Rating: 
Summary: The Truth About Christmas
Review: Not too much in the way of mangers, hymns, sleigh bells jingling ring ting tingaling will be found here. This is the story of Christmas gone wrong in suburban America. It isn't, however, a pessimistic view of the failure of Christmas, it is a look at the redemption of family love, and the sick wonder of being a child.
Welcome to a world of sick lamps that are shaped like legs, of demented Santa-costume wearing mall workers, of a childs dream to own a simple BB gun, of dogs who eat Christmas dinner. Quite simply, everything that is humorously wrong about Christmas in America can be found in this movie. It is one of the most hilarious portrayals of Christmas on film, and will have you laughing at every turn.
Watch it with the family. Celebrate our strange traditions in the best fashion.
Rating: 
Summary: Christmas Classic that brings back your childhood experience
Review: A Christmas Story is a neo-classic tale, of a young boys quest for a Red Rider BB-gun, that truly rings in the holiday spirit. For me it almost happened the same way, except the gun was a toy called the "Johnny Seven", that boasted bullets, grenades, and missile launchers. Seen through the eyes of Ralphy, the Christmas story details perfectly, a kids eye view of what it is to fantasize, and lobby your parents for your favorite Christmas present.What was so amazing about the movie was how so many of those things happened to my family during one Christmas or another. Even the ruined dinner, causing them to go to the Chinese restaurant happened. Not by invading dogs, but by an overcooked bird. I think back then, Chinese restaurants were about the only places open on Christmas. Ralphie's adventures at school were typical as well, bullies, toadies, and the faceless mass of victims, were the order of the time. I used to get hit by bullies on the way home with these wooden rulers most school kids carried. My dad gave me a heavy brass one, that helped me win a few battles, but I was forbidden to take it to school later. You see it fell off my desk a few times, startled the teacher, and most of my classmates. Seeing Santa at the large department store, was always a big deal. We once waited for hours at the new outdoor mall for a Santa, who was to come in by helicopter. In the end, he didn't come, and the merchants tried to console us with discount coupons. The times I made it onto to Santa's lap, I was always convinced I'd get whatever I asked for, even though it didn't always turn out that way. The rest of the family in this movie was just as genuine; every dad has his quirks, and his talents. Every mom her ways of working the system to come out in her favor, at least most of the time. Behind the scenes, parents do some amazing things on Christmas. While I thought it was Santa at the time, it still amazes me to this day, how my dad built that fancy Lincoln Log Cabin. I was never able to come even close to duplicating it, once I took it apart. One of the main things that keep this movie genuine, is that it's an ordinary family, and a personal Christmas. Not everyone goes to bother the relatives during the holidays, at least not for an extended visit. We have a normal, intimate, family ceremony of opening the gifts, and then enjoying the presents. Like the classic gift scene in this movie, my dad had hidden from sight my "Johnny Seven", ultimate toy weapon, and only after I had looked disappointed enough, told me where to look. When this movie played for the first time in the 80's, those great times as a kid, all came back to me with some degree of fondness. As for this particular DVD incarnation. I love it when they give you both the Wide screen, and Full screen versions. In the not so distant future we may all be getting HDTV screens, with wide, motion picture, aspect ratio's. Some of the full screen only DVDs I have today, may end up with black bars on sides, (on the new wider TVs) due to how they are produced. If I have a choice, I buy the wide screen, and live with the letterbox. Its great when the producer gives you both, without charging you like your buying two movies.
Rating:
Summary: A Classic!
Review: When A Christmas Story first came out in the early 1980's I saw it three times because I kept dragging friends to view it. I bought a video copy when it came out on VHS; and I bought the DVD version when it came out a few years ago. This current DVD edition is the best yet. Compared to the orginal DVD, which I looked at for the sake of comparison, this 2003 edition has a much clearer image, better color, and a more balanced contrast. Although I have not been able to find any statement verifying my conclusion, I feel strongly the film has been digitally remastered for this special edition. As a result viewing this classic is more of a pleasure and delight than ever. I am very grateful for the fine technical job that Warner Brothers did on this release.
