Based on the 1979 song of the same name, “Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer” is a 2000 animated Christmas TV special that was another recurring holiday film in my life.

The film has aired on Cartoon Network for my entire childhood, and was always something I would toss on the TV as background noise during the Christmas season.

The film begins with a clear snapshot of grandma being run over by a reindeer — highlighted by the iconic song playing — but quickly shifts to a flashback of December in Cityville.

Jake Spankenheimer (Alex Doduk) tells the audience all about his grandmother’s general store — the only piece of property not owned by the wealthiest man in town, Austin Bucks (Cam Clarke). Grandma refuses to sell her store, and embraces the Christmas season.

Cousin Mel (Michele Lee) is adamant about selling the store, and grandma is just as stubborn in her assurance that she will never get the store.

Jake and his grandparents are the only ones in the whole family who believe in Santa — and their belief only grows when they witness grandma get run over by the reindeer.

Nine months go by with no sign of grandma. The store’s profits start to go downhill, and cousin Mel schemes a way to trick grandpa into giving her his power of attorney so she can sell the store. Austin Bucks agrees to give Jake another week to find grandma before he takes over the store.

Somehow, Jake emails Santa to ask about his grandma. Quincy, Santa’s head elf, takes Jake to the North Pole where they’d taken grandma for medical treatment. Apparently she developed amnesia from the accident, and had no idea who she was until Jake sent the email.

Santa, Quincy, Jake and Grandma go with him to Cityville where cousin Mel is trying to trick grandpa.

There’s a big misunderstanding, grandma goes missing again and somehow Mel tries to put Santa on trial for kidnapping, leaving the scene of an accident and “sleighicular negligence.” She also tries to sue him, believing that someone who can pay for billions of presents must be incredibly wealthy.

Long story short, grandma’s memory is restored by eating her own fruitcake and cousin Mel is arrested for obstructing justice and “almost ruining Christmas.”

Rewatching the animated film as an adult, I will admit the 51-minute runtime is a little obnoxious. The plot is silly, but perfect for a kid. Truthfully, if you’re not a 6-year-old, this movie is just long to sit through. Even the initial reception for the film in the early 2000s was mixed.

Jerry Beck, writing for Animation World Network in 2001, noted the “the writers, actors and crew did the best they could with the (low) budget and considering the source material is a comedy record about a dead grandma, they succeeded in creating a mildly entertaining family video” but that it “may disappoint a few adults.”

Though the storyline is a little bland, and cousin Mel is annoying, it’s more than enough to entertain any of your little ones this holiday season. Much like any early-2000s kids movie, there’s also a few adult jokes tossed in. (My personal favorite is when cousin Mel suggests they “go somewhere romantic and consummate the deal,” to which Austin gives Jake an extension on finding grandma.)

Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately) this movie does have a couple of ridiculously catchy songs that will get stuck in your head no matter what you do.

“Grandpa’s Gonna Sue the Pants Offa Santa” in particular is one of those dumb tunes that once you hear it, you’ll think of it randomly.

If you have small children or grandchildren visiting for the holidays, this movie is great to play for them. The colors are bright, the animation is great and, like I said, the songs are catchy. It’s definitely worth the watch!

“Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer” is rated 4.6 on IMDb, but has a 92 percent positive Google review. Give it a watch and judge for yourself!

“Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer” was released to VHS on Oct. 31, 2000 and to DVD a year later, and can be purchased on Amazon or watched on www.cwtv.com.

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Breanna Hanley is a reporter for The Express.