"Christmas is a season for kindling the fire for hospitality in the hall, the genial flame of charity in the heart."
AUBURN, Maine - The Christmas movies were pulled from the shelves in our home just after Thanksgiving. No need to wait for the classics to appear on television. You can usually find a copy of a holiday film for about $5 in any department store.
There are only handful of yuletide movies that make my cut. Sure, the Hallmark and Ion cable channels churn out holiday films by the dozen, but most are usually junk, and don't really measure up to timeless classics like "It's a Wonderful Life."
Here's how I have them ranked:
1. "It's a Wonderful Life" is at the top of the list. George Bailey is a quiet hero who goes through life helping the other guy out in the 1946 Frank Capra classic. It explains why George never had a future in congress. He was the Frank Serpico of his day and couldn't be bought by a greedy old bastard by the name of Henry F. Potter, "the richest and meanest man in Bedford Falls." I want to put the SOB in a full nelson every time I watch the movie
Potter was a son of bitch, but Bailey understood the greater good was more important than lining his wallet with money.
Bailey holds his town together, but when his life falls apart financially, he decides to commit suicide. But before he makes the leap into eternity, Clarence, the lovable angel wannabe, intervenes and persuades George to reconsider by reminding him of all the good he has done for the community.
The story is based on the "The Greatest Gift," a short story written by Philip Van Doren Stern in 1939 and published in 1945.
If your eyes do not well up with tears at the end of the movie, you have no soul.
2. "A Child's Tale of Christmas in Wales." If you have never seen this classic, then you live in a cave.
I showed this beautiful movie to a group of high school students. When my son was born, I ordered the movie from a book store. He was two when he first saw it, and now at 16 years old, he watches it with me every Christmas season.
It is a heart-warming tale of a grandfather regaling his excited grandson about his past Christmases as a boy in Wales on Christmas Eve.
It is gem, and the grandfathers' recollections reveal just what a talented writer Welsh writer Dylan Thomas really was.
3. "Miracle on 34th Street." Please purchase the 1947 black-and-white version starring Edmund Gwenn, Maureen O'Hara, and a young Natalie Wood.
You will start believing in Santa Claus again when Gwenn and attorney Fred Gailey make their case in court to convince the judge that Gwenn is the original Kris Kringle.
After two hours, you will be rooting for Kringle like you would for Patriots quarterback Tom Brady.
4. "A Christmas Story." Watching Ralphie go to any extreme to sway his parents to give him a Red Ryder B.B. gun for Christmas is delightful experience.
The film is partially based on Jean Shepherd's book, "In God We Trust: All Others Pay Cash." The book was a collection of short stories written for "Playboy."
The writing is witty and crisp, and the humor and plot is excellent.
And Ralphie almost shoots his eye out.
5. "A Christmas Carol." There are a number of film versions of Charles Dickens' masterpiece.
I prefer these two: The 1984 version starring George C. Scott and the 1951 film named "Scrooge," starring the British actor Alastair Sim.
My father loved the 1938 version starring Gene and Kathleen Lockhart.
Dickens' short story stands the test of time, with his assault on greed and disdain for class warfare.
6. "Home Alone." Why a movie about a cute kid who takes on the two stooges after being left alone to fend for himself on Christmas?
There is one great scene that makes the entire movie a classic. Macaulay Culkin is sitting in a church when he is confronted by a neighbor, Marley, played by character actor Robert Blossom, whose reputation has been tarnished by damaging rumors.
A round of a dialogue between the Culkin and Blossom is heart wrenching and profound. Their interaction is worth sitting through the antics of Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern as they bumble their way during a home robbery.
7. "The Homecoming: A Christmas Story." If you are really seeking the true meaning of the Yuletide, then turn to "The Waltons" for the answer. This 1971 television production is a masterpiece, and anybody who lived through The Depression would appreciate the storyline. My mother was a survivor of the Depression and she loved this opening episode of the Waltons. We watched it every season until the networks stopped showing it.
Patricia Neal does a fine job of Olivia Walton, who waits for her husband to come home after a 50-mile trek back to Waltons' Mountain in Virginia.
I am sure there are other holiday movies out there, but I haven't found recent Christmas movies to top these classics.
That's why these seven holiday movies remain masterpieces.
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