Jack Frost (1998 film)

Jack Frost is a 1998 American Christmas fantasy comedy-drama film, starring Michael Keaton and Kelly Preston. Keaton stars as the title character, a man who dies in a car accident and comes back to life as a snowman. Three of Frank Zappa's four children, Dweezil Zappa, Ahmet Zappa, and Moon Unit Zappa, appear in the film.

The costume for Jack Frost's snowman form was created by Jim Henson's Creature Shop.

The film was released in Australia on December 10, 1998 before the United States' release.

Plot
Jack Frost is the lead singer in a rock band simply titled "The Jack Frost Band", based in the town of Medford, Colorado, who make their living performing blues covers and an assortment of their own songs in the hope of signing a record deal. He returns to his 11-year-old son Charlie, who has just returned from a snowball fight against local bully Rory Buck. After they build a snowman in their front yard, Jack gives him his best harmonica, which he got the day Charlie was born, jokingly telling him that it's magical, and he'll be able to hear it wherever he is. Jack promises his wife Gabby that he will attend his son's hockey game, but misses it in favor of recording "Don't Lose Your Faith". To make up for it, Jack then promises to take his family on a Christmas trip to the mountains, but is called in on a gig that could make or break his career. On his way there, Jack realizes his mistake and borrows his best friend (and keyboardist) Mac MacArthur's car to go home to his family. Unfortunately, Jack encounters a bad storm that, due to a faulty windshield wiper on Mac's car, he is unable to navigate through, and is killed in a crash (off-screen).

A year later, Charlie, depressed over his father's death, withdraws from all contact with his friends. One night, Charlie makes another snowman that bears as much of a resemblance to Jack as he can remember and plays Jack's harmonica just before going to sleep. The harmonica turns out to be magical after all, as it resurrects Jack and his spirit awakens in the snowman. Thrilled to be alive again, Jack attempts to greet Charlie, but ends up terrifying him. The next morning, Charlie discovers Jack in his yard and attempts to run away from him. When Charlie winds up in the snowball battlefield, Jack pelts Rory and the other children with snowballs and escapes with Charlie on a sled. After losing them, Charlie realizes that the snowman is his father after Jack uses his nickname "Charlie boy". Jack reconnects with Charlie and teaches him the values that he never got to teach him when he was alive. After some hockey lessons, Jack convinces Charlie to rejoin the team instead of continuing to grieve over his death, becoming their best player. In the meantime, Mac continues to be a friend of the family, while also becoming a father figure to Charlie at Gabby's suggestion.

As winter approaches its end, Jack begins melting and struggles to get to Charlie's hockey game. Afterwards, Charlie decides to take Jack to the mountains where it is colder, but has a difficult time convincing Gabby to do so. Charlie comes across Rory, who also insults the snowman by asking which is more stupid. After Jack speaks in front of Rory by correcting his last sentence, Rory then sympathizes with Charlie not having a father and helps him sneak Jack onto a truck en route to the mountains. Jack and Charlie arrive at the isolated cabin that the family was going to stay at before Jack's death. Jack calls Gabby, nonchalantly asking her to come to the cabin to pick up Charlie; Gabby is shocked, but recognizes his voice and obliges. Jack tells a disheartened Charlie that he has to leave. When his wife arrives, the snowman shell dissipates, revealing Jack in an ethereal form. Jack tells Charlie he will be with him wherever he goes and, after saying farewell and giving his love to both his wife and son, returns to the afterlife.

In the closing moments of the film, Charlie plays hockey with his group of friends (which now includes Rory), while Gabby happily watches and Mac plays music on the piano. The final street scene shows that all the front lawns have snowmen on them.

Cast
In credits order.
 * Michael Keaton as Jack Frost, Charlie's dad, the vocalist and harmonica player of The Jack Frost Band who died in a car accident while trying to come home to spend Christmas with his family, and is brought back to life in the body of the snowman in Charlie's front yard after Charlie used the magic harmonica.
 * Bruce Lanoil as Jack Frost's Snowman form (in-suit performer)
 * Denise Cheshire as Jack Frost's Snowman form (in-suit performer)
 * Kelly Preston as Gabby Frost, Jack's wife/widow; Charlie's mom
 * Henry Rollins as Sid Gronic, ice hockey coach
 * Mark Addy as Mac MacArthur, Jack's keyboard player and best friend.
 * Joseph Cross as Charlie Frost, Jack's son
 * Mika Boorem as Natalie, Charlie's friend
 * Andrew Lawrence as Tuck Gronic, Charlie's friend, Sid's son
 * Eli Marienthal as Spencer, Charlie's friend
 * Will Rothhaar as Dennis, Charlie's friend
 * Taylor Handley as Rory Buck, a school bully who picks on Charlie, but later befriends and sympathizes with Charlie as they bond over not having their fathers; Rory's father deserted his family, whereas Charlie's father died.
 * Ahmet Zappa as Snowplow Driver
 * Paul F. Tompkins as Audience Member
 * Dweezil Zappa as John Kaplan, music agent
 * Jay Johnston as TV Weatherman
 * Jeff Cesario as Radio Announcer
 * Scott Kraft as Natalie's Dad
 * Ajai Sanders as TV Interviewer
 * John Ennis as Truck Driver
 * Wayne Federman as Dave, policeman
 * Pat Crawford Brown as Ice Hockey Scorekeeper
 * Trevor Rabin as Trevor, The Jack Frost Band Lead Guitarist
 * Lili Haydn as Lili, The Jack Frost Band Violinist
 * Lou Molino III as Lou, The Jack Frost Band Drummer
 * Scott Colomby as Scott, The Jack Frost Band Bass Player
 * Moon Unit Zappa as School Teacher (uncredited)

Music
The film features 22 tracks:


 * Frosty the Snowman – The Jack Frost Band
 * Roll with the Changes – REO Speedwagon
 * Merry Christmas, Baby – Hanson
 * Everytime We Say Goodbye – Cole Porter
 * Rock and Roll (Part 2) – Gary Glitter
 * Don't Lose Your Faith – The Jack Frost Band
 * Can't Let Go – Lucinda Williams
 * Leavin' Again – Steve Poltz
 * Couldn't Stand the Weather – Stevie Ray Vaughan
 * Landslide – Fleetwood Mac
 * Free Ride – The Edgar Winter Group
 * Hey Now Now – Swirl 360
 * Final Fire – Hans Zimmer
 * Jingle Bell Rock – Michael Sherwood
 * Hot in the City – Billy Idol
 * Gimme Some Lovin – Hanson
 * Sleigh Ride – Spice Girls
 * Slow Ride – Foghat
 * Five Candles (You Were There) – Jars of Clay
 * How – Lisa Loeb
 * Father's Love – Bob Carlisle
 * Good Lovin' – Hanson

Not all of these songs are available on the soundtrack CD, however.

Featured on the CD release are:

Critical response
The film received mostly negative reviews from critics. Rotten Tomatoes gives the film a score of 20% based on 55 reviews. Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film a grade B+ on scale of A to F.

Roger Ebert gave the film one out of four stars, writing "It's possible for the Jim Henson folks and Industrial Light and Magic to put their heads together and come up with the most repulsive single creature in the history of special effects, and I am not forgetting the Chucky doll or the desert intestine from Star Wars."

Box office
Produced on an $85 million budget, the film took $7 million on its opening weekend. It went on to gross over $34.5 million in North America, becoming a box office flop.

Production
Both Joseph Cross and Mika Boorem starred together in the Touched by an Angel episode "Psalm 151." Plus, Cross and Michael Keaton appeared together in Desperate Measures, which was released the same year.