Yes, Susan, there is a Santa Claus

No movie tracks the span of the Christmas season like 1947's Miracle on 34th Street. This holiday classic spans from the Macy's Day Parade all the way to Christmas itself with a tale of Kris Kringle, the holiday spirit, and what it means to be a true believer. It is one of those films that is played ad nauseum during the holiday season, but rightfully so because it is worthy of being a classic film, even without putting it into a holiday context.

The film features a star-studded cast with Maureen O'Hara playing Doris Walker, young Natalie Wood playing Walker's precocious daughter Susan, John Payne as lawyer Fred Gailey, Gene Lockhart as Judge Harper, and Edmund Gwenn playing the man himself, Kris Kringle. Even Thelma Ritter makes an uncredited appearance in this film in her screen debut. Gwenn even won Best Supporting Actor for his role as Kris Kringle, something which almost never happens for holiday films in this day and age. It is the many-talented actors of this film which make its storyline come to life for us year after year.

The little film about a store Santa who might actually be the real Father Christmas was actually one of those movies that was almost never made. Producer Darryl F. Zanuck thought the movie was too cheesy and made a compromise: instead of turning down the film, he just cut it's budget in half. Zanuck then decided to release the movie in May because, although it had a Christmas themed plot, he thought more people went to films in the summer. Both Macy's and Gimble's, who are featured in the film, were nervous about how it might affect their reputations, but were pleased with the results and allowed their names to be used. Due to the wide success of the film, several remakes have been made, but none measure up to the classic original.

Sixty years and going strong, new generations are introduced to Miracle on 34th Street every holiday season. Traditionally, the film is always aired on NBC after the Macy's Parade and then runs on various networks and in DVD players across the country until December 25th. For more info and reviews on the film, check out this original trailer from the film:

The Worst Film of All Time?

In my search of public domain films that I can watch online for free rather than shelling out the money to rent or buy, I came across this magnificent title which I just had to watch: Santa Claus Conquers the Martians. The film is billed as a horror film, though I am not sure if that is because it's intended to be scary of if the film is just so bad it's horrible. I came to the conclusion quite early that this film is public domain because no one wanted to claim ownership of what is a definite contender for the title of "Worst Film of All Time". If you are brave enough to subject yourself to this travesty of film making or just want a good laugh, you can watch it here.

Made in 1964, the film has a cheesy set, cheesy lines, cheesy music, cheesy costumes, cheesy Martians, and a cheesy premise. Basically, Martians kidnap Santa so he can give presents to Martian children for Christmas. I really don't feel that I need to explain beyond that, mainly because I don't think you'd believe me if I told you the rest. The film does an early critique of "Earth Television", which is apparently ruining the children of Mars who watch it. Anyone can find it obvious as to why the film was not an Academy-Award nominee when it came out in the mid-Sixties, but the film gained relative popularity after being made fun of on Mystery Science Theater 3000, which should say something about its quality.

Basically, this film is in the "so bad it's almost good" category and deserves the title of horror movie because it is just that filled with horror. So, if you love cheesy B-movies, bad Sixties Alien flicks, movies with Santa Claus, or any film that's so bad its scary, I highly recommend Santa Claus Conquers the Martians. The title, if nothing else, should give you a good laugh.