A Christmas Story Christmas is a 2022 comedy film directed by Clay Kaytis (The Angry Birds Movie, The Christmas Chronicles), intended to be a legacy sequel to 1983's iconic A Christmas Story. Several actors from the original film reprise their roles, including Peter Billingsley (Ralphie), Ian Petrella (Randy), Scott Schwartz (Flick), R. D. Robb (Schwartz) and Zack Ward (Scut Farkus).
In the early-1970s, Ralphie Parker returns to his childhood home, now with a family of his own: wife Sandy (Erinn Hayes) and children Mark and Julie. He also reunites with his old friends Flick and Schwartz. Ralphie's mother (Julie Hagerty) convinces him to give his family a memorable Christmas like the now-deceased Old Man always did. However, Ralphie soon realizes that the task is much more difficult than it seemed when Ralphie was a child.
The film was released on HBO Max on November 17, 2022.
A Christmas Story Christmas includes the following tropes:
- The Alleged Car: Ralphie's 1965 Plymouth Belvedere sedan (misidentified as a '66 by his daughter) has a bad radiator—which Ralph feeds a regular diet of eggs to seal it up—and a faulty trunk latch. It's pretty much the Generation Xerox version of the Old Man's 1937 Oldsmobile. Quirks aside, it's a Cool Car by virtue of being a 1965 Plymouth in otherwise solid condition after seven Chicago winters and getting the family from point A to B without fault as well as being an escape vehicle from Christmas Carolers.
- Artistic License – Geography: Hohman, Indiana is depicted as being at least a couple hours' drive from Chicago, rather than being a lightly disguised Hammond which is right on the state line and the next town over from Chicago.
- Artistic License – History:
- The December 1973 calendar shown in the opening credits is inaccurate. December 1st, 1973 was on a Saturday, not a Thursday. Also, Christmas in 1973 was on a Tuesday, not a Sunday.
- After Scut Farkus apprehends Ralphie as he drives him home, his patrol car has blue lights. Indiana police vehicles around 1973 used red lights, as blue lights were used by volunteer firefighters.
- Ralphie's daughter, Julie, says in the film she wants the Hungry, Hungry, Hippos game for Christmas, which wasn't introduced by Hasbro until 1978, 5 years after the movie is set in.
- The Palmolive Building visible in the shot of the Chicago skyline is missing the Playboy logo was near the top of the building for decades until the late 1980s.
- Early in the film, Ralphie uses the CTA to take the train to Chicago, with the sign saying "Redline". However, the Chicago Transit Authority train system used street names for different train stops until February 21st, 1993, when they unveiled new designations that used color-coded train signs and maps for the various routes across the city.
- The cash register in the department store where Ralphie is shopping is not accurate to 1973 standards.
- Several cars that are not accurate in 1973 are seen in the film, such as a parked Chrysler Cordoba which was introduced in 1975, 2 years after the film is set in.
- In Ralphie's fantasy of winning the 1974 Pulitzer Prize, other science fiction writers such as Isaac Asimov, Frank Herbert, and Anne McCaffrey are depicted as significantly older than they would have in 1974, with the first two being 54 years old while the latter being 48 years old, yet all three are shown as being white-haired and elderly.
- The White Sox cap Ralphie buys is the one from the late 1950s-early 1960s, not the cap worn in the 1970s, as the former was already discontinued around the time of the movie's setting.
- There are two references to The Simpsons in the movie, which didn't start airing until 1989, 16 years after the film's 1973 setting.
- Aside Glance: After guilting Randy into coming home for Christmas, Ralphie gives the camera a smirk before walking away.
- Bait-and-Switch: Just like in the original film, the Parkers are singing Christmas songs in the car when it has a sudden breakdown. Right as the audience starts to assume we're about to get a retread of the classic "fudge" scene, Ralph decides to have a family snowball fight while the Plymouth cools back down.
- The Bartender: Flick is now the owner and head bartender of his family's bar in Hohman.
- Batman Gambit: How Mark and Julie take care of the neighborhood bullies. They build another snowman, but this time on top of a tree stump. Sure enough, the bullies try running over the snowman, only to smash their snowmobile into the stump and wreck it.
