A Merry Christmas to All
Christmas festivities are over, gifts have been opened, and the day after Christmas is spent putting straight the merry mess. James Freeman in the WSJ writes of the tradition amongst many families of watching Christmas movies before they prepare for a long winter’s nap.
Reports Mr. Freeman: In the NYT, 40 years ago this week the newspaper published a simple story entitled A Great Joy
A man and his pregnant wife are on a journey. They had planned to stay at an inn but because all the rooms are gone they take shelter in a stable.
During the night the woman gives birth to a son. Her husband is her only help, farm animals the only witnesses. The woman swaddles the boy in cloth and nestles him in the straw. The desert is cold after sunset, and his parents may be grateful for the animals’ warmth. A little rest, and the family will move on. Not far from the stable, and ignorant of the birth, some shepherds are grazing their flocks when they are suddenly, frighteningly wrapped in light. An angel appears and says, ‘’Be not afraid; for behold I bring you news of a great joy.’’
The rest of the tale has been 2,000 years in the telling…There have been eras in which it seemed unlikely that the story would ever be told again. But new pages are forever being written.
The NYT also writes about movies focusing on the universal themes of ‘redemption and gratitude, presented in Charles Dickens’s 1843 novel ‘A Christmas Carol,’ that resonated most with readers.
Robin Kawakami and Barbara Chai write in the Times:
When it comes to Christmas and holiday movies, the best ones aren’t necessarily new. In fact, it’s the universal themes of redemption and gratitude, presented in Charles Dickens’s 1843 novel, “A Christmas Carol,” that resonated most with you.
Nearly 3,000 New York Times readers responded to our callout asking for the best holiday film recommendations. The 1951 version of “A Christmas Carol” (titled “Scrooge” in Britain) starring Alastair Sim as the quintessential main character was most frequently cited among the dozens of adaptations out there. Others included children’s versions “The Muppet Christmas Carol” (1992) and “Mister Magoo’s Christmas Carol” (1962) and variations starring Patrick Stewart (1999), Reginald Owen (1938) and Ryan Reynolds, in “Spirited” (2022). There’s also “The Man Who Invented Christmas” (2017), which tells the tale of Dickens’s creation of the classic story.
“A Christmas Carol” also aligns closely with Philip Van Doren Stern’s story “The Greatest Gift,” which itself inspired “It’s a Wonderful Life” (1946), your second-most mentioned film. Then there’s “The Family Man” (2000), starring Nicolas Cage as a modern-day version of George Bailey that brought tears to many of your eyes.
