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The spirit of Christmas is a phrase that gets thrown around a lot come end of year celebrations. What does it really mean? Does it mean be loving to your family? Be cruel to your credit card? Or is simply a reminder to go to church for the second time that year? Personally I love Christmas and always have. I loved the idea of Santa even when I stopped believing. I loved the presents – initially receiving them, but more recently I love giving them. And my favourite sight at this time of the year is a big Christmas tree in the living room with a big collection of presents.
But let’s face it: Christmas has become a money spinning holiday, twisted to the will of a bottomless pit of consumer culture. From Santa to Jesus there is commercial interest attached and that most definitely encompasses the seasonal cinematic sub-genre. When it comes to understanding the spirit of Christmas there is no greater propaganda machine than Hollywood. And when it comes to striking that fine balance between Western greed and genuine holiday cheer there is no better movie at defining “Christmas spirit” than Miracle on 34th Street.
The story tackles the heart and soul of Christmas, asking the ultimate question: Does Santa Claus exist? Kris Kringle is a Santa-looking guy who is taken on a whim to fill in at the Christmas parade for fictional department store Cole’s. He does a great job and is kept on as the store Santa. After bringing in more dollars and convincing most of New York that he is the real deal (except the store owner’s six year old daughter) Kris is then framed and sent to jail. For some reason to escape conviction his lawyer needs to prove in the court of law that Santa is real.
So the film plays the Christmas spirit card but it also challenges the whole point and logic of the thing. It shows the department store mentality with the focus on spending; and it shows the hardened little girl who doesn’t believe in Santa, and will only believe if she gets a new house, a dad and a brother (makes my Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time request not sound so ambitious) – these are the more selfish habits we see around December.
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But more importantly the film challenges the most fundamental figure of Christmas – Santa (I apologise to the religious folks out there, but Santa has effectively crashed Jesus’ birthday party. Interestingly it does touch on the religious angle by mentioning that the US $1 bill states “In God We Trust” and therefore it’s OK to believe in the whole gang). And while I know the hook is kind of silly – to prove a myth wrong in the court of law – the film really makes you hope that Kris is the real Santa Claus even if it is impossible.
Miracle on 34th Street has just enough 90s charm to reinforce children’s faith in Papa Noel while also reminding adults what it felt like so long ago to believe. The film is about magic and goodwill and happily ever after, and remembering to spend a shitload of money on luxury items for other people. And that is the true meaning of Christmas spirit.
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Should I have maybe watched the original for this feature instead? Maybe.