- "Blackmail" Is Such an Ugly Word: After the tree's star breaks, Ralph is determined to get another one which happens to be inside Flick's tavern; Ralph rationalizes that "borrowing from a friend" sounds more neighborly than breaking and entering:Ralph: The term "breaking and entering" has always had such an unduly, sinister tone; "borrowing from a friend", on the other hand... well, that sounded downright neighborly.
- The Bully: Two snowmobile-riding ones terrorize Mark, Julie and the Bumpus kid. They're revealed to be Scut Farkus' own children. Scut himself even states that they're worse than he was as a kid.
- Big Damn Heroes: The Old Man, one last time, comes to the rescue with Christmas presents, having gotten the big asks of his grandkids after (so really before) the originals Ralphie and Sandy had bought were stolen, and very thoughtful presents for the rest of the family, shortly before his apparently sudden death. Can easily double as a
Tear Jerker for many.- Scut Farkus, of all people, sees himself as this when he arrests Ralphie for breaking and entering Flick's Tavern and ends up just dropping him off at home, feeling that he owes him for their fight straightening him out. He rightfully points out that, had it been literally any other officer, Ralphie would be in jail for Christmas.
- Call-Back: Many:
- Ralphie still tries to butter people up by giving them things like fruit baskets.
- Ralphie and his wife take their kids to the department store to see Santa. As they're running to get in line, Ralphie tells them, "Don't let him kick you in the face!" Naturally, neither his mother nor his wife have any idea what the hell he's talking about.
- Flick "triple dog dares" Schwartz into performing a physically dangerous stunt (both as payback for the flagpole incident and out of frustration for flaking on his bar tab).
- Mark and Julie have totally inherited their grandfather's love of turkey.
- While looking over mementos in the attic and thinking of what to write for the Old Man's obituary, Ralph gets some inspiration when he spots his old Red Ryder BB gun in a box.
- When Ralphie enters Flick's Bar, there is a sign that says, "In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash", a reference to Jean Shepherd's 1966 novel of the same name in which four of the short stories were used as the basis for the original film.
- The casseroles in the fridge are marked with the names of the families who made them. These are full of deep dive easter eggs of characters mentioned in the original film, Shepherd's other Ralphie stories, and the filmmakers. In addition, there are two from Ralphie's teacher, Miss Shields, as she had a different name in the book.
- The Bo' Ling Chop Suey Palace, where Parker family go to at the end of the original film, is located next door to the tree lot.
- In the movie, Ralphie asks for a radiator in his car for Christmas, a subtle reference to the original film in which the Old Man wants a new furnace for Christmas.
- Ralphie son, Mark, screams the word "fudge" as he's sledding down the hill, a homage to the original film in which Ralphie says it when the Old Man knocked the lugnuts out of his hand.
- In the film, Ralphie accidentally injures his daughter, Julie, in the eye with a snowball, another subtle reference to the original film in which everyone worries that Ralphie will "shoot his eye out" if he gets a Red Ryder BB gun for Christmas.
- The Cameo: We don't see him in person or learn what he's getting up to these days, but a grown-up Grover Dill does briefly appear in one of Ralph's Imagine Spots.
- Canon Discontinuity: The film follows directly from A Christmas Story, ignoring the forgotten It Runs in the Family (1994) (1994) and the oft-maligned A Christmas Story 2 (2012).
- Characterization Marches On: The movie largely avoids Flanderization with the returning cast of characters. Ralphie and the others still maintain a few of their childhood quirks, but Randy outgrew his whiny phase as a youngster (Although he does briefly slip back into it when Ralphie tricks him during his phone call), Mrs. Parker is nowhere near as high-strung anymore after a few decades of living in an Empty Nest and discovering that wine can also be enjoyed outside of Christmas Day, and Scut Farkus gave up his old bullying ways and Took a Level in Kindness.
- Cool Uncle: Randy is this in spades for Ralphie's kids, Mark and Julie, as he gives them gifts from his world travels.
