I triple dog dare ya to buy this Blu-ray. Don’t do it, you’ll shoot your eye out. Well, only if you hit the eject button on your player and your head is too close to it.
It’s not a Blu-ray; it’s a major award but is it an upgrade? Santa walks away a little disappointed with this holiday release.
Ralphie (Peter Billingsley) only wants one thing for Christmas – an official Red Ryder carbine-action 200-shot range model BB gun with a compass in the stock. The problem is that his parents (Darren McGavin and Melinda Dillon) don’t seem to get the hints and when he actually makes the request of his mother she only responds “you shoot your eye out.”
However, Ralphie is not one to give up easily and begins his quest to make sure that the treasured toy is under his Christmas tree on the big day. He and his little brother Randy (Ian Petrella) and his pals Flick (Scott Schwartz) and Schwartz (R.D. Robb) will have to go through several trials before that big day arrives.
Including facing down the school bully Scut Farkus (Zack Ward) and his underling Grover Dill (Yano Anaya), seeing if your tongue really does stick to a frozen flagpole, mom’s delight at the Old Man winning a major award, and the yuletide visit of the neighbor’s smelly hounds.
I bet at least one of those things in the list of plot description points above brought a smile to your face. I can recall hearing about the movie and some pals and I renting it. We never laughed so hard, especially at the substitute Christmas dinner at the Chinese restaurant. Some great stuff in the film as adapted from the autobiographical writings of Jean Shepherd.
Time has gone on the crown A Christmas Story one of the most popular Christmas films, but it (not unlike It’s a Wonderful Life) wasn’t exactly one that burned up the box office when it was released. It was through numerous television airings (again It’s a Wonderful Life) that the film began to gain high esteem as one of the funniest films of the holiday season.
It can be a bit off-putting that TBS has a twenty-four hour marathon of the film but watching it again I still had moments that made me laugh out loud. There was some melancholy mixed in with the holly in knowing that Bob Clark are Darren McGavin aren’t around anymore, but the youthful members of the cast do turn up the pay tribute to the film.
However, those expecting all of the special features from the DVD will still find some coal in their stockings. An earlier press release promised that the Blu-ray would house all of the special features that appeared on the 2003 special edition DVD. That has not come to pass and it’s enough to make you stop believing in Santa Claus. Missing are some Jean Shepherd readings, a trivia challenge, and a decoder game.
The readings are probably the most glaring omission. I don’t have the previous edition on Blu-ray but I thought that this version did look better than some screencaps that I’ve seen online.
The press release also promised that the picture would be upgraded but since it also promised special features that aren’t on the set and I don’t have the other release to do a side-by-side comparison to I can’t tell.
It did look pretty good to my untrained eye, but I’ve also heard that it used the same transfer as the earlier Blu-ray released and since the press release lied to me as well I’m prone to believe what I’ve heard. What’s really new on the set is the packaging and the swag in it.
A Christmas Story is presented in a 1080p high definition transfer (1.85:1). Special features include a commentary by director Bob Clark and star Peter Billingsley. It’s great to hear Clark’s thoughts on the film since he was tragically killed by a drunk driver in 2007.
All of the rest of the special features are presented in standard definition. The 5 minute “Daisy Red Ryder” goes into the history of the BB gun. The 18 minute “Another Christmas Story” sets down (circa 2003) with Clark, Billingsley, R.D. Cobb, Scott Schwartz, and Zack Ward to reminisce about the film.
The 4 minute “Get a Leg Up” takes a brief look at that major award and there’s also a 50 second comedic spot advertising the lamps. Finally, you get the 2 minute theatrical trailer. The new packaging adds a string of Christmas tree lights in the shape of the leg lamp and all is housed in a new collectible tin box.
If you already have the previous release then there’s not a whole lotta reason to get this upgrade, only if you want the swag in the tin. It’s a fantastic film that is a holiday classic but it should’ve got better treatment.
I’d like to give this set five stars, since the film well deserves them, but can only advise you to get the Blu-ray only if you don’t have it and probably to get the less expensive release that isn’t housed in this tin. Santa didn’t pull through this time.
A Christmas Story (Ultimate Collector's Edition) is now available at Amazon . Visit the DVD database for more information.
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