A Christmas Story

Posted on December 1, 2008 at 8:00 am

A-

There’s no better way to start off the Christmas season than this holiday classic, now celebrating its 25th anniversary and so popular that Turner Classic Movies runs it for 24 hours each year. Millions of fans can recite its lines from memory and some are so passionate they visit the Christmas Story house and attend the Christmas Story conference. Some even buy leg lamps or the action figures.

christmas story action figures.jpg

I think there are two reasons for the movie’s enduring appeal. First, it perfectly evokes the experience of childhood. Today’s kids may not drink Ovaltine or wait for their decoder rings, but they still have to deal with bullies and they still wish for gifts their parents think are too dangerous. But more than that, this is the perfect antidote to all those stories of Christmas perfection on one hand and dysfunction on the other. I love the way this family responds when everything goes wrong. They laugh. And you know that in the future, this Christmas is the one they will always remember.

Parents should know that this movie includes some mild sexual references. A character offers money to a girl to do some non-specific things for him and looks at pictures of women in lingerie. There are also humorous references to bad language including a child having his mouth washed out with soap for swearing.

Related Tags:

 

Based on a book Based on a true story Classic Comedy DVD/Blu-Ray Pick of the Week Family Issues

3 Replies to “A Christmas Story”

  1. I think it’s interesting that you did not mention certain things in your review. For instance, Anthony (Lewis McGibbon) offers a girl money to perform services for him. Although we are unsure at this point what he may be paying her for, our notions are confirmed when he states, “I have a nice body.” Another example is the scene where he visits the La Senza website, in which he stares at women in lingerie.
    I believe that many parents would like to know this information, which was excluded from your review, prior to watching this movie with their children.

  2. I believe that the potentially inappropriate content that D. Baker specifies is in fact in the film “Millions,” not “A Christmas Story.” Lewis McGibbon was born in 1991, years after “A Christmas Story” was released, and “A Christmas Story” takes place before the dawn of the internet, so there couldn’t be a part where a character looks at women in lingerie on the La Senza website.

Comments are closed.

THE MOVIE MOM® is a registered trademark of Nell Minow. Use of the mark without express consent from Nell Minow constitutes trademark infringement and unfair competition in violation of federal and state laws. All material © Nell Minow 1995-2024, all rights reserved, and no use or republication is permitted without explicit permission. This site hosts Nell Minow’s Movie Mom® archive, with material that originally appeared on Yahoo! Movies, Beliefnet, and other sources. Much of her new material can be found at Rogerebert.com, Huffington Post, and WheretoWatch. Her books include The Movie Mom’s Guide to Family Movies and 101 Must-See Movie Moments, and she can be heard each week on radio stations across the country.

Website Designed by Max LaZebnik