A Christmas Story (1983): "You'll shoot your eye out, kid!"

[Browncoat]

On 1/20/2022 at 8:14 PM, BetterButter said:

‘A Christmas Story’ Sequel in the Works With Original Star Peter Billingsley

What the hell is the point of that?  Not everything needs a sequel! 

[Tom Holmberg]

19 minutes ago, Browncoat said:

What the hell is the point of that?  Not everything needs a sequel! 

Technically there have been a number of sequels, i.e., films about "Parker" family, either made-for-TV or theatrical,, based Jean Shepherd's stories.

Edited October 18, 2022 by Tom Holmberg

[Kel Varnsen]

I feel like it is a tough movie to make a decent sequel to. Because it takes place in like Christmas of 1939 or 1940 I think. So what's the next year's Christmas, the aftermath of Pearl Harbour? By the time WWII is over Ralphie is a much older teen, so that would be a much different story then the story of a funny little kid.

[Ohiopirate02]

28 minutes ago, Browncoat said:

What the hell is the point of that?  Not everything needs a sequel! 

I would be down for a meta sequel where Peter Billingsley plays Brian Jones.  Brian bought the house the movie used for exterior shots on Ebay.  He then sold leg lamps online in order to fund a full renovation of the house to match the movie.  The house is now open as a museum and does allow for overnight guests on the third floor--the only floor not included in the movie in any capacity.  Brian has also purchased other homes nearby including the Bumpus house.  

Adult Ralphie holds no interest for me.  

[Spartan Girl]

And just so that we’re clear, I never liked the first movie and have never understood why they marathon it every damn year. 

[Tom Holmberg]

I'd suggest trying to watch "The Phantom of the Open Hearth" (1976) for a good movie about the "Parker" family.

[BetterButter]

[PaulaO]

On 10/18/2022 at 1:47 PM, Ohiopirate02 said:

I would be down for a meta sequel where Peter Billingsley plays Brian Jones.  Brian bought the house the movie used for exterior shots on Ebay.  He then sold leg lamps online in order to fund a full renovation of the house to match the movie.  The house is now open as a museum and does allow for overnight guests on the third floor--the only floor not included in the movie in any capacity.  Brian has also purchased other homes nearby including the Bumpus house.  

Adult Ralphie holds no interest for me.  

For a minute I pictured a movie starring Brian Jones from the Stones and he bought the house and was giving tours…..

[Gharlane]

On 11/24/2015 at 12:34 AM, nobodyyoucare said:

Also this was one of a series of films based upon the works of Jean Shepherd

These films all had the Parker family.

The Phantom of the Open Hearth (1976)

The Great American Fourth of July and Other Disasters (1982)

The Star-Crossed Romance of Josephine Cosnowski (1985)

Ollie Hopnoodle's Haven of Bliss (1988)

My Summer Story (originally released as It Runs in the Family) the actual sequel to A Christmas Story in 1994.

A Christmas Story 2 released in 2012. 

 Can we pretend the last one never existed? I watched it once and it was clearly an attempt at cashing in on the popularity of the original Xmas movie.

[BlueSkies]

The original was a great movie but feels beyond saturated at this point.

I'll probably watch the sequel at some point but dont have high expectations 

[ch1]

I enjoyed the new movie.  It had me laughing and crying.  It’s not a classic but it is an entertaining Christmas movie.  It’s also a nice nod to Darrin McGavin.

[Mr. Sparkle]

I liked it, even if it won't be shown on TBS 75 times a year. It managed to capture the spirit and tone of the original without copying it entirely. The ending got me right in the feels! 

[Anela]

My dad hates the original. I didn't know there was a new one.

[Nicmar]

On 11/19/2022 at 5:10 PM, ch1 said:

I enjoyed the new movie.  It had me laughing and crying.  It’s not a classic but it is an entertaining Christmas movie.  It’s also a nice nod to Darrin McGavin.

I just wish Melinda Dillion reprised her role as the mom

[ch1]

2 hours ago, Nicmar said:

I just wish Melinda Dillion reprised her role as the mom

Same.

[joanne3482]

On 11/28/2022 at 9:10 AM, Nicmar said:

I just wish Melinda Dillion reprised her role as the mom

I looked it up as to why she wasn't back. She retired from acting in 2007. 

