It Happened One Christmas (1977)
It's Christmas Eve 1944 in the small town of Bedford Falls, New York. A despondent and suicidal Mary Bailey Hatch is praying for guidance on what to do about an incident no fault of her own which threatens her name and the community standing of her longtime family business, the Bailey Building and Loan, which she took over after the passing of her father. What Mary does not know is that most in town, including her husband George Hatch and their children, are also praying for her. All the prayers are heard by Joseph, God's gatekeeper of prayers. As there are no other angels available on such a busy day, Joseph assigns Clara Oddbody, angel second class (i.e. she has yet to receive her wings), to Mary's case, which he reluctantly does as Clara has never been assigned a case on her own in the two hundred years she's been in heaven for good reason.
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Excellent, Without a doubt!!
In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.
The thing I enjoyed most about the film is the fact that it doesn't shy away from being a super-sized-cliche;
Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.
I don't know if it was because of the time in my life but this movie was so special in my heart. It's a wonderful life might as well been the remake of this. I love, love, loved this movie.. just one question --were did it go, it fell off the face of the earth, I think it came out again maybe 2 years after, then gone for good.I would love to know why this movie isn't around anymore, never replayed on TV anymore, I don't know what kind of rating it got but if it was a poor rating, that was unjust! I stand behind the many comments you see here. What I would love to see in this order is, at best to at least...At best: A faithful 1080p (1920x1080) release of this movie in HD with 5.1 sound as a blue-ray or HD-DVD release. I don't know that even the original master, even if it had this resolution has the color quality but if it could look great, it would be extra special.That it starts to come up on, at least, a cable channel such as, maybe, TBS or USA or even just regular television during the pre-Christmas season or just about any time of the year.At least: As a standard DVD release.Please, please somehow bring this back.Thanks
I saw "It Happened One Christmas" in about 1978, I think on Christmas Eve, while sitting alone waiting for my wife to get off work and join me for the holiday. I hadn't seen Marlo Thomas since the original airing of "That Girl" in the '60s. It was wierdly fun to see her on something, and I had never seen nor heard of Capra's "It's a Wonderful Life." Later when I did see "It's a Wonderful Life," I immediately connected the story to that of "It Happened One Christmas," and thought it was scandalous how the original had been ripped off, and how geeky it was by comparison to the classic it had been "appropriated" from.Today I wish I could find the knock-off on DVD. Now that I've seen Capra's original so many times, it would be fun to see the Marlo Thomas version again, if for no other reason than to bring back the nostalgic feeling of that evening that I first saw it. I remember that I was very touched by the story that night, geekiness of the treatment notwithstanding (or perhaps partly because of it!), and that it contributed to setting me up emotionally for a very special Christmas holiday with my spouse.
I Loved this show and have been trying to find it for such a long time. I am still searching for it so if anyone knows where I can get it from please let me know. Thanks. I recommend this show for a good family Christmas movie to sit down and watch after Christmas dinner before sending the kids to bed to wait for Santa to come. :) This show has a heartfelt meaning and really makes you realize the good things in life and that the bad things are really not that bad once you realize the Love you have of your family and friends. Even when things look so bleak in life God always has a different plan for all of us in our lives. God Bless everyone..
While most remakes & sequels are generally not worth while, I really enjoyed this movie. Marlo Thomas has been a favorite of mine since "That Girl". Given that opinion, I thought her performance was refreshing. "It's A Wonderful Life" has always been my favorite Christmas movie & that has not been diminished by this remake. Like most remakes, it presents a different approach to the classic's original concept. The acting was well done-can anyone really fault the performance of Orson Wells as Mr. Potter? Having a female lead is really just another way of telling the story but definitely required imagination to make it work. Judging from the comments I read pertaining to this movie, my opinion won't be popular but differences of opinion make life more interesting & it's good that I am not alone in genuinely liking this movie. The statement "if it's not broken..." is true. However it you look at all the remakes of Dickens "Christmas Carol" it shows that everyone has a viewpoint on how even such a classic as this can been revised-my favorite was produced in 1951. If only I could find this movie in a store....