These films lift the human spirit rather than crushing us with the realities of our politically correct age.
Having watched a lamentable film, Babel, that is being celebrated by the critics, and having endured the “happy holidays” debate to the point of exhaustion, perhaps it is only natural that I felt inspired to write about Christmas films that actually lift the human spirit rather than crushing us with the realities of our politically correct age.
Jesus of Nazereth
This is the best film ever made on the life of Jesus. Some would argue this is not technically a Christmas movie, which might be true, but as the first hour revolves around his birth, I took the liberty of including it here. (I have not seen Nativity, which may well deserve consideration as well). In any case, this film takes us from his birth (thus I include it on this list) to his resurrection. Robert Powell plays the lead role and does it convincingly – demonstrating both the charisma and divine presence that made Jesus such a cultural and religious force. But the supporting cast is also remarkable and includes such luminaries as Rod Steiger, James Farentino, Michael York, Peter Ustinov, Ann Bancroft, Lawrence Olivier and Christopher Plummer. This a remarkable production and one that strangely is overlooked when it comes time to rate great movies, perhaps because it is such a long epic – almost six hours long. This film is far superior in my mind to other versions that often get more attention.
It’s a Wonderful Life
This movie has long been a classic, and with good reason. Each life touches so many others, and we are tempted so often to measure success by the wrong barometer. Jimmy Stewart is the main focus, but there are notable performances as well from Lionel Barrymore (Mr. Potter), Henry Travers (Clarence) and Nick (the bartender), played by Sheldon Leonard. Holding communities together is not a feat we celebrate these days, but we should.
The Homecoming
The original Walton’s movie remains an American classic. From glimpses of the rural Virginia countryside in winter to the stressful absence of a loving father, the film hearkens back to a time when want was felt but family and community were strong. Patricia Neal is brilliant as the mother but Richard Thomas (John-boy), William Windom (Charlie Snead), Cleavon Little (Hawthorne Dooley) and Dorothy Stickney (Emily Baldwin) add texture to this evocative tale of a Depression era Christmas.
A Christmas Story
This little film rips the sanctimonious cover off Christmas as it reveals the true motivating spirit of a 9-year-old boy who craves a BB gun. This is a raucous, hilarious effort that on first viewing years ago left me rolling on the floor. Darren McGavin is memorable as the cranky but likeable father, but the child actors steal the show – Peter Billingsly (Ralphie), Scott Schwartz (Flick), and R.D. Robb (Schwartz.) This film is a good antidote for too much Christmas sweetness.
A Charlie Brown Christmas
It could be that I simply long to be an eight-year-old again, but in my judgment this little classic gets to the heart of Christmas as effectively as any film around. Charles Schulz’s vision of childhood and the holiday remains as compelling today as it was some forty years ago when this show first aired.
A Christmas Carol (with George C. Scott)
A faithful retelling of the great Dickens’s classic, this version is notable because of the performance of one of our era’s greatest actors. Whereas some earlier versions portray Scrooge as an inconsequential man hidden in the dark shadows of London, this version portrays Scrooge as a formidable man of business whose heart has shriveled but whose capacity for growth and charm is still intact.
A Christmas Carol (Alastair Sim)
This black and white classic is the second best version of the Dickens tale.
The Family Man
This one is likely to be disputed, but I think it is underrated. Starring Nicholas Cage, Tea Leoni and Don Cheadle, this is one of the best remakes of the It’s a Wonderful Life genre of Christmas movies. It is in due course funny, sentimental, and frightening. The end is beautifully moving as the Cage character tries to redeem a life of self-absorption and materialism. I was impressed with it across the board – and parts of it are hilarious.
How the Grinch Stole Christmas
Children still love this film some 40 years after it was first made. Boris Karloff’s voice is amazing.
Miracle on 34th Street
Natalie Wood was as cute as a kid as she was beautiful as an adult actress, and this wonderful story of what it means to believe in Santa Claus in a cynical age remains refreshing more than a half century after it first appeared.
Of course, I am leaving out many other favorites – Scrooged, a weird but hilarious rendition of this staple holiday story in which Bill Murray is – as always – hard to resist, An American Christmas Carol, White Christmas, the Muppet’s Christmas Carol, which is tons of fun, not to mention Tim Allen’s The Santa Claus and Christmas in Connecticut. And I know there are fans of Home Alone, Rudolph of the Rednosed Reindeer and A National Lampoon Christmas who might want to weigh in.
Let them be heard. And let me say Merry Christmas, at the risk of being hounded by the politically correct police.
shadroui@yahoo.com
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Another that should be on this list is "Pocketful of Miracles", starring Betty Davis, Glenn Ford, Hope Lange, Peter Falk, and Ann Margret. It is a Cinderella story in reverse, with Ford playing a gangster forced to play fairy-godmother and Falk as his furiously anxious henchman. Falk saves this movie from an excess of haminess. It's another Frank Capra film that's charmed audiences for decades. Not as good, perhaps, as "It's a Wonderful Life", but still something of a Christmas gem.
Let's not forget "White Christmas", with Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, and Rosemary Clooney. The story is very simple, but the songs alone make it a Christmas must see, and, of course, Kaye is fun to watch all by himself.
When I was a kid, another frequent Christmas favorite was Peter Pan; either the Mary Martin/Cyril Richards version or the Disney animated. Though there's nothing specifically Christmas in them (other than the redemption theme), they were huge with the kids.
Now don't laugh, but my favorite "Christmas Carol" remake is "Scrooged" with Bill Murray. Murray manages to be so cynical and despicable you're rooting for his abused employees to kneecap him or the ghosts of Christmas Present (played to perfection by Carol Kane) to whack him again with the toaster. It also doesn't hurt I graduated from high school with Karen Allen.
Comment by Robert W. Stapler | December 22, 2006