Miracle on 34th Street

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Miracle on 34th Street

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Miracle on 34th Street Recent Reviews

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Miracle on 34th Street Recent Reviews
  • AgentLexi2132
    December 25, 2009
    AgentLexi2132
    Pending a good ole review baby!
  • PvtCaboose91
    December 25, 2009
    PvtCaboose91
    "Faith is believing when common sense tells you not to. Don't you see? It's not just Kris that's on trial, it's everything he stands for. It's kindness and joy and love and all the other intangibles."


    Nothing says Christmas quite like the classics can. In a contemporar

    ...( read more)y cinematic age governed by a desire for cash over quality, few - if any - modern Christmas flicks are destined to be as popular as the seasonal favourites of old. One picture which ranks highly in the category of Yuletide classics is the 1947 masterpiece Miracle on 34th Street. It's interesting to note just how unlikely this film's success was - back in the '40s, it was a film the studio had no idea know how to handle. It was selected for a summer release (in America, that is, when movie-goers aren't in the mood for movies about Santa Claus), it was armed with a surprisingly astute social insight, it offered subtle jabs at festive commercialism, and was infused with an intersection of law and politics. But Miracle on 34th Street found its audience, and was bestowed with acclaim and Oscars. Anchored by a winning combination of warm, sincere performances, magical moments, and a screenplay that's both sentimental and smart, Miracle on 34th Street should be required viewing on Christmas Eve. Children will find it a rewarding fantasy about the existence of Santa, while older, more mature viewers will be rewarded with an intelligence often lacking in Christmastime entertainment.


    As the film begins, the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City is about to take place. The Santa Claus hired for said parade is found to be slightly inebriated, and the parade organiser, Doris Walker (O'Hara), is left with no other option but to hire an elderly man she encounters (Gwenn) who happens to look remarkably like Santa. Due to the success of the parade, this old man is then hired as the department store Santa at Macy's, and is a huge hit: he's wonderful with children and is genuinely full of the Christmas spirit. In fact, this man claims that he actually is Kris Kringle himself. Problem is, Doris is raising her daughter Susan (Wood) with directness and honestly, meaning a complete absence of fairy tales, myths...and Santa Claus. Kris' ostensibly ridiculous claim is challenged, of course. Ultimately, rationality and the fantastical meet head to head in a courtroom where the sanity of Kris Kringle is to be determined.


    Similar to other Christmas films set during the first half of the twentieth century (like A Christmas Story and It's a Wonderful Life, to name a couple), Miracle on 34th Street evokes and captures a time of sheltered innocence far removed from this day and age. It's almost impossible to imagine a period ever existing - a time when a trip to the department store meant dressing in your very best clothes, and when a stranger across the hall could be trusted alone with a little girl. To view Miracle on 34th Street is not to step back in time per se, but to enter a nostalgic dream wherein an array of wonderful moments unfold: Kris Kringle singing with a little Dutch girl, the great Thelma Ritter in an unbilled cameo as an early benefactor of Kringle's natural goodwill, and the United States Postal Service opting to dump all the undelivered Santa letters on Kris when he's in court.


    George Seaton started as a radio actor before moving behind the camera during the 1930s. Miracle on 34th Street was only his fourth movie as a director, but he shows a solid sense of craftsmanship. Seaton's visuals may not exactly be outstanding, but he shows a true gift for working with actors (which comes back to the fact that he was an actor himself prior to his directorial career). Edward Gwenn's performance as Kris Kringle, for which he earned an Oscar, is wonderfully endearing - he's the perfect movie Santa Claus. Gwenn portrays the jolly fat man as the embodiment of goodwill and kind-heartedness; the type of person that makes you smile just by seeing them. Best of all, he deftly keeps his character ambiguous as to whether he genuinely is Santa Claus or just a sweetly deluded old man. Either way, you can't help but love the guy. Further additions to the cast include the wonderful Maureen O'Hara who's very convincing as Doris, and the precocious young Natalie Wood who's an utter joy as Susan.


    Miracle on 34th Street also stands out due to its innovative (for the time) and extensive use of authentic locations - Seaton managed to integrate his actors into the real Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade (Gwenn even played Santa for the event), and a few specific scenes were shot inside an actual Macy's department store with real workers and customers in the background. Such techniques are highly effective, as is the film's extraordinarily clever ambiguity. No-one ever definitively declares Kris to be the real Santa Claus, nor does the movie prove in any way that Santa exists, and there isn't a single shred of hard evidence to suggest Kris truly is Santa. Just as Doris and Susan slowly begin to gain faith in the unprovable, so does the audience. Sure, hints are presented in Kris' favour, but nothing is solid. It's up to us to believe and interpret the ending however we want.


    It may not approach the dizzying heights of the brilliant Christmas staple It's a Wonderful Life, but Miracle on 34th Street remains a smart, immensely enjoyable festive fable that carefully hedges its bets in playing the line between reality and fantasy. In this regard, Edmund Gwenn's performance as Kris Kringle is pitch-perfect because he's able to generate the belief that Santa Claus is not just a mere impossibility, even for the adults (both in the audience and in the film) who should "know better". Yet, this movie refuses to get mushy on us. The sentiment is earned and genuine, but never forced. Seaton's screenplay is sharp; the tender drama is deftly combined with sly humour (this is actually a very funny movie) and a knowing, biting commentary on the commercialism of Christmas that grows more relevant with each passing year (I wonder what Kris would think about the state of Christmas commercialism today...). Miracle on 34th Street is not some cornball effort that uses the Christmas backdrop as a way to cheaply jerk a tear...it's a simple story of how decency and kindness will win over the most cynical of hearts. Here is a movie that doesn't push the materialistic aspect of the festive season (Jingle All the Way, anyone?) but rather the spirit of the holiday. It is, quite plainly, the Christmas spirit put on film.
  • kiriyamakazou
    December 15, 2009
    kiriyamakazou
    It avoids any sentimental, schmaltzy rubbish, and goes for a sweet sense of humour that really does aim itself at the child in adults as well as kids themselves. Miracle on 34th Street also manages to be a look at society's perception of sanity, which is a great idea for a Christ...( read more)mas film about Santa. The performances are very real and Gwenn is completely believable as Santa. He's a kind soul and manages to avoid the creepiness that usually comes with Santa. It shows us the true meaning of Christmas and faith, but doesn't completely attack the enjoyable commercial side. Just glad it doesn't give a definite answer one way or the other.
  • irisheyes686
    December 6, 2009
    irisheyes686
    So cute! Wood was a good actress, even as a little girl, and the story was adorable. One of the best Christmas movies for sure!
  • bradwest
    December 25, 2008
    bradwest
    Well, I have to review something festive this time of year and this picture isn't quite as schmaltzy as some.

    It's quite cute, with writing actually better than 75% of what's produced today. The kids aren't annoying, the court scenes almost play like they could've come from Bo...( read more)ston Legal and there's enough screwball comedy to make it worth sitting through.

    You could do worse (and if you watch the remake you will).
  • Yelverton
    January 1, 2010
    Yelverton
    Heartwarming family movie. It's a classic.
  • QueenDebbie
    December 26, 2009
    QueenDebbie
    Brilliant Christmas film. Nice, interesting story and heartwarming!
  • davejdavies
    December 26, 2009
    davejdavies
    Excellent Christmas movie. The old movies are always the best.
  • jackass001
    December 15, 2009
    jackass001
    one of the good classic christmas movie of the 1940's. this one is better than the 1994 remake. good plot and the some of casts.
  • sportboy
    November 30, 2009
    sportboy
    Review coming soon..
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