Happy Holidays
Rise of the Guardians
Review by Ross Anthony

Santa Clause rolls his sleeves back revealing tattooed forearms. That’s pretty bold. But, it gets better -- he wields swords. Not the icon of your youth? That’s okay, the story’s not really about him. And to the writer’s credit, I never heard him actually referred to by that name. The other guardians simply call him "North" (for the pole).

North is one of a handful of mythical characters (they wouldn’t approve of me using the word mythical) rising above their normal holiday or tooth-fairying, or dream-making responsibilities to save the children from another less-than-jolly mythical character. While taking good-spirited liberty with cultural children’s icons and providing sleigh rides of fun action, at its heart Rise of the Guardians aims for the heart. The whole snow globe story dramatizes the fact that the power of belief in love and wonder and fun trumps fear. So if you get hit in the face with a snowball, laugh it off.

While there is snow, a Santa of sorts, and elves that only attempt to make toys, if you want to view Rise of the Guardians as a traditional Christmas film, you can, but you’d be skating on some slightly thin ice. Think of it more as a wintry rendezvous of Shrek and Lord of the Rings at a new age meet and greet. So, what's your center?

-- Books by Ross Anthony, Author/Illustrator --


  • Rise of the Guardians. Copyright © 2012.
  • Starring Chris Pine, Jude Law, Alec Baldwin, Isla Fisher, Dakota Goya. Directed by Peter Ramsey at Paramount/Dreamworks.

Grade..........................A- (3/4)


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Copyright © 1998-2023 Ross Anthony, Author - Speaker - Solo World Circumnavigator In addition to reviewing films and interviewing celebs at HollywoodReportCard.com, traveling the world, composing great music, motivational speaking, Mr. Anthony also runs his own publishing company in the Los Angeles area. While traversing the circumference of the planet writing books and shooting documentaries, Mr. Anthony has taught, presented for, worked &/or played with locals in over 30 countries & 100 cities (Nairobi to Nagasaki). He's bungee-jumped from a bridge near Victoria Falls, wrestled with lions in Zimbabwe, crashed a Vespa off a high mountain road in Taiwan, and ridden a dirt bike across the States (Washington State to Washington DC). To get signed books ("Rodney Appleseed" to "Jinshirou") or schedule Ross to speak check out: www.RossAnthony.com or call 1-800-767-7186. Go into the world and inspire the people you meet with your love, kindness, and whatever it is you're really good at. Check out books by Ross Anthony. Rand() functions, Pho chicken soup, rollerblading, and frozen yogurt (w/ blueberries) also rock! (Btw, rand is short for random. It can also stand for "Really Awkward Nutty Dinosaurs" -- which is quite rand, isn't it?) Being alive is the miracle. Special thanks to Ken Kocanda, HAL, Jodie Keszek, Don Haderlein, Mom and Pops, my family, R. Foss, and many others by Ross Anthony. Galati-FE also deserves a shout out. And thanks to all of you for your interest and optimism. Enjoy great films, read stirring novels, grow.


Last Modified: Monday, 26-Nov-2012 22:19:10 PST