I've kind of stayed away from writing about this movie, not because I hate it; that would be a lie since I love this movie and watch it every single year and know the lines and scenes by heart. In the case the tile of the post seems abstract, I am talking about the 1983 film, "A Christmas Story".
Like I said, I love this movie, Christmas Eve to Christmas Day 24 hour marathon on one of Ted Turner's channels : my TV is locked on that channel until the 24 hours are over. The end of the marathon feels like the end of Christmas to me.
Released on November 18, 1983; this movie wasn't a big hit (it did make more than it's budget at the box office) it's about essentially a nine-year-old boy who wants a gun for Christmas, it's a b-b gun, but still. The movie has vignette stories based on stories from Jean Shepard's "In God We Trust: All Others Pay Cash" (1966 book) With Shepard narrating as adult Ralphie.
Oh yeah, this post isn't going to be about the movie in linear fashion, because I feel that wouldn't be of service to those haven't seen or to those who have. That's also why I kind of stayed away from writing about it. That and because I think everyone has seen it, because I watch it so much and grew up with it , it just felt normal.
For me, there is a nostalgia in the movie, just because I grew up with someone who loved the movie dearly. Then I have grown to love it as much as say a "A Charlie Brown Christmas". The part of the movie that happens on Christmas Day, feels like Christmas Day when I was growing up. I'd wake up early, run down the stairs for Christmas, open a gifts in a mass, and kind of just spend the day playing with the new gifts and day drifts on.
The movie takes place in I guess before the War. (World War II) Sometime between the late 30's and not December 1941; that or a parallel world where the war doesn't happen. The move isn't really about the 1940's (30's) it's a time setting of nostalgic Americans in the late 70's early 80's , like how the 90's are now. (Unless you are reading this in 2053 and then I don't know, I'm glad someone survived enough and is reading this post) The movie is A Christmas story, one kid's Christmas story time , but that many can relate themselves.
There has always been the one gift that was truly wanted for Christmas, and you'd find ways to make sure you would get it. The whole Christmas season of anticipation where the days leading up are exciting and hopeful. Ralphie hopes that he gets that one gift, his Red Ryder B-B Gun with a compass in the stock, and this thing that tells time, but there's a limit but instead of the classic line of "it's too expensive" or "well see", it's "You'll shoot your eye out." a better line for a comedy movie. It makes you want to root for him, because maybe you've had your own "you'll shoot your eye out" for something you really wanted. Ralph Parker's whole mission in the movie is to get his gun. He tries to convince Mom, notice it's her and not Dad, and she throws out that line, he tries to write a paper, since the teacher does a cool assignment of writing what would you want for Christmas? (That sounds fun) He gets a C+ and he takes it as a slight against him being able to have his dream gift , instead of the formatting. (Would be weird if she was grading everyone's gift choices) The final solution was to ask Santa, the mall one, and gets told the same line. When it hits Christmas Day, you kind of hope he gets the gift, and the movie makes you wait to see if you were expecting it or not.
The movie knows that kid waiting for a gun and wanting a gun plot line might not hold the 94 minutes (that's how it airs 2 hours evenly on cable TV) and so it's told in vignettes. We get to learn about the Parker family for example. There's the dad, who is just called The Old Man, he 's played by Darren McGavin who makes the role work. There's a plot line where he wins a sexy lady's leg... in lamp form. Which, I'm sure would be more scandalous in the 1940's than now. He didn't know he won a leg, he just likes playing contests and sends things in and found out he won a leg lamp. Mrs. Parker, who also has no name, is not really a fan of this leg, or the idea of having in the front room window. (There's only one leg her husband should be looking at )
That's a story arc, where the reactions are great, but passive ways the mother hates the lamp is great. Where the ending of that arc and you see her face is just priceless. Melinda Dillon plays the mom role well too. The furnace fighting thing runs a few times for convenience more than anything. To say that the old man speaks like a sailor. Something I didn't catch as a kid, that the gibberish was covering up swear words.
The neighbors, the Bumpus family, that we never see, has tons of dogs. Ralph says there's 785, because that's what a kid would say. They seem to be attracted to the old man and play a part to the movie. The bully arc, is something of it's own, relating back to the kid world. Raphie and his friends , Flick and Schwartz (One of these has to be a last name , or their parents hate them) have these bullies mostly one guy named Scut Farkus (he's probably angry at being named Scut) and Grover Dill, who is like a yes man who decided to ally with the bully instead of being bullied or something. There is an end to that plot that connects to Ralph feeling bad that his paper got a C+ and might not be getting what he wants for Christmas. Scut messes with him like normal, but Ralphie was not having it and starts beating the crap out of him. Where, I'm conflicted you know what? Scut was an annoying bully, I hope he learned his lesson. (This part of the movie is probably another good thing it didn't come out in modern times, for many reasons, or take place in modern times)
The movie presents a child world too, having it's own rules and ideals. A kid being dared to stick his tongue on a cold pole is stupid, but it's a thing kids do, have their own rules and feel they have or it would be wrong. Again other thing, is the teacher kind of figured out what happened, but she's not going to pursue it if Flick or anyone else is going to say anything. I don't think would happen in modern times, but also Flick is also slightly responsible for the action as much as being dared to do it.
