Plot
On his birthday, Santa Claus receives a letter and gift informing him of the death of his friend Mr. Hucklebuckle, a toy store owner and member of the "Santa Cause", an organization of delegates who encourage Christmas spirit worldwide. To cheer Santa up, his head elf Eli uses the great Christmas icicle to bring the gift, a stuffed dog, to life. Santa names the puppy Paws and the two become best friends.
In New York City, an orphan named Quinn arrives at an orphanage run by Gladys Stout, an overtly strict woman who disapproves of anything that the children love. As such, she steals their Christmas decorations and toys and destroys them with her basement incinerator. Despite this, Quinn befriends the other girls, including the oldest, Willamina "Will", who has lost her Christmas spirit since her own parents' death.
Meanwhile, Mr. Hucklebuckle's grandson James and his wife Kate arrive at his toy store and their caseworker Mr. Stewart informs them that they must run the store profitably for one Christmas season to gain ownership. They decide to hire a store Santa to bring in customers, intending to sell the store once they have ownership.
Santa and Paws travel to New York to visit Hucklebuckle's store, gaining the attention of Gus, a homeless man who follows them. On the streets, Santa bumps into Stout, falls into the street, and is hit by a cab, becoming separated from Paws. Gus takes Santa's magic crystal, resulting in him losing his memories and being taken in by James and Kate as a mall Santa.
After spending the night wandering the streets, Paws meets three stray dogs named Haggis, Rasta and T-Money who are captured by Franklin, a dogcatcher and Stout's boyfriend. Paws uses his magic to rescue them, and they vow to help him find Santa in hopes of getting off the naughty list.
Learning of the situation, Eli and his dog Eddy go to New York and recruit local Boy Scout Jimmy to help. Eventually, they find Gus and get him to return Santa's crystal to them. However, Santa soon lands in the hospital after being without his crystal too long. Meanwhile, Paws meets Quinn and is secretly brought back to the orphanage, where he befriends the girls and uses his magic to give them Christmas cheer.
Stout discovers this and locks Will in the basement along with Paws, stealing Paws's crystal and Quinn's late mother's angel ornament. Will hears Paws speak and regains her Christmas spirit, but without his crystal, Paws reverts to a stuffed animal form by the next morning. When Stout discovers this, she assumes Paws escaped and unknowingly throws him in the incinerator before going on a date with Franklin. Eli and the girls narrowly rescue and revive Paws as Jimmy arrives and tells Eli that Santa is at Hucklebuckle Toys. Will and Quinn come along with Haggis, Rasta and T-Money.
That evening, Stout and Franklin return to the orphanage and are met by Mrs. Gibson, who informs them that she learned of the former's negligent nature by receiving a phone call from Eli. Despite her attempts to excuse her absence, Stout is fired and Gibson takes over the orphanage.
After explaining the situation to everyone, Will and Quinn leave to help Santa. They reunite him with his crystal, but its magic has been too used up to work. Paws sacrifices his magic to heal Santa, reverting to a stuffed animal form once more. The next morning Santa regains his health and he, Eli and Eddy rush back to the North Pole and the main crystal, reviving Paws as a full-grown dog named Santa Paws.
Back in New York, James and Kate return Quinn and Will to the orphanage, but at Gibson's suggestion, they decide to adopt them. Haggis, Rasta and T-Money stow away in a mail truck to the North Pole and become official elf dogs. Gus brings the money he received while working as a charity Santa to the orphanage, and Gibson invites him to spend the holiday with them. The next day, James and Kate inform Mr. Stewart that they have decided to keep the store and continue the Hucklebuckle legacy. As Stewart leaves, he speaks to Hucklebuckle's spirit, wishing him a Merry Christmas and that his wish has been fulfilled.
Reception
Angela Walker, writing for ChristianCinema.com, gave the DVD 3 stars out of 5, but said that the film fits the normal Disney DVD formula. She went on to say that the film was predictable and clichéd, but that kids would enjoy it and that the film adds to the "spirit of Christmas".[1]