- Dad the Veteran: An early shot in the film shows a portrait of a twentysomething Ralphie in full dress uniform, and he later mentions having served in Korea.
- Diabolus ex Machina: While bringing Julie to the hospital to get her eye bandaged up, the trunk of Ralph's car mysteriously pops open again, allowing passersby to loot every single gift he'd just bought for the family.
- Doting Grandparent: Mrs. Parker is a very affectionate and loving grandmother to her grandkids. The Old Man was also one before his passing, to the point he took it upon himself to buy the presents Mark and Julie asked for well before Christmas.
- Downer Beginning: The film begins with Ralphie's science fiction novel being rejected by yet another publisher before his mother calls him to tell him the Old Man has unexpectedly passed away, mere days before they were supposed to come to Chicago for Christmas.
- Empty Chair Memorial: The Old Man's Red Chair, until the very end, when Ralphie finally sits down in it to read his newspaper article aloud at the Christmas Day party.
- Epic Fail: Sandy considers herself a figure-skating aficionado, but Ralph's narration points out that her enthusiasm and knowledge of the sport doesn't translate into an actual talent for it. To underscore this, she doesn't even make it past the front porch steps before wiping out and spraining her ankle.Sandy: *pouting* "...I really am good once I get out on the ice."
- Everybody Smokes: Averted. You would think bars in 1973 would have a few more than zero smokers.
- Eye Scream: During an impromptu snowball fight, Ralphie turns to prepare a fastball to lob at Mark, failing to notice that Julie has climbed up onto the tree stump behind him to cheer him on. He turns to fling the snowball and accidentally nails his young daughter square in the eye with it.
- Foreshadowing: It's pointed out early on that Ralphie's writing style is too wordy. It makes for a sleeping pill of a science fiction novel, but it fits the narration of the original film just perfectly.
- Freeze-Frame Bonus:
- It's made to be the finale's big reveal, but if you pause as he finishes the manuscript, you can see on the pages that the Old Man's "obituary" is in fact mostly Jean Shepherd's narration from the original movie.
- When Ralphie and his family are in town buying the Christmas tree, a sharp-eyed viewer will notice that the building right next to the tree lot is the Chinese restaurant at the end of the original movie.
- Generation Xerox: Scut Farkus has had a couple of kids in the years between the first movie and this installment. Like their father, they're bullies that terrify the town's children though Farkus notes they're probably worse than he ever was.
- Genre Shift: In-Universe, Ralph's daydreams about being a cowboy are now based on 1960s Spaghetti Westerns instead of 1930s classic Westerns.
- Happily Married: Ralphie and his wife, Sandy, are incredibly loving and supportive of each other. Sandy even squirrels away enough money so Ralphie can take a whole year off work to write his novel.
- Hated Hometown: Downplayed. Ralphie doesn't exactly hate Hohman and is happy to reunite with his old friends and neighbors, but he is aware that the town doesn't have as much to offer his family as Chicago does. (Plus, he swore he wouldn't come back until he could come back a success as an author.)
- Heel–Face Turn: Scut Farkus has gotten his act together and become a Reformed Bully in his adulthood. He retains the Evil Laugh, though, which he still enjoys enough to indulge in even after a Pet the Dog moment.
- Hoist by His Own Petard: Ralphie attempts to barter with the Christmas tree salesman by starting with a lowball offer of a few bucks for a deformed tree he (and his family) doesn't actually want. The salesman instantly accepts the offer since he wasn't expecting to actually be able to sell the tree and is glad to take what he can get.
- Idiot Ball: Ralphie grabs it and runs with it in third act. He needs a new star for the family's tree, but all the stores in town are closed. He's about to give up, until he notices the star on the tree that Flick decorated his tavern with. But instead of simply going to Flick to ask him to unlock the bar so he can borrow it, Ralphie breaks in through the back of the bar to do so and is caught by the police. Had anyone other than Scut Farkus been the officer on the scene, Ralphie would've spent Christmas in jail.
- Or, y'know, sitting down with Julie and MAKING a star out of foil or other stuff they had around...thereby making a nice Christmas Eve memory and giving Julie something to be proud she created. But NO, Ralph...