Don't try this at home... with your home poles....
A kid cussing is a dramatic thing, like they hear a word and repeat it and oops. There's also something that people should know if they don't already, many kids do cuss around each other, they just hope the parents hear or see it. Ralphie accidently says the F word (Fox ?) around the wrong person, the old man. The reaction of the Old Man is funny, and the mom finding out is priceless. Then he gets the classic soap in his mouth. I will use this mention how the movie also has Ralph doing these dream sequences. Probably the funniest one is the one where he imagines himself older, but played by younger self as gone blind from the soap poisoning him. These sequences child like in the good way and really show his childish self since he is one.
In the old days, before TV ruined things. people got their entertainment from radio. Ralphie wants a decoder pin from Little Orphan Annie (the real life radio show) where you can relate to him if you were a kid a sent away for something or tried to get free toy or something and it's not what you expected. Well played.
He really wants to save to save Anne
Randy, poor Randy, his younger brother doesn't have much focus in the movie, but does have some arcs of his own; mostly blending into the story. Randy can't put his arms down because his mother dressed him up in so much winter clothes. Also he's a picky eater. Randy doesn't really get that much focus other wise, he's more a plot device and there to fill out the family. If this movie was made today, they probably would have wanted a sequel about Randy and like Easter or something.
I've been writing about Christmas specials for awhile, and also have enjoyed them. One thing, I have noticed in looking for stuff, how much there is, how some have had lasting power to rerun on TV for years while others die. Same with movies too. In our modern times (drink?) there are so many just made for TV christmas movies alone. Hallmark Channel , Hallmark Channel's sister Channel, Life Time Network, alone just make so much Made for TV Christmas movies, that they might have the process of making movies in a factory. Netflix gets into the market, there's Christmas movies that still released to buy for $1 at the store, there's Fox Nation Christmas movies, it really just is there like a pile of stuff that seems more disposable. Weirdly, a lot of media in general has felt more that way in general.
A lot of newer Christmas films seem to go for the sappy and "meaning of the holiday, but well not the religion one, you calm down there" story idea. Repeating the same message that Christmas is about friends, family, romance (?), good will to others, and that's fine, it's not a bad message, but it also feels kind of processed- engineered to feel like it's ticking off boxes on making a movie for Christmas than caring about its story.
"A Christmas Story" is subtle it shows that the family cares about each other, even when they are wrapped in their own things. The Mom and Dad do love each other even if she hates the lamp, Ralphie knows his parents care about him, even if they have to be tough on him sometimes. The movie is showing a family's Christmas through a "normal" boy, not a boy who seems wise beyond his years and really without any character, one who knows what he wants and focuses on it, like we have done at Christmas time.
It is a simple movie, a few settings, comedy interspersed through out. It doesn't get sappy to make you feel sappy, you'll feel that yourself if you feel related to anything in the movie. Like I mentioned already, the Christmas day scene feels like how Christmas was when I was growing up.
The other thing about this movie is that got popular thanks to Ted Turner's madness and deciding to run the movie alot then doing a 24 hour marathon and going on with it for years and years even without Ted Turner there anymore. It kind of made a little movie, have more fans, but also kind of gave the movie an over exposure. To the point where there's musicals, merchandise, weird tacky stuff, a sequel movie that doesn't exist (I'm like a country not saying another country exists and not recognizing it) It's not a grand story, nobody's trying to save Santa from a sports reporter who wants take away Christmas from kids because they are tired of having to work on Christmas covering the sports that run on that date, while a woman meets a childhood friend in a small made up town in Washington State, and they have some heat going, but she finds out he's getting married, but his girlfriend is a awful person, luckily they get locked in to room and when they talk, he sees what he's missing, while Tim Allen comes in with the Grinch both dressed as Santa to save Christmas from the Martians who have found away to let an 8 year old boy get lost in New York on 34th street , where he meets a guy named Chris Kingle and his friend, Buddy, who are brought on trial to see if Santa is real and the movie ends with a bald action hero saving Christmas by shooting the kidnappers and Santa realizes that it's time for his son to take over the operation. (What?)
It's a good movie to see and makes Christmas simple, like Christmas should be in a way, where it shouldn't feel over the top. It really is one Christmas story that we get to see here. Like I said, I love this movie, it's one I watch every year many times. So this is not an unbiased critical post ,it's more a why I love it, when some information about the movie spliced in. I wanted to keep this post simple, minus my really long joke up there. It's also a movie you can put in between a movie a kid can watch and feel like they shouldn't be a time, since there is minor swearing, just not the strong words, made back when PG meant something.
That's it for now, tune in next time, when I don't talk about A Christmas Story 2, I will never talk about it, it doesn't even exist.
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