"Nowadays, 'you make fun of Christmas,' said the film historian David Thomson, who has just published a history of the industry called 'The Whole Equation' (Alfred A. Knopf). 'I think it's more current now to say that Christmas is this dreadful family occasion where relatives who don't like each other come together and get drunk and start fighting. A lot of Christmas movies are rather like that.' "Fortunately, at our house, the cynicism hasn't set in as hard as at seems in other parts of the country. I'll take a little wholesome naivete over worldly skepticism any day:
"One of the main problems in the industry is that young kids do not take the story material seriously," Mr. Thomson said. "They think it's mocking. For that reason it's very difficult to play a straight Christmas film, with a straight Christmas sentiment, without looking ridiculously sentimental. If you tried to do 'A Wonderful Life' now, I don't think you could get away with it. The things we once took very seriously, we half-mock them now."As for the kids not taking the material seriously - gimme a break. It isn't the kids, it's how the parents treat them. If the parents choose to be cynical and express it, the kids will pick up on that far more than anything that film contains. It isn't the film mocking the kids, it's the parents mocking them and not letting them be kids.
Christmas is a time for ALL of us to be kids again. Give it a try. You can even buy "It's A Wonderful Life" on DVD and watch whenever you want!
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