George Seaton (1) (1911–1979)

At the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, the actor playing Santa Claus is discovered to be drunk by a whiskered old man. Doris Walker, the no nonsense special events director, persuades him to take his place. He proves to be a sensation and is quickly recruited to play Santa at the main store. While he is successful, Doris learns that he calls himself Kris Kringle and he claims to be the actual Santa Claus. Despite reassurances by his doctor that he is harmless, Doris still has misgivings, show more especially when she has cynically trained herself, and especially her six-year-old daughter, Susan, to reject all notions of belief and fantasy. And yet, people, especially Susan, begin to notice there is something special about Kris and his determination to advance the true spirit of Christmas among the rampant commercialism around him and succeeding in improbable ways. When a raucous conflict with the store's cruelly incompetent therapist, Granville Sawyer, erupts, he finds himself held at Bellevue where, in despair, he deliberately fails a mental examination to ensure his commitment. All seems lost until Doris' neighbor, Fred Gailey, reassures him of his worth and agrees to represent him in the fight to secure his release. To achieve that, Fred arranges a formal hearing in which he argues that Kris is sane because he is in fact Santa Claus. What ensues is a bizarre hearing in which people's beliefs are reexamined and put to the test, but even so, it's going to take a miracle for Kris to win. show less

Acting: 5.0; Theme: 5.0; Content: 4.5; Language: 4.0; Overall: 5.0

This aeronautics drama and thriller is based on the novel by Alex Haley. During a massive snowstorm a mentally disabled former military man (Van Heflin) carries an explosive device within his carry-on case with the aim to blow up the jumbo jet in order to provide an insurance policy for his wife (Maureen Stapleton) in response to his dire financial catastrophe. Crew pilot (Dean Martin) must keep the crew and passengers calm show more and safe throughout their landing. There are about ten uses of vulgarity. Highly recommend.

***November 28, 2024*** show less

A man who claims to be Santa Claus gets a sanity hearing.

Cute and amusing. Surprisingly, it doesn't feel very Christmassy for a movie that has so much to say about Christmas.

Concept: A
Story: B
Characters: B
Dialog: B
Pacing: A
Cinematography: D
Special effects/design: B
Acting: B
Music: C

Enjoyment: B

GPA: 2.9/4

Tear-jerker, based on true story. Uneven production values.
IMDB: "A war correspondent who was stationed in Paris during WW II married a French girl who was murdered by the Nazis. After the war he returns to to try to find his son, whom he lost during a bombing raid but has been told is living in an orphanage in Paris."