Blu-ray Review - Santa Claus Conquers the Martians
April 27, 2025
1964's "Santa Claus Conquers the Martians" was something of a throwaway production, generated to make some money on the children's matinee circuit, giving young audiences a holiday tale at the local theater while their parents sought peace and quiet elsewhere. It wasn't meant to stand the test of time, but here we are in 2024, and the film is now enjoying its second Blu-ray release. Some may assign nostalgia and repeated television airings of the movie as the primary force behind the title's amazing pop culture endurance, but I believe credit belongs to movie riffing, with a classic 1991 episode of "Mystery Science Theater 3000" helping to bring the feature to a wider audience (Cinematic Titanic and Rifftrax also had their way with the picture). The ridiculousness of "Santa Claus Conquers the Martians" makes the offering an easy target for mockery, and it's certainly more of a challenge to sit through the endeavor without the added laughs, as the low-budget fantasy and strange hostility of the effort is glacially paced and horrifically overacted. Sure, it's made for kids, but a little extra pep and more inventive writing certainly doesn't hurt. Read the rest at Blu-ray.com