And for the third and final time, we welcome ‘Miracle on 34th Street’ (1994) through our exulted doors. And this time steps forward the version that I think is most well-known, at least for people of a certain age. That certain age being my age. And yet, while watching this film yesterday I realised that I have never actually seen it all the way through. I’m not sure how that could possibly be as I feel like it was on in my house on a yearly basis. But alas I have seen it all the way through now, so let’s see what I made of it and see how it compares to the other versions of the film I have seen this year. The film tells the story of a department store Santa (Richard Attenborough) who becomes famous for putting the customer before the store and advising them to go elsewhere if the gift they want is cheaper, in turn bringing big business to the store in which he works. This upsets a rival department store who hatch a plan to take him to court and prove he is not Santa and is in fact just insane.
One thing that is instantly noticeable about this version compared to the older version is how it looks. The development of filming technologies from 1947 to 1994 has allowed for this change to happen and this film does contrast greatly in how it looks to that original version. The way the camera is able to move and the choice of shots does fill out the scenes much more than that original and makes the film more visually interesting. Although it never goes any further in its creativity than the standard Hollywood style it still looks good and is technically sound. There is one really odd moment in the film where there is a fourth wall break which is really jarring, but apart from this, it is solid. The score is also much more pronounced in this version. It is so pronounced in fact that it sometimes steps into an area which feels like it is going overboard in how much Christmas cheer it is trying to put across, but it works for the film. The performances in the film are a bit of a mixed bag. Mara Wilson is her usual self, by that I mean good. She is one of the better child actors of the last few decades and she proves it again in this film. Richard Attenborough is also great in the role of Santa. He seems like the nicest of blokes and I can totally imagine him being Santa. Then you have Dylan McDermott who is fine in the role of Bryan Bedford. He has a charm to him, but he is not particularly stellar in the role. But he is better than Elizabeth Perkins who plays Dorey Walker. She isn’t terrible, but she also is lacking in emotion for a good chunk of the film and seems like she is sleeping through a good, few scenes.
But the big question has not yet been answered, is this the definitive version of ‘Miracle on 34th Street’? Well, for me I think the 1947 version is still the better version, and this mostly comes down to some aspects of the narrative that are either changed or enhanced for this version. Firstly, there is a lot more of a focus on the relationship between Bryan Bedford and Dorey Walker. In the other version, this relationship is something that builds throughout the runtime and by the conclusion, they are a couple. This film decided that wasn’t dramatic enough so also included a failed proposal and a makeup that is reminiscent of many naff rom-coms. It isn’t badly done in a storytelling sense, but it feels needless and doesn’t add anything to the overall emotional impact of the film. The film also changes the inciting incident which gets Santa into court initially. In the original film, it is a wannabe psychologist working for the department store who is obsessed with proving that the Santa working there is not the real one. This film makes it much more of a conspiracy between the old department store Santa and a rival department store to get Santa sent down. This ends up being handled a little cartoonishly and takes away the aspect of the original film that saw several stores getting involved in the Christmas spirit. I guess this was done to give the film a more obvious antagonist, but I feel like the end product is weaker for it. These changes are not bad In and of themselves, but they feel unnecessary or cheapen the message of the film in my eyes.
Although this film is not as good as the 1947 version it is still a charming and enjoyable Christmas film. I feel like a lot of this does come down to the performances of Attenborough and Wilson who bring a lot of heart to the film. Of course, the narrative is also a solid one and this does help. I feel like everyone has already seen this film so recommending it seems almost pointless, but if you haven’t then give it a watch. It is a film that captures the spirit of Christmas well and I’m sure will bring a smile to your face.
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