I loved this. I am probably right in the correct age bracket for it having seen the first one when I was just about Ralphie's age and now this one at older than Ralphie's age. 😆  

[stonehaven]

This one hit all the right beats. I lost it when Ralphie got the call. This is my first Christmas without Mom and the feels were there as well as the laughter. It didn't suck which surprised me. Good, good reboot.

[WhitneyWhit]

Count me in as someone who loves it. I watch the marathon every year. 
 

However has anyone else noticed that their Christmas tree just disappears after they buy it? We see them buying it, then days go by before we she them decorating it on Christmas Eve. This has bothered me since I was a kid. 

[Anela]

21 hours ago, stonehaven said:

This one hit all the right beats. I lost it when Ralphie got the call. This is my first Christmas without Mom and the feels were there as well as the laughter. It didn't suck which surprised me. Good, good reboot.

I kept falling asleep when we put it on, because I was exhausted, but I said, "oh NO!" when he got the call, and I realized what they were going to say. 

[Bastet]

After all these years, middle-of-the-night insomnia Christmas Eve finally prompted me to try this (the original) since it's on a fucking loop on a family of stations.  I couldn't hang all the way through, I was so uninterested.  Did anyone who loves this movie fall in love with it as an adult rather than continuing to watch as an adult at least partially due to a childhood love of it?  Because I have quite a few movies of the latter scenario, where I know if I watched them for the first time now, I'd find no appeal, but because I loved them so much as a kid, I still adore them today.

I just don't get it, whatever it is.

[Browncoat]

I first saw it as an adult (well, college student-type adult), and I liked it then and still do.  I can watch it a couple of times during the annual marathon -- I somehow manage to start in the middle the first time and then watch it all the way through and back to where I first started, but not more than that.  My father enjoys it, but my older sister does not.

[chessiegal]

I saw it the first time as a 30 something adult. I did not like it, but it maybe because I was forced to watch it by an adult stepson who declared it to be the funniest movie of all time. 

That said, I have learned to like it. Part of Christmas tradition at our house is one viewing of it.

It's got some good lines worth repeating. Last year I reviewed a homework assignment by one of my grandaughters. When I finished, with all the drama I could muster, I said "A+++"! She got it. ☺️

Edited December 30, 2022 by chessiegal

[Rickster]

I first saw this as a young-ish adult and loved it, maybe more as I got older. It probably helped that my mother told me I was the spitting image of Ralphie when I was a kid. It has an element of nostalgia for me too.  I spent my early childhood in a town not unlike the one in the movie, and I’m old enough to be able to vaguely relate to the settings in the movie, as if I came in at the very tail end of that mid century era. I can see where that wouldn’t happen for younger generations.

This one and National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation are our annual traditions.

[Giuseppe]

I really only like the back half of the first movie, starting about when they go get the Christmas tree, and i'll generally make it a point to watch at some point during the annual marathon airing. This new movie i thought was actually really good all the way through. The story was great and a fitting tribute to Darrin McGavin. I thought all the old characters were used appropriately and got the right amount of screen time without feeling like they were shoe-horned in just to make cameos, and it was pretty cool seeing all the original actors as well. As others have said, if Melinda Dillon had wished to reprise her role, it would've been near perfect. Also appreciate that the new movie was still told from Ralphie's viewpoint, rather than focusing on one of the kids. I loved it and can see myself watching this one every year as opposed to the original. It actually felt more Christmas-y.

I might have missed it at the beginning, but what year did this take place? Early 70s? I know Ralphie's fantasy of winning the writing prize was 1974, but didn't know if that was supposed to be a couple years in the future or something.

 

[paramitch]

I will always love A CHRISTMAS STORY. So much. 

As a teenager, I loved the kid stuff, the jokes, "I can't put my arms down!," the Major Award, the Bumpus's dogs, Ralphie saying "Fudge" -- and especially how this one single toy was the key to Ralphie's happiness. 

As an adult, I love the sly sweet little grownup touches -- the Old Man's banters with Mom, his obsession with contests, Mom trying the Lifebuoy soap (and being so sweet to Ralphie after the fight with Scut), "Show me how the piggies eat!", and most of all, the little moment at the end after the kids have gone to bed, and Ralphie's parents are just hanging out in front of the tree and are kind of sexy together.

