In space, everyone can hear your heart grow three sizes this holiday season.
For the past several years now, filmmakers/special effects artists the Chiodo Brothers (Stephen, Charles and Edward) have been talking about the potential return of the Killer Klowns from Outer Space, never giving up hope that their most beloved creation will someday come back to life with either a follow-up film or a television series. But we’re now going on 30+ years since the brothers brought the Killer Klowns into the world, and it’s been hard not to wonder if they’ve still got that magical touch they possessed all those years ago.
Coming along to answer that question in a roundabout way is Netflix‘s brand spankin’ new stop-motion animated special Alien Xmas, a 40-minute holiday treat directed by Stephen Chiodo and based on the same-titled children’s book that the brothers collaborated on a few years back. Do they still have that magical touch? That whimsy? That connection with the imaginative inner child that clearly lived within them back in the 1980s? You bet they do.
Bringing their children’s book to life, the Chiodos’ Alien Xmas centers on a race of aliens known as Klepts, a not-so-subtle reference to the fact that their primary characteristic is that they’ve got a serious case of kleptomania. The Klepts, once bright and colorful creatures, have been rendered shells of their former selves thanks to their obsession with stealing from others, and their next target is the Planet Earth. Their plan? Set up a device on the North Pole that’ll essentially destroy Earth’s gravity, sending all of Earth’s stuff into the skies so that it can be collected. It’s up to a pint-sized Klept named X to carry out the mission, but his time spent with the elves on the North Pole may forever change the little Klept’s outlook on life.
The Chiodo Brothers are no strangers to stop-motion animation, and in fact they’re not even strangers to the kind of holiday-specific stop-motion that’s found in Alien Xmas. It’s interesting to note that the Netflix special was produced by Elf director Jon Favreau, and it was in fact the Chiodos who handled the stop-motion sequences for his 2003 film. They proved with Elf that they’ve got a flair for channeling the spirit of those classic Rankin/Bass specials, and they take that homage one step further with Alien Xmas. It’s imbued with that Rankin/Bass spirit through and through, with familiar-looking character designs and charms that almost instantly make Alien Xmas feel like it’s always been part of your holiday rotation.
While one could argue that it’s indeed a bit too familiar, with the look paying tribute to animated Christmas specials of the past and the story clearly inspired by the all-time classics, I’d personally counter-argue that it’s precisely that sense of nostalgic warmth that makes Alien Xmas such an enjoyable comfort blanket of an experience. The adorable main alien known as X is essentially an amalgam of The Grinch and Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, a sort of extraterrestrial runt who decides to steal Christmas in the hopes that his fellow aliens will no longer laugh and call him names. The Chiodos smartly pull from the tried and true classics to craft their own holiday special that’s cut from the very same cloth and it’s not hard to imagine both kids and adults alike making Alien Xmas an annual watch, right alongside the greats.
It’s the sci-fi twist that the Chiodos bring to the table that most differentiates Alien Xmas from similar specials of the past, allowing the brothers to dip their toes ever so slightly into the genre pool they’re most known for playing around in. While there’s certainly no Killer Klowns-esque nightmare fuel to be found here – they do, at least, work in a little “jump scare” bit involving a jack-in-the-box clown – the alien invasion angle feels true to their sensibilities, and the special’s final act features a fun little false-ending that paves the way for a full-on aliens vs. elves battle at the North Pole. This “Battle for Christmas Town” portion of the special is a high point, and Killer Klowns fans may spot a kid-friendly homage to the ’88 horror-comedy’s “death by pies” scene. It’s Rankin/Bass by way of the Chiodos, and it’s a total delight.
At a time when there’s so much else to watch and so much going on in the world to distract us from, well, watching anything at all, Alien Xmas is the low-commitment injection of Christmas spirit that we could all use right about now. Running right around 37 minutes when you chop off the ending credits, it’s a short and sweet trip to the North Pole that feels perfectly timed to a strange, sad holiday season that seems destined to make a Grinch out of all of us. Imaginative and heartfelt, Alien Xmas is far from the first Christmas special to highlight the importance of holiday togetherness versus a consumeristic obsession with stuff, but it’s a timeless message the Chiodos deliver with the genuine earnestness of filmmakers who are bringing a passion project to life rather than churning out a lifeless product.
And for Killer Klowns fans, it’s proof positive that the Chiodo Bros. have still got it. Right about now, that makes the future potential for a Killer Klowns 2 all the more exciting.
Oh and keep your eyes peeled for an Easter egg that links Alien Xmas and Killer Klowns!
source https://bloody-disgusting.com/reviews/3642773/review-killer-klowns-creators-deliver-stop-motion-holiday-magic-netflixs-alien-xmas/
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