A Christmas Story (1983)

Ralphie has to convince his parents, his teacher, and Santa that a Red Ryder B.B. gun really is the perfect gift for the 1940s.

Director:

Bob Clark

Writers:

Jean Shepherd (based on the novel "In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash" by), Jean Shepherd (screenplay),

Stars:

Peter Billingsley, Melinda Dillon, Darren McGavin

3 wins & 11 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Melinda Dillon	...	Mother Parker
Darren McGavin	...	The Old Man Parker
Peter Billingsley	...	Ralphie
Scott Schwartz	...	Flick
Jean Shepherd	...	Ralphie as an Adult (voice)
Ian Petrella	...	Randy
Tedde Moore	...	Miss Shields
R.D. Robb	...	Schwartz
Zack Ward	...	Scut Farkus
Yano Anaya	...	Grover Dill
Jeff Gillen	...	Santa Claus
Colin Fox	...	Ming the Merciless (scenes deleted)
Paul Hubbard	...	Flash Gordon (scenes deleted)
Leslie Carlson	...	Christmas Tree Man (as Les Carlson)
Jim Hunter	...	Freight Man

Storyline

Christmas is approaching and 9 year-old Ralphie wants only one thing: a Red Ryder Range 200 Shot BB gun. When he mentions it at the dinner table, his mother's immediate reaction is that he'll put his eye out. He then decides on a perfect theme for his teacher but her reaction is like his. He fantasizes about what it would be like to be Red Ryder and catch the bad guys. When the big day arrives he gets lots of present under the tree including a lovely gift from his aunt that his mother just adores. But what about the BB gun?

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Plot Keywords:

christmas | bb gun | tongue stuck on a pole | bully | boy | 

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Taglines:

Peace. Harmony. Comfort and Joy... Maybe Next Year.

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Genres:

Comedy | Family

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Official Sites:

Warner Bros. DVD site

Country:

USA Canada

Language:

English

Release Date:

18 November 1983 (USA)

Also Known As:

Christmas Story

Filming Locations:

232 Queen St W, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Box Office

Budget:

CAD 4,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), Christmas Tree Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

94 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Jean Shepherd's book "In God We Trust: All Others Pay Cash", which the film is partly based on, is a collection of short stories that Shepherd wrote for "Playboy" magazine during the 1960s, including the ones about the tongue sticking to the flagpole and eating Christmas dinner at a Chinese restaurant. The subplot of the mangy dogs constantly harassing The Old Man was taken from another of Shepherd's short story collections, "Wanda Hickey's Night Of Golden Memories and Other Disasters." In that book, the character of Ralph is about 17 years old.

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Goofs

As the workers are bringing the crate into the house the is a rope tied around the crate. Once they get it into the house the rope is no longer there. The exterior shot was done in Cleveland and showed a rope, while the interior shot was done in a Toronto studio weeks later.

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Quotes

Mother: Randy, how do the little piggies go?
Randy: [oinks like a pig]
Mother: That's right. Oink, oink! Now show me how the piggies eat.
[points to his plate]
Mother: This is your trough. Show me how the piggies eat. Be a good boy. Show mommy how the piggies eat.
Randy: [plunges face into mashed potatoes, oinks, eats, and laughs]
Mother: [laughs] Mommy's little piggie!

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Crazy Credits

"Ming the Merciless" and "Flash Gordon" are listed as characters despite being cut from the general release.

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Connections

Referenced in Santas in the Barn: Let the Yule Log Burn (2015)

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Soundtracks

Jingle Bells
Written by James Pierpont
Performed by Bing Crosby and The Andrews Sisters
Courtesy of MCA Records

User Reviews

Just wonderful

Nostalgic tale of a Ralphie Parker (Peter Billingsley) growing up in the 1940s (I believe). He wants nothing more than a Red Ryder Ranger Model Air Rifle (a BB gun for short) for Christmas but everyone tells him it will "shoot your eye out".

That's about it for plot but the film has sequences that every child (and adult) can relate to. My favorites: Ralphie's best friend getting his tongue stuck to a pole when he's dared to lick it; Ralphie accidentally swearing in front of his father; the bully that threatens Ralphie and his friends every day until Ralphie beats him up (in a GREAT scene); Ralphie's constant fights with his little brother (wonderfully played by Ian Petrella) and Billingsley and his brother being terrified by a department store Santa.

Also Melinda Dillon and Darren McGavin are just great as the parents-- especially Dillon. She has one uproarious scene where she gets Petrella to eat by imitating a pig! This was totally ignored when it came out in 1983 but has slowly developed a cult following. It's now considered one of the best Christmas movies ever made--right up there with "It's a Wonderful Life" (which was also ignored at its release).

A charming, wonderful Christmas film. A 10 all the way!