The Best Chrismas Movie

There is a debate as to what the best Christmas movie and everyone has their own idea and personal favorite. At the end of the day, the consensus seems to be either one of two that everyone always defends as the best one: Miracle on 34th Street, and It's a Wonderful Life. It's a Wonderful Life is a great film, in fact spectacular! It's well directed, acted, written, has a brilliant cast, and has a deep, touching, heartfelt message about life. Here's where I have a problem though in calling it the best Christmas movie: it's not really about Christmas at all, is it? Stop and Think about it for a second. The story would work at any time and place the writers would have wanted it too. Its plot and occurrences have little to do with Christmas and the fact that it is set during Christmas does very little to move the plot along, nor does it have any effect on the characters other than to maybe add another level of sympathy because of the season. This is not to cast a dark cloud on the film. It truly is a masterpiece, Frank Capra at his best,  but it is a masterpiece that can easily be enjoyed year round and would do very little to remind you of Christmas were you to watch it, say in April. I'm sure you can guess where I come down on the debate of best Christmas movie. It is, without a doubt, Miracle on 34th Street. Miracle on 34th Street is the best Christmas movie not because it involves Santa Claus, but because it involves everything that Christmas is supposed to be about: helping others, selflessness, faith in our fellow men, hope for the future, and at its heart, a movie about love, in all its forms. Granted, it does not go into the true meaning of Christmas, which is, at the end of the day, the birth of the Savior Jesus Christ, but in all honesty, there is no film out there that manages to capture that spirit, and is also a great film overall, so I'm sticking with my choice. It at least accomplishes the spirit of Christmas like no other film, for the reasons aforementioned.

What makes Miracle on 34th Street so special? Why do we watch it, again and again year after year? I think that it's not only because it is such a heartfelt story, but because it is, despite all, a great film. It is funny, heartwarming, dramatic, and just entertaining. The cast is impeccable, and the story, while being about Santa Claus, is grounded and believable. Not only that, it is thought provoking in the funnest of ways. Was he really Santa Claus? Was it all just an amazing coincidence, or was there something more? I'm for the latter, but anyone who's seen the movie will tell you, while there is strong evidence and implications that he was who he claimed to be, it is not definitively proved, and that's what makes the movie special. I hate remakes in general because they fail to capture the spirit and purpose of the original, and Miracle on 34th Street is no exception. The remake seems to kill all that is magical about the original. It just failed to capture the magic and spirit of Christmas, removing all doubt about Santa Claus, completely missing the point of why it was a miracle. Miracles are by nature mysterious, and when you take away that mystery, it ceases to be a miracle.

Another interesting thing that I love about this movie, is that as a courtroom film, it has basically everything going for it. While it is true that the courtroom drama only consists of about 20-25 minutes from the start to finish of the procedure, it has all of the elements of a complex Law & Order episode. It has the legal maneuvering of Kringle's lawyer, the politics involved on the part of the judge who wants to do his duty, but is constantly reminded by his adviser of the political dangers involved in the case, and the relentlessness of the district attorney, who doesn't necessarily believe Kringle should be put in an asylum, but is dedicated to do his job, even if it will end up costing him his job. What I love the most about the court procedures, is that we know everybody's motives, and it's funny to see that if they had had an open discussion, the entire process could have been avoided. The DA wanted out, the judge was lost and caught in the middle of something he had no control over, and Kringle's lawyer is trying desperately to win over two people who deep down want him to win, but are bound by conflicting interests that prohibit them from doing so. In the end, the only "bad guy" is the psychologist Mr. Sawyer, and he gets what he deserves.

The miracle, in the end, is that no one really acted completely selflessly, in that they all had other motives, and Kris Kringle is declared to be Santa Claus anyway. Kris' lawyer had his personal motive to not see his friend be locked up and trying to convince Maureen O'hara's character and her daughter to believe in something more (not to mention the romantic relationship he hoped to establish with her from the beginning). The postal workers who just wanted to get rid of some mail taking up precious storage space in their office. Mr. Macy who knew the backlash he would receive for calling Kris a fraud after all Kris had done for his store, and then there are the selfish motives of the DA and the judge, both who knew they had bitten off more than they should have, and were only too happy it was over, and in a sense, relieved that they lost. That in the end is the miracle: in the end, good triumphs.

I love Miracle on 34th Street because it reminds us about miracles, and hope, and magic. I believe that Kris Kringle is Santa Claus, but that is all it is, a belief, I'll never know for sure, and I'm all right with that. Not all mysteries in the world are meant to be solved. Some are just miracles, there to make our lives better, and to keep hope alive, like Santa Claus.