Prancer is a 1989 Christmas fantasy drama film directed by John Hancock, written by Greg Taylor, and starring Rebecca Harrell, Sam Elliott, Cloris Leachman, Abe Vigoda, Michael Constantine, Rutanya Alda, John Joseph Duda, and Ariana Richards.
[3] The film was followed by a direct-to-video sequel called Prancer Returns, released by USA Home Entertainment in 2001.
In 2022, Universal Pictures Home Entertainment released a remake called Prancer: A Christmas Tale.
Eight-year-old Jessica Riggs and her older brother, Steve, are being raised by their widowed father, grieving and cantankerous John.
Their apple farm has fallen on hard times, with John temporarily being helped by his sister-in-law, Sarah.
Afraid he will be unable to provide for Jessica, John discusses a plan for Sarah to take her in to raise temporarily.
Eventually, she apologizes to Mrs. McFarland for knocking down her flowers, and asks her if she can have a job to help raise money to buy a bag of oats for Prancer.
The newspaper editor, inspired by Jessica's faith, writes an article which is then read by the local pastor in the middle of his sermon.
John grabs his rifle, threatening to shoot him when a local butcher stops him, offering to buy Prancer.
He tries to break the lock open, while she gets the idea to climb to the top of Prancer's cage and let him fly out.
The critical consensus reads, "Prancer's good-natured holiday cheer -- and a terrific performance from its young star -- are enough to make this yuletide adventure a moderately rewarding watch.
Movie critic Roger Ebert highlighted Harrell's performance, saying: And what really redeems the movie, taking it out of the category of kiddie picture and giving it a heart and gumption, is the performance by a young actress named Rebecca Harrell, as Jessica.
And she's smart -- a plucky schemer who figures out things for herself and isn't afraid to act on her convictions.
Pregnant reindeer keep their antlers for longer, and she was needed so she wouldn't shed hers before filming was over in late winter.