Miracle On 34th street is the best overall Christmas movie ever made. The film’s black and white colors mixed with the joyless face that plagues the town makes for a dreary start to the film. This is so Kris Kringle can come along and turn the dreary atmosphere into a wonderful sight to behold, with his heartfelt actions and charm.
The film is not really about Christmas, the overall message is to be kind to one another out of common decency. The beginning of the movie shows Kris scolding a drunken Santa Claus who’s about to be on a parade float. This one scene encapsulates the idea of common decency perfectly. The anger displayed by Kris is out of love for those around him who are trying to escape the miserable lives they live, and enjoy the holiday season. This leads to Kris Kringle himself taking his place to try and save the holiday spirit. Which he does so effectively he’s hired as a mall Santa.
In my opinion the best scene of the movie is when Kris Kringle is working as a mall Santa. The moment the girl who can only speak dutch is the perfect embodiment of the warmth the film is trying to convey to the audience. The other who speaks English tells Kris that she wanted to just say hi as she cant communicate to him. It is then revealed Kris Kringle can speak Dutch perfectly and does so, which lightens the girls face up.
That’s what makes this film timeless, even though it’s in black and white and the picture is grainy at times, the story itself translates so well to anyone no matter what year it is. The warmth the movie fills you will never become dated unlike other holiday specials that may not hold up as well as they once did. The original Miracle On 34th Street is a classic and should be watched at least once every holiday season.