lesko_lori Prancer is a story of the Christmas spirit in the modern age when a motherless little girl and her bitter father come together at the end to watch the injured and captured reindeer fly off toward the full moon on Christmas Eve.We don't know as viewers if the final tinkle of bells was heard only by the girl and whether Prancer magically leaped off of the mountain to join the rest of the reindeer on Santa's sleigh. Is it a real image flying across the moon -- or only in the girl's mind? But her Dad chooses to "see" it too, and believe his child -- all in in the spirit of Christmas.A movie for all ages.

William Brighenti Most modern day Christmas stories are too hygienic, with perfect homes, perfect looking children, perfect looking parents, too neatly constructed plots, ending up with something too sugar coated to allow the viewer to suspend disbelief while watching it. For instance, the remake of "Miracle on 34th Street" should have been named, "The Yuppies Get the 5,000 Square Foot House for a Family of Three". What trash.But not so with the movie, "Prancer". Jessica is not too pretty, but quite ordinary looking. Her father looks like a real working class individual who has lost his job and is down on his luck, not like a hedge fund manager living in Fairfield, Connecticut.But what makes this story so very special is a cute story, realistically set, with great performances by Sam Eliot, Abe Vigoda, Cloris Leahman, Michael Constantine, but especially by Rebecca Harrell Tickell as the main character! Rebecca portrays Jessica with the right touch of innocence, and willfulness. I could not imagine anyone else playing Jessica so perfectly.I love this movie. I love Rebecca Harrell Tickell's performance as Jessica. My favorite scenes are those involving Abe Vigoda and Rebecca Harrell Tickell, and Rebecca in Church. They are side-splitting.This movie ranks up there with "A Christmas Carol" and "It's a Wonderful Life." Christmas is not Christmas without "Prancer" for my family. If you have not seen it, get it.

Michael O'Keefe Pleasant fantasy tale for the whole family. Nine-year-old Rebecca(Jessica Riggs)still believes in Santa despite the nay saying of her father(Sam Elliott) and the teasing from her friends. She finds an ailing reindeer in a remote part of the forest and she knows she will have to help the animal heal in secrecy...in her father's barn. Her father John is a no-nonsense apple farmer and knows some hay is mysteriously missing before discovering for himself the ailing deer his daughter has dubbed Prancer. The town's recluse(Cloris Leachman)lets Rebecca do odd jobs around her house in order to earn money to speed the deer's recovery. Prancer seems to have the ability to vanish rather rapidly and then reappear...he truly must be one of Santa's revered eight tiny reindeer. Also in the cast: Abe Vigoda, Michael Constantine, John Duda and Rutanya Alda.

scott-551 Few movies inhabit the world of childhood quite as authentically as "Prancer." Until the very last moments, it doesn't matter whether young Jessica's belief that she has found one of Santa's reindeer is literally true. The fact that she could believe such a thing so strongly, and selflessly act on her belief to help the lost reindeer, is compelling enough on its own. Children occupy a world where naive clarity mingles with a confusing knowledge of how much of adult life remains unknown. "Prancer" creates an atmosphere that lets adults dip back into that almost-forgotten way of experiencing the world.Sam Elliott delivers a fantastic performance as Jessica's father, a farmer who has recently lost his wife and will soon probably lose his farm. He is on the verge of losing his family, and the father-daughter relationship at the heart of the movie feels unaffectedly real. Cloris Leachman's turn as an embittered neighbor deserves note as well.The film's greatest flaws occur in its last two minutes. First, a critical continuity error shows that the reindeer has shed a jingle-bell harness just before the sound of the harness is supposed to indicate the animal's presence. Finally, at the very end, the movie shatters its ambiguity about the literal truth of the reindeer's identity. In doing so, it negates the foundation of the story's authenticity and dramatic power, and trivializes the final reconciliation between Jessica and her father. If the reindeer is not a supernatural being, then Jessica is a silly little girl and the audience has been had. But if the reindeer is a magical beast from Santa's stable, then it is not a leap of faith for Jessica's father to accept her improbable belief in the animal. By revealing the answer one way or the other, "Prancer" cheapens itself and significantly undermines the emotional power of an otherwise subtle and moving drama.