If you're a fan of Christmas movies or films that use nostalgia as a driver, A Christmas Story cannot be missed. Then again, if you're in either category, you have probably already seen it.
A Christmas Story (1984)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted: 43
Fresh: 38
Rotten:5
Average Rating: 8.3/10
Consensus: Both warmly nostalgic and darkly humorous, A Christmas Story deserves its status as a holiday perennial.
Runtime: 1 hr 38 mins
Genre: Comedies
Synopsis: This vignette-laden, nostalgic view of Christmastime in 1940s Indiana follows nine-year-old Ralphie, who desperately wants a Red Ryder BB Gun for Christmas--and is waging an all-out campaign to... This vignette-laden, nostalgic view of Christmastime in 1940s Indiana follows nine-year-old Ralphie, who desperately wants a Red Ryder BB Gun for Christmas--and is waging an all-out campaign to convince his reluctant parents that the toy will be safe in his hands. By turns warped and winsome, the comedy follows Ralphie as he prepares for the big day with his rather idiosyncratic family. Based on the novel by humorist Jean Shepherd (who also narrates the film), A CHRISTMAS STORY gained popularity long after its theatrical run, through frequent holiday broadcasts that turned its schoolyard "triple-dog" dares, family neuroses, and childhood indignities into a Yuletide tradition. [More]
Starring: Peter Billingsley, Darren McGavin, Melinda Dillon, Ian Petrella
Starring: Peter Billingsley, Darren McGavin, Melinda Dillon, Ian Petrella, Scott Schwartz, R.D. Robb, Tedde Moore, Yano Anaya, Zack Ward, Jeff Gillen
Director: Bob Clark
Director: Bob Clark
Story: Jean Shepherd
Screenwriter: Jean Shepherd, Leigh Brown, Bob Clark
Composer: Paul J. Zaza, Carl Zittrer
Producer: Bob Clark, Rene Dupont
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Reviews for A Christmas Story
Delightfully entertaining, with a wryly amusing narration to keep the adults in the audience smirking.
Upon its release over 20 years ago, everyone realized THIS is a modern classic holiday film.
With much affectionate humor, A Christmas Story recalls vividly what it was like to be a kid at Christmas in a more innocent era.
Never fails to take me back to a place of welcomed innocence yet it doesn't make me wish I were back there.
[It has] emerged over the past two decades as second only to It's a Wonderful Life as the definitive Christmas flick.
...sharp, insightful observations, a careful attention to period detail, and, most of all, a gentle good humor.
The laughs are nonstop if rarely subtle, and the whole thing deserves to become a Christmastime classic.
Latest News for A Christmas Story
December 19, 2008:
Deck The Halls With RT's Best Christmas Movies!
We've made a list, and we've checked it way more than twice. And since you, the RT readers, have been nice this year, we've got a present for you: the Best Christmas Movies... More...
December 02, 2008:
Cleveland Rocks A Christmas Story's 25th Birthday ![]()
As if having the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame wasn't enough, now Cleveland has cemented its status as the epicenter of cool by playing host to a celebration in honor of "A... More...
November 03, 2008:
RT on DVD: Get Smart, Futurama: Bender's Game and the Obama DVD Controversy
This week, pick up Steve Carell's sweetly bumbling spy antics (Get Smart), the promising new Futurama movie (Bender's Game), a few early holiday treats (Shrek the Halls, A... More...
April 04, 2007:
"Christmas Story" Director Bob Clark Dies In Crash
Bob Clark, director of "A Christmas Story," "Porky's," and many other works in a career that spanned four decades died in a car crash early this morning in... More...
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