I just love how everyone in it feels like a real person, especially his parents. Melinda Dillon was so wonderful in it, but Darren McGavin was a frigging national treasure.

Even years later, even not during the holidays, my family still automatically responds "Must be Italian!" anytime we see the word "Fragile" on packaging.

On 11/23/2015 at 6:56 PM, Sharpie66 said:

You can see Peter Billingsley, briefly, in the first Iron Man film. He's one of the Stark Industries scientists trying to replicate the arc tech for Jeff Bridges. Apparently, he's a buddy of Jon Favreau's.

Peter made a cameo in IRON MAN, but he was also the executive producer. He's mostly a producer nowadays (Iron Man, Zathura, Dinner for Five, Etc.)

On 12/29/2015 at 11:16 PM, Lovecat said:

He also plays Ming-Ming (an elf) in Elf, another Jon Favreau joint. I think he cameos in just about every Favreau film.

He's adorable as Ming-Ming (he still has those big blue eyes)! And I love that you can see him in most Favreau movies. But I'm also happy he's returned to acting more -- not just with the Christmas Story sequel this past year, but also in Spider-Man: Far From Home, etc., too.

[festivus]

12 hours ago, paramitch said:

I just love how everyone in it feels like a real person, especially his parents. Melinda Dillon was so wonderful in it, but Darren McGavin was a frigging national treasure.

So much. ❤️

I love this movie. Didn't see it till I was in my 30s so no nostalgia thing, it's just a damn good movie. I used to watch the 24 hour marathon when I still had cable and my family hated me, lol.

Except my dad. He was about the same age as Ralphie in the early 40s and he could relate to the movie and he even remembers wanting that rifle for Christmas and yes, he did receive it. I will always think of him when I watch it.

The funniest thing for me besides anything the old man does is "I can't put my arms down" and the kind of whiny crying Randy does. Then when he falls down outside and narrator Ralphie says: "Randy lay there like a slug. It was his only defense."

This movie is brilliant.

[Crashcourse]

The Old Man cracked me up with his constant cursing at the Bumpus's dogs--and that basement furnace! 🤣  I kinda wish we'd seen the basement because I have a feeling it looked just like my grandparents' (which I was scared to go down into). 

And the lesson I learned is to never, ever stick your tongue to an ice cold metal pole. 

[Crashcourse]

Oh, and the dogs got MAJOR payback when they ran off with the turkey! 😋

[Cobalt Stargazer]

5 hours ago, Crashcourse said:

The Old Man cracked me up with his constant cursing at the Bumpus's dogs

"Sons-a-bitchin'.....BUMPUSES!!!!!"

[festivus]

Y'all I was so disappointed in the sequel when the kids didn't gather up a huge bag of Bumpass dog poop for the snowmobile bullies' surprise. I was just sure that's what was happening and then stump.

[SomeTameGazelle]

On 12/26/2022 at 10:36 AM, WhitneyWhit said:

However has anyone else noticed that their Christmas tree just disappears after they buy it? We see them buying it, then days go by before we she them decorating it on Christmas Eve. This has bothered me since I was a kid. 

I don't remember how they buy it but it seems normal to me to allow time between buying the tree and putting it up (to allow it to "settle"), especially if the family tradition is to decorate on Christmas Eve. 

[AgathaC]

I grew up watching this every year — usually on an endless loop on TBS Christmas Eve/day. I always loved it as a kid and have always had a particular interest in what life was like in other time periods. So even just the Look Magazine and the products on kitchen shelves fascinated me. Though I admit to being confused when the kids run up to bed and The Old Man says “Ok, let’s go get ‘em.” I was that young. I can’t remember how my parents explained that away…

As an adult, I have to admit, it gets me in the feelings. Particularly when Ralphie gets his rifle and The Old Man is giddy. The whole movie, he’s been focused on winning over his mom. His dad has seemed fairly disconnected. Turns out, he knew a lot more than Ralphie (or we) thought and took it upon himself to make his son’s Christmas wish come true.

That and the parents watching the snow fall now have new meaning and impact to adult me.

