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We all have our Christmas favorites. Some watch It’s a Wonderful Life religiously every December. Some can’t live without watching at least one version of A Christmas Carol. But for me, it’s A Christmas Story. It’s just not really Christmas without it…
It’s Christmastime in 1940s Indiana, and the kids couldn’t be more excited. As they race to and from school, in an attempt to avoid the neighborhood bully, they dream of the gifts they’ll find under the tree on Christmas morning. All Ralphie Parker (Peter Billingsley) wants is an official Daisy Red Ryder 200-shot Carbine Action BB Gun—even though his mom is convinced that it’ll cause him to shoot his eye out. Still, Ralphie will stop at nothing to get his gun. He drops hints around the house. He writes an essay about it for school. He even goes to see Santa to beg for one…
While A Christmas Story is primarily about Ralphie and his quest for the Red Ryder air rifle, there’s so much more to it. There’s Ralphie’s dad (Darren McGavin), who loves turkey and hates the neighbor’s dogs (and who, in the course of the movie, wins a Major Award, which he proudly displays in the living room window). There’s a great scene involving a tongue stuck to a frozen flagpole on the playground. There’s a scene where Ralphie says, “Oh, fudge,” (only he didn’t really say fudge—and he ends up sucking on a bar of soap). And there’s a ton of good ol’ small-town-American nostalgia.
A Christmas Story is the Seinfeld of Christmas movies. Not a lot happens—it’s just the story of one Midwestern family’s Christmas—but it’s still absolutely hilarious. If you haven’t seen it, pick it up this holiday season. You don’t have to stop watching It’s a Wonderful Life, but it may be a fun addition to your usual holiday movie-watching tradition.
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