrack

That tune you recognised. That score you loved. Take a little of the film into the rest of your Christmas.

Behind the music. Jamie Christopherson composed the score.

About this music list

These are the songs and soundtrack we hold for the film, not a complete cue sheet, and they give no scene timings. Spotify and Apple Music links open the matched recordings; links marked Search open a search on that service.

sportskeeda.com ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Step into the story

Filming locations

The real places behind I Believe in Santa. Choose one to explore.

Find it on the mapLos Angeles

Map shows the selected place. Drag to explore; use + and − to zoom.

Filming location

Los Angeles

Part of the shoot took place in the Los Angeles area in September 2021, in warm sunshine, with the winter look of the story made on screen rather than found outdoors.

Open in OpenStreetMap ↗ (opens in a new tab)Scene source ↗ (Distractify filming locations, opens in a new tab)

A little more I Believe in Santa

Film facts &
behind the scenes

For the fans who stay after the credits.

On set

Shot in about three weeks, in September

The whole film was reportedly made in roughly three weeks in September 2021, which is why a Christmas story was filmed in the warm and the sunshine, with the winter look added around it.

Read the story

Source: distractify.com ↗ (opens in a new tab)

On set

The leads are married in real life

John Ducey, who wrote the film and plays the believer, shares the screen with Christina Moore, his wife off screen. She is also credited as one of the producers.

Read the story

Source: moviezine.se ↗ (opens in a new tab) · sportskeeda.com ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Movie magic

One of three festive films from one director in a year

Director Alex Ranarivelo released three Christmas titles in 2022: this one, A Christmas Mystery and A Hollywood Christmas, a rate that explains the quick, low-budget feel of the shoot.

Read the story

Source: moviezine.se ↗ (opens in a new tab)

And at a glance

The Christmas in it: Snow on screen. Runs from 1 December to 25 December. The story opens in summer and reaches December for its second half, where a snowball fight and a sledge race sit among the decorations and the tree.
Releases and certificates: 14 Dec 2022: On streaming. Arrived on Netflix on 14 December 2022 with no cinema run.