[Ohiopirate02]

49 minutes ago, AgathaC said:

I grew up watching this every year — usually on an endless loop on TBS Christmas Eve/day. I always loved it as a kid and have always had a particular interest in what life was like in other time periods. So even just the Look Magazine and the products on kitchen shelves fascinated me. Though I admit to being confused when the kids run up to bed and The Old Man says “Ok, let’s go get ‘em.” I was that young. I can’t remember how my parents explained that away…

As an adult, I have to admit, it gets me in the feelings. Particularly when Ralphie gets his rifle and The Old Man is giddy. The whole movie, he’s been focused on winning over his mom. His dad has seemed fairly disconnected. Turns out, he knew a lot more than Ralphie (or we) thought and took it upon himself to make his son’s Christmas wish come true.

That and the parents watching the snow fall now have new meaning and impact to adult me.

The Old Man truly loved his family even if he appeared to be disconnect to them.  I love the looks he gives his wife when Ralphie comes down the stairs in the bunny handmade monstrosity in between his quip "he looks like a deranged Easter bunny."  He really is a good dad for the time period.  

[Cobalt Stargazer]

4 hours ago, AgathaC said:

As an adult, I have to admit, it gets me in the feelings. Particularly when Ralphie gets his rifle and The Old Man is giddy. The whole movie, he’s been focused on winning over his mom. His dad has seemed fairly disconnected.

Because the movie is told from Ralphie's perspective, it makes sense that he would see his mom as the obstacle between him and his dream Christmas present. The Old Man went off to work every day while Mom stayed home, and it's never even made clear what The Old Man did for a living, I don't think. It's Mom who pulls Ralphie off of Scut Farkus, and it's Mom who puts the soap in his mouth after the "Fuuuuuuuudge" incident, and that's on top of being the only one who can get Randy to eat. But even Mom was surprised that The Old Man would make sure Ralphie got the gun he wanted, because he had one when he was that age. I wonder if he also had an encounter with an 'icicle'. 😉

P.S. - I love that even we call him The Old Man. Shows how some things stick even over time.

Edited January 9, 2023 by Cobalt Stargazer

[Ohiopirate02]

8 minutes ago, Cobalt Stargazer said:

Because the movie is told from Ralphie's perspective, it makes sense that he would see his mom as the obstacle between him and his dream Christmas present. The Old Man went off to work every day while Mom stayed home, and it's never even made clear what The Old Man did for a living, I don't think. It's Mom who pulls Ralphie off of Scut Farkus, and it's Mom who puts the soap in his mouth after the "Fuuuuuuuudge" incident, and that's on top of being the only one who can get Randy to eat. But even Mom was surprised that The Old Man would make sure Ralphie got the gun he wanted, because he had one when he was that age. I wonder if he also had an encounter with an 'icicle'. 😉

P.S. - I love that even we call him The Old Man. Shows how some things stick even over time.

I have always thought The Old Man grew up on a farm and moved to the city for more opportunity.  To me this explains why he gets Ralphie the gun because he grew up around them, why he thinks he can fix the furnace, and also his vendetta against the ill-behaved Bumpus Hounds.  The Old Man moved to Cleveland the unnamed city in Indiana as a younger man and met Ralphie's mom there and rarely spoke of his childhood.  And that's why it never occurred to Ralphie that The Old Man was the key to getting his heart's desire.  

[Lovecat]

23 hours ago, Cobalt Stargazer said:

"Sons-a-bitchin'.....BUMPUSES!!!!!"

The go-to curse in our house, followed by "BADAFINGAH!!"

[Crashcourse]

I also loved Ralphie's schoolteacher because she reminded me of my 5th grade teacher.  

[Sarah 103]

On 1/9/2023 at 11:59 AM, AgathaC said:

The whole movie, he’s been focused on winning over his mom. His dad has seemed fairly disconnected. Turns out, he knew a lot more than Ralphie (or we) thought and took it upon himself to make his son’s Christmas wish come true.

 

On 1/9/2023 at 12:52 PM, Ohiopirate02 said:

The Old Man truly loved his family even if he appeared to be disconnect to them.  I love the looks he gives his wife when Ralphie comes down the stairs in the bunny handmade monstrosity in between his quip "he looks like a deranged Easter bunny."  He really is a good dad for the time period.  

