The last movie dealt with one scenario of Santa's beginnings. This one proposes a different theory: Put on the red suit, you become Santa Claus.
Yes, The Santa Clause. It tells the story of Scott Calvin (Tim Allen) an executive who isn't the Christmasy or fatherly type. One Christmas Eve, he and his son Charlie (Eric Lloyd), disturb Santa Claus right off the roof. Scott puts on the suit, Charlie finds the sleigh and the next thing he knows, he reluctantly gives out all the presents. The reindeer take him to the North Pole where he meets elves Bernard (David Krumholtz) and Judy (Paige Tamada) who try to guide Scott to be Santa. However, he's convinced it's a dream but Charlie knows it is real. As Scott goes through the transformation from Tim Allen to Santa Claus, his ex-wife (Wendy Crewson) and her new husband (Judge Reinhold) grew more worried about his relationship with Charlie. As Scott embraces his inner-Santa, the police start a manhunt for him and Charlie.
This is one of Allen's best, allowing him to show a range from his typical comedic shtick to dramatic moments. Lloyd also held his own despite his age and Reinhold plays well off of Allen. Krumholtz is also a delight as an elf.
The script has very light moments that serve the holiday spirit well. It can also easily be the best of the three Santa Clause movies. For that, I give it four and a half candy canes out of five. 
