#94: A Christmas Story

Release Date: November 19th, 1983

Format: Streaming (Max)

Written by: Leigh Brown, Bob Clark, and Jean Shepherd

Directed by: Bob Clark

4 Stars

I was ready to give A Christmas Story the designation of best “traditional” Christmas movie of all-time (no Gremlins or Die Hard), but after discussing this with coworkers during lunch today, I realized how many Christmas movie blindspots I have.

I have never seen White Christmas or Miracle on 34th Street. Or The Polar Express. Or It’s a Wonderful Life.

I’m clearly under qualified to crown a Christmas movie GOAT. 

But I’ll make my case for A Christmas Story anyway (and for the record, Home Alone would be my close 2nd place). 

What I love about A Christmas Story is the reality in which it exists. In the reality of this movie, Santa is not real. Sure, Ralphie and his brother think he exists, and a young child watching A Christmas Story will believe that he exists, but he doesn’t. The adults, both in the movie and in the audience, know that there is no Santa Claus. In this way, the movie beautifully captures this strange phenomena that surrounds Christmas, in which adults build a magical world in which children are allowed, even encouraged, to believe in magical things. 

I think it’s wonderful writing. And it sidesteps a pitfall for many Christmas classics, in which the holiday of Christmas is depicted in a real world, with real human characters, but implicitly (and sometimes explicitly) tells the audience that a magical Santa Claus also exists.

Well what the hell does that mean? Could you imagine the public’s reaction to the existence of a real Santa Claus, who flies around the world with his magical reindeer? The Santa Clause and A Christmas Vacation would have you believe that it's no big deal. All the protagonist needs to do is give a knowing wink to a child or his spouse and on with the story.

A screenwriter would be better served to write a movie that’s complete Christmas fantasy (Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Frosty the Snowman, Elf) or a completely iconoclastic Christmas movie that subverts the whole genre (The Nightmare Before Christmas, Bad Santa, Scrooged, Violent Night).

A Christmas Story finds a way to do both of these things tastefully. The Christmas fantasy exists in the daydreams of Ralphie, and the subversion happens in the funny, unflattering depiction of his childhood upbringing. 

The result is a heartwarming (but never saccharine), funny (but never tasteless), and surprisingly truthful (but never boring) Christmas classic.