Rating:
Summary: Bob's Best is Our Holiday Treat
Review: "A Christmas Story" is one of those cinematic joys that are lucky enough to have a second life and become a true holiday classic. Director Bob Clark crafted a film adaptation of Jean Shepherd's autobiographical "In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash" that crackles with the author's humor and warms the heart like a yuletide log on the fire. Like all exemplary films it does this with a great story, fine actor performances, direction, and that most rare of qualities: resonance between its filmmakers and audience. Among the few Christmas holidays movies I (and my kids) watch annually, this one never misses a rotation. Set in the 1940's in the weeks before one fateful Christmas day (for what has to be one of film's quintessential American nine-year olds), one Ralph Parker begins his tactical scheme to convince his parents to gift the one thing he prizes most: an official Red Ryder-carbine action-200 shot-range model air rifle. My mother would have disdainfully called this a "bb-gun", but she shares a lot with Ralph's mom's sentiments. "You'll shoot your eye out!"--boy, does that bring back memories. And, with that, Shepherd and Clark begins the connection for the audience's holiday journey with the family Parker. Along the way (and through his eyes and ears), Ralph's travails with family, school, social miscreants, and the unique traditions and trappings of Xmas will be crystalized on celluloid. Also, as another wonderful film, "It's a Wonderful Life", could only take place in Bedford Falls, NY, this movie could only be in its northern Indiana setting. It only adds to the fun with its wintery Midwest perspective and customs. Finally, tag on to this Shepherd himself providing the wonderful voice-over narration to the story of his childhood thoughts, pathos, and sentiments of that era and you get a unique, gleeful mix. Peter Billingsley gives what may be his best performance as 'Ralphie' in a role most people will always associate him with. Who else could blurt out his one true desire in one lightning fast sentence to his mom, only to realize in the next split-second it was the worst thing he could say (and then quickly try to heroically recover from it) than this child actor. He may not have been used in many movies, but his precocious nature is pitch perfect here. He brings a kid's true depth of feeling to this banner day. "My mother hadn't had a hot meal for herself in 15 years." The underrated Melinda Dillon is equally up to the task as the mother that he attempts to win over in his Christmastide plan. Whether she's chastising Ralph with her 'mother-bb-gun-block' or using a pig as an hilarious example to motivate the younger Randy to eat dinner, she's one special parent and character in this movie. While it's Ralph's story, it's the mom that holds this family (and the holiday) together despite efforts by her oldest, and her husband. "My father worked in profanity the way other artists might work in oils or clay. It was his true medium--a master." Veteran character actor Darren McGavin almost steals the show with his portrayal of the "Old Man". He strikes fear in his sons, and challenges his wife with his poor artistic taste. But, he can also rescue his boy from a "pink nightmare" and save Christmas dinner by taking the family to a Chinese restaurant. He's a one-of-a-kind, grumpy (but merry) father. It's another one of the successes of this movie: all of the characters in it are great in their roles, no matter how small. From Ian Petrella as Ralph's little brother Randy to Zack Ward as the bully Scut Farkas, they are all consummate. This brings us to director Bob Clark. Who would have thought the one to have brought to filmdom the likes of the 'Porky's' movies and 'Rhinestone' could bring a holiday classic to life? Well, Bob brings all the comical traditions and anxiety of the holiday to this one. It's also a fine edge that his movie successfully walks with its jaded take on holiday commercialism and not lose its sentiment. His attention to detail of the time and characters portrayed are spot on. But, that should not surprise those who know he's the same director for such underrated fare like the suspense classic "Black Christmas" and the drama "Murder by Decree"--other favorites of mine. When this movie was first released on DVD in 1999 by Warner Studios, it was a bare bones package. However, the studio rectified that this past October by producing the 20th anniversary special edition of the film. You now get a beautiful picture, in both full and widescreen editions, an insightful commentary track by Clark and Billingsley, and a second disc loaded with other fun stuff that collectors and fans are sure to enjoy. While it wasn't a commercial success when it opened in theaters around November 1983, like another great holiday film (IaWL), later repeated TV viewings brought it deserved recognition. From its heap of quotable lines to its identifiable family quirks and seasonal habitude, it has much to relate to. Certainly, with this film, its easy to recount the Ralph in me (then at that age) and the Old Man (me now with my family) and to treasure all of it. And, it's that resonance, in my opinion, that makes it Bob's best.
