Holiday Classics: A Christmas Story (1983) 40th Anniversary
Director: Bob Clark Run Time: 93 min. Rating: PG Release Year: 1983
Starring: Darren McGavin, Ian Petrella, Jean Shepherd, Melinda Dillon, Peter Billingsley
Country: United States, Canada
Language: English
Presented as part of the 2023 edition of Holiday Classics.
About the film:
It’s the final days before Christmas in early 1940s Cleveland, and 9-year-old Ralphie wants one thing from Santa Clause more than anything else: a Red Ryder Carbine Action Air Rifle. As he trudges through the snow to school, faces the neighborhood bully and visits a malevolent department store Santa Clause, Ralphie connives, conspires and campaigns for the most fabulous Christmas present ever in this heartwarming, hysterical and sweetly nostalgic holiday film.
“a joy to the world, right down to the moment Mom slips downstairs to unplug the tree lights”
Based on the humorous writings of author Jean Shepherd the film received two Genie Awards (the Canadian Academy Awards) for Best Achievement in Direction and Best Screenplay, and was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress in 2012.
About the filmmaker:
Bob Clark was an American film director, screenwriter, producer, and actor. Before helming the perennial holiday classic A Christmas Story (1983), he helped pioneer the slasher genre with the intense horror film Black Christmas (1974) and launched the teen sex comedy craze with the phenomenally popular Porky’s (1981). He was also the mind behind Children Shouldn’t Play with Dead Things (1972), the critically acclaimed Sherlock Holmes film Murder by Decree (1979), Tribute (1980), which competed for top prize at the Berlin Film Festival, the Baby Geniuses films, and Rhinestone (1984), a musical starring Sylvester Stallone and Dolly Parton.
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