Hi, everyone, and merry belated Christmas and happy New Year from the Nightcrawler Experience!
Sorry for another late Christmas entry this year, a combination of hectic work and a jam- packed Christmas break kept me from getting it out any earlier!
In this entry, I'll be finishing out both 2023 and my "A Very 80's Christmas" series I started two years ago with the 1987 Christmas special 'A Claymation Christmas Celebration'!
This very odd (Like all the 80's Christmas specials I've looked at, now that I think about it) but charming special utilizes stop motion clay animation, is made by Will Vinton who was a real pioneer of this art form, is hosted by two anthropomorphic dinosaurs: A straight- laced and well- read T- Rex named simply Rex, and a gluttonous and rather simple- minded styracosaurus (Sort of like a triceratops) named Herb.
In this special, Herb and Rex introduce stand- alone segments of innovative performances of Christmas carols, explaining a little about the origins of each song before the performances start.
The first musical segment is my favorite: A look at the timeless American carol "We Three Kings." This is arranged in a unique way: The song's verses are performed by the three Maji themselves in a fairly standard traditional way, but the song's chorus is performed by their CAMELS, in more of a doo- wop style. Both styles sound beautiful, the designs for each of the characters in this sequence are all unique and detailed, and the final chorus actually manages to combine the two musical styles in a pretty seamless way. I have to agree with Rex in the aftermath of that segment when he says, "Now, wasn't that delightful?"
Next, we have an interesting take on the "Carol of the Bells." Here, it takes place in the Notre Dame Cathedral, with Quasimodo acting as a conductor for a choir of living bells that each peal out a different tune by banging themselves in the head with chime hammers (Remember I said this special was a weird one?). We see there is one particularly dim- witted bell in the choir who plays a key note in the song, but who messes around a lot and loses his chime hammer. Quasimodo understandably gets pretty mad, but comes up with a clever way to solve this problem by the end of the segment.
For the third segment, we hear a children's choir sing "O Christmas Tree," with the visuals showing various groups celebrating around a Christmas tree, from two little children decorating their tree, to a family (I think) of gingerbread people dancing, to the North Pole workshop with elves creating toys, to Santa and Mrs, Claus relaxing in front of their fireplace, and back. Each of these visuals segues into the next by the camera zooming in on an ornament hanging on that particular group's Christmas tree.
Segment #4 uses an instrumental performance of "Angels We Have Heard on High," which is set to a walrus couple performing an interpretive ice ballet, while repeatedly bowling over a group of unfortunate penguins watching the performance. I think it's the closest thing to a weak link the special has, but it'll still get some chuckles out of you.
Segment #5 is a REALLY pretty one, yet the only one in the special that doesn't use Claymation animation: At a countryside church, we hear "Joy to the World" performed in a soul/ jazz style, accompanied by colorful visuals which resemble the stained glass windows on the church. It's a little strange- looking, but incredibly beautiful at the same time, and the music in that segment is truly awe- inspiring.
The last musical vignette involves the California Raisins (Anybody else remember them?) missing a bus out of town after a Christmas Eve concert, and singing "Rudolph, the Red- Nosed Reindeer" while coming up with an innovative new form of transportation to get on their way. They can always put on a fun performance with talented vocals, and this is no exception. The California Raisins need to make a comeback!
Acting as kind of bookends to these segments, we cut back each time to our hosts Herb and Rex. When they aren't talking about the songs, we see Rex being increasingly annoyed as the dear old Christmas carol "Here We Come a Wassailing" is constantly being lyrically butchered by various traveling food vendors (i.e. A group of dogs selling waffles sing it "Here We Come a Waffling," some geese waddling by selling baskets full of treats sing it "Here We Come a Waddling," etc.), with none of them seeming to know what "Wassail" truly means, and Herb too busy stuffing his face with what the vendors are selling to care. Attempting to consult the dictionary on what it means doesn't help much, either. Finally, near the end of the special, Rex is pleased to hear a group of leprechaun- esque elves singing the song the right way while chugging cider. One of them explains that the actual meaning of it is to go around neighborhoods singing Christmas carols and receiving treats and drinks from the people there, which is something that both Rex and Herb can get behind. The special ends with the entire cast, including the characters from the previous musical segments, singing that song, and then "We Wish You a Merry Christmas."
