Sales Rank:120 List Price: $19.99 Lowest New Price: $12.24 Lowest Used Price: $12.19 MPAA Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Format:
Black & White
NTSC
Director(s):
Actor(s):
James Stewart
Donna Reed
Lionel Barrymore
Thomas Mitchell
Henry Travers
Now perhaps the most beloved American film, It's a Wonderful Life was largely forgotten for years, due to a copyright quirk. Only in the late 1970s did it find its audience through repeated TV showings. Frank Capra's masterwork deserves its status as a feel-good communal event, but it is also one of the most fascinating films in the American cinema, a multilayered work of Dickensian density. George Bailey (played superbly by James Stewart) grows up in the small town of Bedford Falls, dreaming dreams of adventure and travel, but circumstances conspire to keep him enslaved to his home turf. Frustrated by his life, and haunted by an impending scandal, George prepares to commit suicide on Christmas Eve. A heavenly messenger (Henry Travers) arrives to show him a vision: what the world would have been like if George had never been born. The sequence is a vivid depiction of the American Dream gone bad, and probably the wildest thing Capra ever shot (the director's optimistic vision may have darkened during his experiences making military films in World War II). Capra's triumph is to acknowledge the difficulties and disappointments of life, while affirming--in the teary-eyed final reel--his cherished values of friendship and individual achievement. It's a Wonderful Life was not a big hit on its initial release, and it won no Oscars (Capra and Stewart were nominated); but it continues to weave a special magic. --Robert Horton
Sales Rank:292 List Price: $19.98 Lowest New Price: $10.15 Lowest Used Price: $8.86 MPAA Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Format:
Closed-captioned
Color
Full Screen
NTSC
Director(s):
Actor(s):
Yano Anaya
Peter Billingsley
Les Carlson
Melinda Dillon
Colin Fox
This delightfully funny holiday gem tells the story of Ralphie Parker (Peter Billingsly) a 1940's nine-year-old who pulls out all the stops to obtain the ultimate Christmas present.
Sales Rank:499 List Price: $19.99 Lowest New Price: $12.93 Lowest Used Price: $11.98 MPAA Rating: G (General Audience)
Format:
Closed-captioned
Color
DVD-Video
NTSC
Director(s):
Actor(s):
Michael Caine
Dave Goelz
Donald Austen
David Alan Barclay
Robbie Barnett
Brian Henson directs his late father's creations in the Charles Dickens classic, the best known (and most oft-filmed) Christmas story of all time. Michael Caine plays the old miser Scrooge with Kermit as his long-suffering but ever-hopeful employee Bob Cratchit, Miss Piggy as Cratchit's wife, and a host of Muppets (including the Great Gonzo as an unlikely Charles Dickens) taking other primary roles in this bright, playful adaptation of the somber tale. Or at least it starts brightly enough--the anarchic humor soon settles into mirthful memories and a sense of melancholy as the ghosts of Christmas past, present, and future take Scrooge on a journey of his lonely, wasted life. Michael Caine makes a wonderful Scrooge, delightfully rediscovering the meaning of life as fantastic creations from Henson's Creature Shop (developed specially for this film) take the reins as the three ghosts. While the odd mix of offbeat humor and somber drama undercuts the power of Dickens's drama, this kid-friendly retelling makes an excellent family drama that adults and children alike can enjoy. --Sean Axmaker
Sales Rank:339 List Price: $39.95 Lowest New Price: $18.99 Lowest Used Price: $18.42 MPAA Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Format:
Animated
Color
DVD-Video
Full Screen
NTSC
Director(s):
Actor(s):
Includes 7 Holiday Favorites: - Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer - Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town - Frosty the Snowman - Frosty Returns - Mr. Magoo’s Christmas Carol - The Little Drummer Boy - Cricket on the Hearth