 

I grew up watching this movie, but there are some things that I have only recently picked up on as an adult. Ralphie's father offers him a sip of wine, he tells him he can take off the bunny outfit, and buys him the rifle/BB gun. He is a good father, and not really the feared authority figure you would expect from Ralphie's narration. The only thing that bothers me is that when Ralphie's mother mentions that thier son got into a fight, I would think that the Old Man's first question would have been "Who won," because he seems like that kind of guy. 

 

 

[SomeTameGazelle]

On 11/19/2022 at 6:10 PM, ch1 said:

It’s also a nice nod to Darrin McGavin.

I read this and thought, "didn't James B Sikking play the dad?" I was quite shocked to discover that even though I picture Peter Billingsley as Ralphie I somehow took the image of the Old Man from Ollie Hopnoodle's Haven of Bliss which I didn't even remember existed.

[Sarah 103]

1 minute ago, SomeTameGazelle said:

I read this and thought, "didn't James B Sikking play the dad?" I was quite shocked to discover that even though I picture Peter Billingsley as Ralphie I somehow took the image of the Old Man from Ollie Hopnoodle's Haven of Bliss which I didn't even remember existed.

Also, James B Sikking played the dad on Doogie Howser, M.D. 

[SomeTameGazelle]

7 minutes ago, Sarah 103 said:

Also, James B Sikking played the dad on Doogie Howser, M.D. 

I'd forgotten that as well -- I associate him more strongly with Hill Street Blues. 

[Sarah 103]

I couldn't quite pause at the exact right moment(s), so I am hoping someone can answer a few questions for me. When Ralphie and Randy go to Higbees to meet Santa, is Ralphie wearing a 3 piece suit? Did they make 3 piece suits for boys that young in 1940? (Ralphie is 9).

It does not look like Randy is wearing a three piece suit, but he is wearing a tie.

[Cobalt Stargazer]

5 hours ago, Sarah 103 said:

I couldn't quite pause at the exact right moment(s), so I am hoping someone can answer a few questions for me. When Ralphie and Randy go to Higbees to meet Santa, is Ralphie wearing a 3 piece suit? Did they make 3 piece suits for boys that young in 1940? (Ralphie is 9).

It does not look like Randy is wearing a three piece suit, but he is wearing a tie.

I'm not sure where the distinction is between a suit and just a jacket and trousers, but more formal outfits were common for special occasions (church, going to dinner, etc). I'm sure you could find a suit for a young boy in the Sears catalog back then. You'll also notice that in several scenes, Ralphie is wearing a sweater over a collared shirt, which was considered casual wear. The Old Man also wears a suit for most of the movie, even when they're putting up the tree in the living room. Interesting, I'd never thought about this before.

[Taryn74]

On 12/27/2022 at 12:03 AM, Bastet said:

After all these years, middle-of-the-night insomnia Christmas Eve finally prompted me to try this (the original) since it's on a fucking loop on a family of stations.  I couldn't hang all the way through, I was so uninterested.  Did anyone who loves this movie fall in love with it as an adult rather than continuing to watch as an adult at least partially due to a childhood love of it?  Because I have quite a few movies of the latter scenario, where I know if I watched them for the first time now, I'd find no appeal, but because I loved them so much as a kid, I still adore them today.

I just don't get it, whatever it is.

I never even heard of this movie until my later teens, and it was a few years later before I actually watched it. Personally, I love it. I mean, really and truly LOVE. IT. For me, it perfectly captures the magic of what being a kid is all about, and maybe more importantly what looking back on your childhood is all about. So much of what is going on in the world around you when you're a kid flies over your head, but the things that do stand out are so very important they end up shaping your entire life in one way or another, even if it's something as seemingly minor as fantasizing about getting an A+++ on an essay in the third grade, LOL. So many of my formative memories about my childhood are the simplest of things -- playing chase with my friends after church in the parking lot while the adults stood around and talked, going to the local dairy bar for ice cream occasionally, using grass clippings and fallen pine needles to outline houses with all sorts of rooms and furniture "drawn" in, doing flips off the swings on the playground, the time my older cousin told one of my classmates to leave me alone when she had stolen my headband and wouldn't give it back, stuff like that.