IslandGuru Who payed the critics

BoardChiri Bad Acting and worse Bad Screenplay

Hadrina The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

Robert Joyner The plot isn't so bad, but the pace of storytelling is too slow which makes people bored. Certain moments are so obvious and unnecessary for the main plot. I would've fast-forwarded those moments if it was an online streaming. The ending looks like implying a sequel, not sure if this movie will get one

Johnny H. The Snowman has become a perennial classic across the globe as one of the go-to films to watch on Christmas. And what is it about the short that makes it so goddamn loveable and perfect for those who need a warming up of the soul? Is it the gorgeous animation, the moving music and the inexplicably-Christmasy feel to it set against a snowy backdrop in the UK? I think everything adds up to make quite possibly the warmest cartoon ever made. It's also a very happy and celebratorial film. It hits all the right emotional notes and washes over you with renewed spirit, warmth and just overall happiness you got to watch this film.I can't fault a thing about The Snowman. It's easily one of the all-time perfect cartoons in my books! A Christmas classic for the ages and an animation great!

NateWatchesCoolMovies 1982's The Snowman sees a gorgeously illustrated book by Raymond Briggs jump into animated life for a haunting twenty minute short film set on a snowy Christmas Eve. It's an obscure choice for me to include so late in the game here, but I was introduced to it for the first time last Christmas and really enjoyed it. It's got an ethereal quality, the images not quite static, not quite fully animated, but summoned from a half conscious place where daylight ends and dreams begin. A young boy builds a snowman in his yard one Christmas Eve, and in a flurry, he comes to life, whisking the young lad away on a dreamy voyage far above the land, off to his homeland where other snowmen like him dwell. It's got one of the most evocative, yet simple scores I've heard in animation, and a transfixing song that drifts across the film's soundscape as the boy and his companion fly through the night, my favourite sequence. David Bowie also provides vague vocals for a character. Perfect for late night Christmas Eve while the fire is low, the night is deep and the snow is falling.

Lee Eisenberg This adaptation of Raymond Briggs's book is one of the most mystifying cartoons that I've ever seen. I've read the book, and I should note that they changed a few things, but it's still a fine piece of work. "The Snowman" is something that's bound to appeal to all age groups. It goes to show that a production doesn't need dialog to be good. If it has a good plot - and in this case good animation - then that's all that it needs. "The Snowman" deserved its Academy Award nomination for Best Animated Short Film, and I recommend it.PS: Dianne Jackson got her start in animation by doing some work on the Beatles' "Yellow Submarine".

Philip West An animated film, in any form, can only be judged on its ability to unlock the section of our psyche which is inhabited by a ten year old child. Can it make us feel as though we, the viewer, had created the film in our mind's eye? Does it provide us with an idealistic window into a world where complexities were few and far between? The Snowman is barely half an hour in length. It does not feature a single word of spoken dialogue, and only four human characters (two of which are peripheral, and one of which is Father Christmas) are featured. We therefore focus upon James, a young boy who, one snowy morning, lovingly builds a snowman in his garden, and embarks on a dazzling and uplifting adventure which begins in the living room of his house, before sweeping majestically, arm in arm with the snowman, into the night sky and towards the aurora-lit paradise of Lapland, where the film's emotional zenith is eventually reached in the presence of Saint Nicholas and his ever-present reindeer.The components that make up The Snowman, the combination of sounds and silence, sweeping vistas and warm Christmas lights, are equally as impressive as the overall result. It is not a sentimental, misty-eyed reflection upon winters passed; it represents yesterday, today, and indeed, tomorrow. The enjoyment and excitement expressed throughout the film is the kind that is not finite; it emerges every Christmas, in every child who dreams of stepping into James' shoes. His sense of wonder and happiness is evident, even without speaking, and the film's heartbreaking final shot; the melted remains of the snowman and James slumped aside him, captures the feeling of sadness at the loss of what had become, throughout the film, a friend, even if he was a being made of snow.The Snowman is a masterpiece of creativity, poignancy, and animation in its purest form. Visually satisfying and beautifully paced, it stands out within the canon of British animation and represents an important landmark, for it is the closest we have ever come to matching the warmth, humour, and emotional impact of any film produced by Walt Disney. And by that criteria, The Snowman can be paid no higher compliment.