Rating:
Summary: A Christmas Story
Review: As old a movie the Christmas Story may be, it will continue to have its twenty-four hour special every Christmas Eve because it's such a great movie. Not only is it hilarious, but it's also a great movie for the whole family to relax, lay around a warm fire, make some popcorn and all watch together. If you're looking for a funny, real-life, all together classic movie, The Christmas Story is the way to go. A Christmas Story was a hit when it first came out in 1983. Melinda Dillion, Darren McGavin, Peter Billingsley, and Ian Petrella are the four main characters in the movie. Peter, being Ralphie Parker, was the main one that the movie was basically all about. Ian was his little brother, Randy Parker, who followed him around all the time, and the other two were his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Parker. All the characters in the movie, evenif they weren't one of the four that I mentioned all added a little something to the flick. "You'll shoot your eye out!" That's all anyone ever said to poor Ralphie when he told them he wanted a Red Rider BB gun for Christmas. He didn't want a football. He didn't want a G.I. Joe. He didn't want that stupid, pink bunny suit he got from his aunt. All Ralphie wanted was his BB gun. The mother, being the cautious, old fashioned woman she is, wouldn't think twice about the BB gun, but the father on the other hand had a different point of view. Finally the big Christmas day arrives and the family opens up all the presents. No gun. The father asks Ralphie if he see's the hidden present that Ralphie must have missed. Could it be a football? Could it be a G.I. Joe? Could it be the gun? The Christmas dinner is a disaster, but Christmas as a whole was the best Christmas ever. The Christmas Story is a great movie to watch, even if it's not around Christmas time. It's so funny and fun to watch that there's no way anyone could possibly NOT like it. It's got great characters, an awesome theme, and a lot of humor. All in all, The Christmas Story is a must see. It's a Christmas tradition, and if you haven't seen it by now, make sure you tune your tv's to the Christmas Story on Christmas Eve all day and night long. The Christmas Story has beenone of my all time favorite movies since I was little, and it will continue to be, because no matter how long it's been around, this is a movie that will never grow old.
Rating:
Summary: Formatting
Review: The guy talking about video has no iead what he is talking about.DOnt listen to anything there. I work in the movie industry and noneof thenformation he give is completely correct. Scope and Flat films are done using different lenses. Widescreen movies are showing the film on your television the way they were shown in the theater. Confusing to somepeople, and obviously him too :)
Rating:
Summary: Is this reissue worth it?
Review: Released this fall, the "Christmas Story" collector's edition is really a 20th anniversary version of the classic. First, let me say I can't believe it's been out for 20 years. I thought 12, at the most 15. Wow. Briefly, for readers who may not be intimately acquainted with the film, I strongly encourage you to purchase "A Christmas Story" and make it a regular part of your holiday routine. It will grow on you with each viewing and you'll soon find its one-liners making their way into your everyday vernacular. Which version should you get? That's why you're reading this review. The original DVD release of "A Christmas Story" had no extra features. Nothing. No commentaries, no interviews, no documentaries. Just the movie. This was greatly disappointing, since I'm a big fan and was interested in the making of the film, what the actors are doing now, etc. So naturally I was looking forward to this special edition. Well, I can't say I'm too satisfied with the reissue. 1. The documentary is very uninformative. The one positive aspect of it is the simple fun of seeing the actors all grown up. Ralphie is 30 now, but looks about the same. Flick has changed more in his appearance and his career choices. (Career choices? You'll have to look that up yourself. It's not on the DVD and I'm not about to ruin Christmas for you.) There just isn't that much to glean about the movie from the special features. If you would like to know what Ralphie wanted for Christmas when he was 10, or what the worst Christmas present Schwartz ever got was, then you'll likely be absorbed. I wasn't. What could've been an in-depth look at the making of this low-budget masterpiece, intermingled with musings from the actors turned into a Nickelodeon-style "what's your favorite color" type of Q&A session. What was particularly annoying was the graphics and sound effects that the editors added (e.g., if Ralphie says "my mom put her foot down," there's a big crashing sound with a monolithic stone foot superimposed over him. Just stupid). Bottom line, it's good for the serious fan who wants a peek at the grown up kids, but beyond that it's useless. 2. The other "special features" are even more lame. There's a trivia challenge (yawn), a decoder game where you match the dialogue from the scene, a history of the daisy rider BB gun, and the original radio readings from Jean Shepherd (the narrator). You might do these once, but it's nothing worth buying the DVD for. 3. The one bright spot is the commentary, and if there's a reason to buy the special edition, it's this. The director (Bob Clark) and Ralphie (Peter Billingsly) do provide some more insight into the making of the film, and if you're the type that enjoys commentaries, you'll find it's worth it. 4. Lastly, I don't think the film was restored in any way. We're talking 20 years here. The film was pretty marked up and I was disappointed they didn't go to any effort to fix it in the 20th anniversary edition. For those of you that don't know (and don't worry, I'll spare you the 1000 word treatise on the mechanics of film that another reviewer felt the need to share), artists go into the original film and frame by frame they remove specks of dust and dirt, and in some cases they even add paint to touch up obvious artifacts. This apparently didn't occur in "A Christmas Story" and it badly needed it. This would've gone a long way to help the value of this DVD set. So what's the bottom line? If you intensely love this movie and have for years, then buy the DVD. It will be worth it. But if you're on the fence, maybe you've already got the first issue of the DVD, maybe you throw it in during the holidays, then save your money. And if you're just getting into the movie and don't yet own a copy, well, you should probably get the reissue since we're only talking about a few dollars in price difference. This review applies mostly to readers who already have the first release and are considering getting the new version. If the features I mentioned appeal to you, then go for it. Otherwise, you might be better off just sticking with the original release and using your 20 bucks to get the "Christmas Vacation" reissue, which actually is worth it.