- I Hate Past Me: Scut Farkus regrets how much of a bully he was when he and Ralphie were kids and is disappointed that his own kids are worse than he was.
- I Need a Freaking Drink: Flick's recommendation to Ralphie over his predicament is to start drinking and not stop until New Year's.
- Imagine Spot: One of the few things Ralphie has retained from childhood is his very active imagination, so the film has a few of these just like the original.
- Jaded Washout: Unlike Ralphie and Flick, Schwartz doesn't have any success as an adult as he still lives with his mother and spends all his time at Flick's bar.
- Mythology Gag: The adult Flick owns a bar, which he also did in the original novel In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash (the title was taken from a sign he had hanging up in the bar), and his Real Life inspiration Jack Flickinger
did as well. (Said sign is visible behind the bar in the movie, and the neon "BOOZE" sign outside is also straight from the novel.)- Also, several names from Shep's original stories show up as Easter eggs. Several of the neighbors' casseroles are marked with the surnames Duckworth, Hickey, Bryfogel, Wocznowksi, Prewitt, Kissel, Pulaski...all surnames of townspeople in the original stories. And Junior Kissel is called out by name as one of the regulars at Flick's. Junior was one of Ralph's pals in the original novel/short story collection In God We Trust—All Others Pay Cash, although his fate was sadder...his father was the town drunk, a lovable "character" in an earlier story...until their house got repossessed and their possessions auctioned off for taxes, and the family departed for parts unknown.
- The '70s: The film's plot summary (confirmed by a calendar displayed in an opening scene) establishes that it takes place thirty three years after the events of the first movie in December, 1973.
- Obnoxious In-Laws: Downplayed; Mrs. Parker and Sandy actually get along okay, but the former doesn't shy away from the occasional teasing, such as when she beats the latter in a Scrabble game, or rubbing it in Sandy's face after she injures herself:Sandy: "I can even do an Arabesque."Mrs. Parker: "Is that what you did off the front porch?"
- Oh, Crap!:
- Ralphie agrees to his elderly mother's request to organize a magical Christmas like the Old Man had always done. The minute her back is turned, a look of horror flashes across Ralphie's face and his narration reveals that he is in way over his head.
- Ralphie also gets a triple-whammy Oh, Crap! after leaving Flick's bar with the "borrowed" star; first, he is immediately busted by a police officer, then sees that the officer's name tag reads "S. Farkus", and then Officer Farkus recognizes him as Ralph Parker. Fortunately, Scut is no longer the type to hold a grudge
- The One Who Made It Out: Both Ralphie and Randy have grown up to become successful adults, with Ralphie being a Family Man living in Chicago and pursuing a writing career while Randy is a businessman who travels around the world.
- Passing the Torch: Ralphie is tasked to make Christmas great for his family after the Old Man passes. His central character arc is struggling with this new role. With a little help and inspiration, he succeeds, culminating in him sitting down in the Old Man's big red chair on Christmas Day, fully embracing his new role.
- Reformed Bully: Scut Farkus, courtesy of his beating by Ralphie in the original film. He figures he owes Ralphie one, and even lets Ralphie keep the star he stole from the bar as recompense.
- Serious Business: It doesn't matter if Ralphie, Flick, and Schartz are now middle aged, the triple-dog dare is as serious and binding as it was when they were children.
- Spared by the Adaptation: Though Flick's ownership of his father's bar comes straight from Shepherd's original book In God We Trust—All Others Pay Cash, the movie is kinder to Schwartz than Shepherd was. In the closing paragraphs of In God We Trust, we learn that Schwartz was killed in action on the European front in WWII. (The timeframe of the stories was a little different, reflecting Shepherd's own birthdate of 1921.) This movie's Schwartz may be something of a loser, but at least he's alive.
- Strong Family Resemblance:
- As an adult, Randy happens to take after the Old Man quite a bit.
- The younger Farkus boy looks a lot like his father as well.
- Would Harm a Child: The denizens of Flick's bar — after seeing Schwartz's run down The Ramp — excitedly steal sleds and disks off the gathered children and knock down many in the process.
