Parents' Guide to

Santa Bootcamp

TV Lifetime Comedy 2022
Poster image for the Lifetime holiday rom-com Santa Bootcamp, featuring the stars in red holiday outfits, surrounded by twinkle lights and toys.

Common Sense Media Review

Jenny Nixon By Jenny Nixon , based on child development research. How do we rate?

age 12+

Rita Moreno's first holiday rom-com is predictable but cute.

Parents Need to Know

Why Age 12+?

Any Positive Content?

  • A silver-haired older woman in a red track suit and a ponytailed blonde woman stand in front of a red backdrop draped with twinkle lights.
  • A large group of people wearing red and green outfits do yoga poses in a large room decorated with wreaths, lights, and a Christmas tree.
  • A girl wearing an ill-fitting Mrs. Claus outfit sits on a large gold chair, looking awkward.
  • A woman in a pink sweater and man in a plaid shirt stand in a kitchen cooking and laughing, with decorated Christmas trees in the background.

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What's the Story?

SANTA BOOTCAMP is a Lifetime Christmas movie in which overworked event planner Emily Strauss (Emily Kinney, The Walking Dead) is tasked with finding the "ultimate" Santa Claus to work at a high-end event thrown by her wealthiest and most demanding client, shopping mall magnate Ed Mancini (Patrick Cassidy, Smallville). When she happens upon a flyer for "Santa Bootcamp," a multi-day training event for Claus wannabes put on by Belle (Rita Moreno, 80 For Brady) and Chris (John Schuck), she thinks it could be the answer to all her problems. Belle promises to help as long as Emily goes through training herself, partnering her with handsome camp chef Aiden (Justin Gaston, Days of Our Lives) to work on the big event -- as well as her personal life.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say: Not yet rated
Kids say: Not yet rated

This agreeable little rom-com ticks all the boxes, including cozy comfort-watch vibes and predictably happy endings. There won't be a moment in Santa Bootcamp when you don't know what's coming next, but star Emily Kinney is so charming and likable you won't really mind. Also, kind of fun to see Rita Moreno making her Lifetime Christmas movie debut as enigmatic bootcamp drill sergeant Belle.

Director Melissa Joan Hart does a perfectly serviceable job making sure the film hits all the usual beats, though one does get the sense they had a certain number of minutes to fill and not quite enough story. Is it groundbreaking? No. But if you're looking for something to pop on in the background as you wrap presents or bake cookies with the family, you could do worse.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the use of ASL (American Sign Language) in this film. Why don't more movies feature characters who use ASL? What message, if any, do you think Santa Bootcamp was trying to convey by including it?

  • How do the characters demonstrate empathy? Why is this an important character strength?

  • Why do you think Christmas movies are often so predictable? How does it affect your enjoyment of the story, if at all?

TV Details

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