Rating:
Summary: This re-release isn't bad , though it could've been better
Review: To get into the holiday spirit this year, I wanted to find a VHS copy of this movie (VHS would've suited me fine), but I was a bit miffed when I couldn't find a copy at Wal-Mart. But then my mom went shopping (at Wal-Mart) last Saturday (Nov. 29) and, to my slight surprise, came home with--"consider this your final Christmas present"--a copy of this Special Edition DVD. (For a long time, as sort of a Christmas tradition, my family and I relied on our television-broadcast-VHS-taped version of the movie, with dated commercials, poor picture and all.) Though I initially wasn't intrigued by the re-release of this movie, since "Santa" gave "A Christmas Story" to me early, I thought, Cool, with a shrug.
I have a 27-inch TV (fairly cheap, no-frills Sylvania model, with its picture settings unchanged, conveying overall-acceptable visuals), which uses composite video (unfortunately, that's all the set has). Since the DVD offers both full-frame and widescreen, I chose full-frame. Video-wise, the new digital transfer of the movie to DVD is very good. Audio-wise, I was disappointed that the transfer offers only Dolby Digital mono (1-channel), which played mainly through my center speaker (Yamaha NSA-C143). There is a running audio commentary from director Bob Clark and Peter Billingsley ("Ralphie"), which I didn't listen to. Also, there are multi-lingual subtitles and a French soundtrack, for viewers who like those sort of things.
Overall-quality-wise, I feel that "A Christmas Story" recieved a decent restoration treatment for DVD. (The next time I watch the movie, I'll switch to widescreen, the aspect ratio of 1.85:1--and I may listen to the audio commentary, though I'll probably leave the subtitles off.)
After I watched the movie disc, I switched to the other DVD. I then realized why this "Special Edition" wasn't priced much higher than the earlier single-DVD release (about $19 compared to $15 or so)--the "20th Anniversary Extras" disc isn't overly-loaded with material and what's available is somewhat silly and non-essential. I was assuming there would be a "making-of" featurette with behind-the-scenes footage and interviews with all of the cast members, not just a few (including the director). But what is included in the second disc, while it technically is bonus material, could've been better. The longest piece "Another Christmas Story" is only about eighteen minutes long; and I wasn't too thrilled about the trivia games; and the "Get A Leg Up" making of the infamous leg lamp was pretty dumb; and although its historical documentary was interesting, I never desired to have a Red Ryder BB gun when I was a child; and there are a couple other things that may intrigue some people but didn't me.
Yet, I'm glad to finally have this movie, despite the fact that I didn't plan to add "A Christmas Story" to my DVD collection. But since I didn't buy this "Special Edition" re-release, I won't complain about it--because you shouldn't overly criticise a gift DVD for its negative attributes. From a "Special Edition" dual-disc set I guess I expected more--but at least the re-release is a good-looking version of a classic holiday motion picture.
All in all, for the movie itself, the new version of "A Christmas Story" is pretty much worth the price. I do recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: Love the movie, but...
Review: I adore "A Christmas Story." It's deservedly a classic. If you grew up in the Midwest as late as the 1970s, you can completely relate to Ralphie and his friends and family. That being established, my gripe is with the "special features" DVD rather than the film itself. (I also really enjoyed the commentary by Clark and Billingsley.) I found the "featurette" a real disappointment. What a cool idea...getting Ralphie, Flick, Schwartz, and Farkas together after 20 years! Now...tell us about the MOVIE...what was it like to shoot, what did you think about the process, etc. No offense, but who CARES what these guys got for Christmas? And no mention of Darren McGavin, Melinda Dillon, or the actor who played Randy...very disappointing. My advice is to purchase the cheaper DVD without all the extra crap. Sometimes it's worth it, but not this time.
Rating:
Summary: it's a tradition
Review: this movie is awesome. i watch it every year and it's always a hysterical movie. my whole family likes it.
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