In my family, we've probably taken more household phrases from Miracle on 34th Street than from all versions of A Christmas Carol combined. It's a very special movie with a very special place in our family's Christmas traditions. The tree is up and decorated, all twelve varieties of Christmas cookies have been baked, and we gather around the television to hum along with Cyril J. Mockridge's delightful theme, and to enjoy and recite all our favorite lines from start to finish. "It's cold, a man's gotta do something to keep warm!" "Throw it on the floor!" "I'll just have a sandwich or something." "To be completely honest and truthful with the child. . ." "I'll go check on the meat." "First of all, I'm not persecuting him; I'm prosecuting him." "And they're gonna say it in votes-you're gonna be an awful popular fellow!"Even the movie's flaws are delightful, and my family loves to anticipate Maureen O'Hara's overacting-"This is going to hurt Kris very badly, and I don't want to be the one to do it!"-the wrong answer given to the question of who was Vice-President under James Quincy Adams, and the silly little loopholes in the plot that are meant to be overlooked. Miracle on 34th Street is a fantastic, sentimental, nostalgic, perfect Christmas movie. It embodies everything about the Christmas spirit, so even though there are little flaws in George Seaton's script, the magic and happiness of the season glosses over them. Even though Maureen's delivery is a little stylized, we're still rooting for her. Natalie Wood, in an adorable, charming performance full of an incredible talent for her age, captures the heart of all who watch her. I think it's impossible to be in a bad mood when you watch this movie, especially when Natalie's on the screen. She never acts like she's acting. She's truly a little girl in need of the Christmas spirit, and her mom really is Maureen O'Hara. She has great, believable chemistry with everyone in the cast.Edmund Gwenn, in an Oscar-winning performance, sets the bar so high, no one else has ever been able to play a truly believable Santa Claus-besides Jim Broadbent; I can't ignore him. Teddy has a constant twinkle in his eye, and his jolly, sweet disposition soothes even the greatest of doubts. John Payne costars as Maureen's love interest and Edmund's greatest advocate. He's a great match for Maureen, balancing out her edges and teaching her to dream. In addition to the main leads, everyone in the supporting cast has memorable and hilarious parts and lines. Jerome Cowan as the district attorney, Gene Lockhart as the judge, Porter Hall as Teddy's foe at work, Philip Tonge as Maureen's coworker, Alvin Greenman as Teddy's young friend, and a pre-famous Thelma Ritter all contribute to the nearly perfect Christmas movie. Without each of them, it would feel like something was missing. Thankfully, nothing is missing, and every Christmas my family and I can rejoice with all our old friends.Kiddy Warning: Obviously, you have control over your own children. However, since the main plot deals with whether or not there is a Santa Claus, I wouldn't let my kids watch it until they were a little older. My mom didn't let me watch this one until I was eleven.

Hugely bored and depressed by the gloomy french 36 quai des orfevres, that also happens on Christmas eve, i look for something more essential and inspired for 1947 and as soon as i have noticed this one, i knew that was the perfect choice.Maybe Xmas is an universal holiday but i admit that only US understand it right and thus only American movies find this Christmas spirit.Here the story is wonderful: like the Ghostbusters, the real Santa Klaus is sent to Bellevue (NYC mental institution) and only the spirit of justice can save him.It boils with kids joy, human love and there is some great moments: the parade, the store shop, the courtroom.and for sure, the cast is just wonderful with special mention to late Natalie Wood: i left her as a teen in Rebel without a cause and now i found her 10 years before as a kid believing with all her heart in this Holiday!Along Home Alone, it's a really feel good movie that you want to enjoy alone when sad or with your family waiting for the bearded man!

REVIEW DATE 2/19/2018 PLEASE BEWARE OF SOME REVIEWERS THAT ONLY HAVE ONLY ONE REVIEW. I HAVE OVER 400 REVIEWS OF "CHRISTMAS RELATED FILMS & SPECIALS" WHEN ITS A POSITIVE THERE IS A GOOD CHANCE THEY WERE INVOLVED WITH THE PRODUCTION. NOW I HAVE NO AGENDA! I REVIEW MOVIES & SPECIALS AS A WAY TO KEEP TRACK OF WHAT I HAVE SEEN! I HAVE DISCOVERED MANY GEMS IN MY QUEST TO SEE AS MANY " C H R I S T M A S " MOVIES AS I CAN.Now Someone keeps reporting my reviews. I guess they are jealous because I do tell the truth. I want to point out that I never make snide remarks about actors weight or real life sexual orientation. If there acting is terrible or limited "I talk about that". If a story is bad "I will mention that" So why am I being "picked on"? IMDB? When one of my reviews gets deleted IMDB will not even tell me what someone found offensive. Well on to this review.Kris Kringle (Edmund Gwenn) is indignant to find that the man (Percy Helton) assigned to play Santa in the annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade is intoxicated. When he complains to event director Doris Walker (Maureen O'Hara), she persuades Kris to take his place. He does so well, he is hired to play Santa at Macy's flagship New York City store on 34th Street.Ignoring instructions to steer parents to buy from Macy's, Kris directs one shopper (Thelma Ritter) to a competitor. Impressed, she tells Julian Shellhammer (Philip Tonge), head of the toy department, that she will become a loyal customer.Attorney Fred Gailey (John Payne), Doris's neighbor, takes the young divorcée's daughter Susan (Natalie Wood) to see Santa. Doris has raised her to not believe in fairy tales, but Susan is shaken after seeing Kris speak Dutch with a girl who does not know English. Doris asks Kringle to tell Susan that he is not Santa, but he insists that he is.Worried, Doris decides to fire him. However, Kris has generated so much positive publicity and goodwill for Macy's that Macy (Harry Antrim) promises Doris and Julian bonuses. To alleviate Doris's misgivings, Julian has Granville Sawyer (Porter Hall) administer a "psychological evaluation". Kris passes, and questions Sawyer's own mental health.This is a great film that everyone should see.