In spite of how strange it could be at times, 'A Claymation Christmas Celebration' remains a marvelous Christmas special which is another addition to my library of traditional pre- Christmas viewing material.
The music is consistently great, in terms of both talent and variety. The animation looks great for the time. Stopmotion animation, especially with clay, is a dying art, but this is a great example of how it can be used when done well. In addition, Rex and Herb are excellent host characters, with a great "Straight- Man/ Funny- Man" comedy duo in their segments. This special also ended up winning an Emmy for Outstanding Animated Program.
This special also gains points for the fact that one of the animators who worked on it was Craig Bartlett, who would go on to create the delightful Nickelodeon animated show 'Hey Arnold!'
All in all, an awesome special that needs to be remembered. Here's a link to it, check it out:
https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x57fkhi
I'd say 'A Claymation Christmas Celebration' has some theological messages, as well.
I think the first is on the role that both traditional and contemporary styles have their place in our modern worship, as seen through the marvelous "We Three Kings" segment. In that segment, even though the Maji sing the verses in the traditional way and the camels sing it in a doo- wop style, they both play off each other well, and meld together surprisingly beautifully on the final refrain. Similarly, both traditional hymns and worship styles can compliment each other nicely and do great things for the Lord.
Many older Christians can look down on and dismiss more modern styles of worship in ways that come across as really closed- minded. I recently saw a depressingly ignorant blog article from a certain gentleman who shall remain nameless (I talked briefly about this jerk in my review of 'The Hunchback of Notre Dame' a few years ago), in which he was spewing all kinds of hateful garbage about contemporary Christian music. In the article, he at times insulted some particular contemporary Christian music artists on such ridiculously petty bases as claiming that some male contemporary performers don't look masculine enough for his liking, and claiming that certain female Christian artists (Ones who I have personally met a few times and know for a fact are genuinely kind and humble, have strong hearts for the Lord, and helped me learn more about living for Jesus than this clown ever has, btw) had too "Prideful" expressions on their faces on an old magazine cover. I used to occasionally visit that creep's web page for laughs over how unintentionally absurd he is, but now will never waste another second of my time doing so ever again. Along the same line, many younger believers can be equally closed- minded and dismissive of the older styles, claiming that it's "Boring" or obsolete. As a teacher at a Christian school, I've heard that view occasionally expressed by certain students.
Both views are wrong. In truth, both forms of worship have their place in the church. Traditional forms and styles of worship can keep the church well- grounded and connected to its theological heritage, and contemporary styles can inject fresh energy into things, touch people's hearts, connect to the struggles modern believers face, and draw in younger generations and thus encourage them to give the faith a chance. It all ties in to Psalm 100:5, which says "For the Lord is good, and His steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations." Notice those last two words: ALL generations! Both the traditional and the contemporary can work together to help the church fulfill the Lord's calling to lead people to Jesus and spread His Word throughout the world, just as the two seemingly different styles of singing in the "We Three Kings" segment worked together so well to present that timeless song.
As a second theological message, the host- segments' subplot involving Rex trying to keep the other characters from butchering the wassailing carol can symbolize the importance for all of us as Christians to ensure that we stand up for the truth of the Gospel. There are some pushes to try and dilute the Gospel in our modern age and care more about shifting societal norms than about what Jesus and His apostles taught (Heck, there is a near- war developing within the United Methodist Church over such concerns). In Psalm 12:6-7, though, the Psalmist says "The words of the Lord [are] pure words: [as] silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times. Thou shalt keep them, o Lord, thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever." In Acts 5:29, after Peter is told by priests to stop preaching or go to prison, and the response was "Then Peter and the apostles answered and said, "We ought to obey God rather than men." We all should, to the best of our abilities, hold to the same concept, following God's eternal commandments and callings for us rather than the fickle norms of secular society.
That sums up my look at 'A Claymation Christmas Celebration,' a timeless Christmas classic which teaches equally timeless lessons.
That's all for this edition of the Nightcrawler Experience. Stay tuned for future entries, as I work on my Top 10 movie characters of 2023 and what we can learn from them.
Until then, happy New Year, and may God bless you all!
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