World War II had ended less than two years before this film made its debut in early May 1947. It would open in Western Europe in early December, in time for Christmas. The world was in no mood for a court in the United States to declare that there is no Santa Claus. Besides the loss of loved ones in the war, the U.S. and other countries had endured years of rationing, sacrifice and going without. The post-war economies were gearing up, people had jobs and money to spend, and families that had gone without now could buy holiday meals and gifts for everyone. The screenplay of "Miracle on 34th Street" doesn't say anything about all of this. But, it is implied and it was surely understood by the movie audiences that watched the film on its release in 1947. Keeping that in mind today will help one understand the commercialization aspects the movie addressed at that time. Interestingly, Valentine Davies wrote the story for the movie in 1944 while serving in the U.S. Coast Guard. He had become disillusioned by the commercialization of Christmas – and that was during the war years. Imagine how he would see the major holiday observation in the world today. Davies won one of the three Oscars the film garnered. His was for best original story; and his close friend, George Seaton, won the Oscar for the screenplay. The most recognized Oscar was that awarded to Edmund Gwenn for best supporting actor, as Kris Kringle. One scene in the movie puts the author's point clearly. Kris is talking with Alfred (played by Alvin Greenman), a young Macy janitor who plays Santa Claus at an orphanage. They have talked about the changes in attitudes and loss of the Christmas spirit. Kris, "That's what I've been fighting against for years …the way they commercialize Christmas." Alfred, "Yeah, there's a lot of bad 'isms' floating around, but one of the worst is 'commercialism.' Make a buck. Make a buck. Even in Brooklyn it's the same. Don't care what Christmas stands for. Just make a buck. Make a buck." What would Alfred say today with one more 'ism' added – secularism?This film surely is a holiday classic and favorite. Besides Gwenn, it has a sparkling cast. Maureen O'Hara plays an unusual role for that time – a divorced single mother who was working in an executive position. Doris Walker was raising her little girl in their mid-town Manhattan apartment. This was 8-year-old Natalie Wood's fifth film and first major role, as Susan Walker. John Payne plays a young attorney, Fred Gailey. Porter Hall is fantastic as Granville Sawyer. He's the twitching neurotic Macy company personnel psychologist (who doesn't have a license to practice, by the way). Much of the comedy occurs in the courtroom sequences. Some of the funniest occurs between Gene Lockhart who plays Judge Henry Harper and William Frawley who plays Charlie Halloran, his campaign manager. All of the cast are excellent. Over the years as I watched this movie with family members, I would "see" the miracle in the story. Only, it changed from year to year. Or rather, it multiplied. So, in answer to a question that someone might ask, "What is the miracle?," it seems clear that there are several. Indeed, this is a film about many miracles, large and small. I'll let the viewers ferret out those themselves. In the meantime, here are some bits of trivia related to the movie. The parade that takes place in the film is the annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. Macy's started the annual event in 1924. But, that was four years after Herald Square rival department store, Gimbols had held the first such parade in Philadelphia. At the time, Gimbols was the largest department store chain in the world. If you haven't guessed by now, one of the miracles was the coming together of the heads of those two companies in the spirit of Christmas to direct shoppers to others stores if they couldn't find what they wanted in their store. Here are a couple of favorite lines from the film. Doris, "He's crazy. He thinks he is Santa Clause." Julian Shellhammer, "I don't care if he thinks he's the Easter Bunny. You've got to get him back." Doris, "He's insane, I tell you." Shellhammer, "But, but maybe he's only a little crazy … like painters or composers or some of those men in Washington."Fred and Doris are talking about his defense of Kris in the court hearing. Fred, "You don't have any faith in me, do you?" Doris, "It's not a question of faith. It's just common sense. Fred, "Faith is believing in things when common sense tells you not to."