All I Want For Christmas

How far would you go to make a wish come true?

MPAA Rating: G

IMDB Rating: 5.6 / 10

Release Date: 11/8/1991

Length: 92 min

Tags: comedy, family, romance

Director: Robert Lieberman

Writers:

Thom Eberhardt

Richard Kramer

Cast:

Santa

(Harley Jane Kozak)

Catherine O'Fallon

(Harley Jane Kozak)

Michael O'Fallon

(Jamey Sheridan)

Ethan O'Fallon (as Ethan Randall)

(Ethan Embry)

Tony Boer

(Kevin Nealon)

Hallie O'Fallon

(Thora Birch)

Olivia

(Andrea Martin)

Lillian Brooks

(Lauren Bacall)

Stephanie

(Amy Oberer)

Sylvia

(Renée Taylor)

Susan

(Felicity LaFortune)

Sonya

(Camille Saviola)

Frankie

(Michael Alaimo)

Salesdervish #2

(Joanne Baron)

Mr. Chase

(Alan Brooks)

Editor Review

In the 1991 Christmas movie, All I Want For Christmas two children have more on their mind than bicycles and popguns.

Hallie is an adorable younger sister to the practical Ethan and they share the same wish; to have their recently-divorced parents together for Christmas. However, there is much to get in their way. Their mother has a new suitor, in the form of a smarmy businessman and Ethan has problems of his own when a new friendship becomes his first crush. But the kids in the end manage to get their parents to reassess themselves and their family, via a box of mice, an ice cream truck and Hallie faking illness to get her mother to the door.

Thora Birch shows how early she developed her abilities as an actress, and it is no surprise she continued in that fashion, although where she is now is somewhat of a mystery. The ability to play the headstrong and yet cuter than cute Hallie seems to come so easily to her and it's no surprise her career continued strongly, at least for a while…

Also noticeable is the role of the mall Santa taken by Leslie Nielsen who was better known to us with a gun and a bemused look on his face from the Airplane! and Naked Gun franchises, but it's nice to see him in a family-friendly role.

It's true that this film does instantly remind us of the classic 60's film, The Parent Trap (or indeed the 1998 remake, if you're more of a Lindsay Lohan fan). The plot is identical - children try to reunite their separated parents - but there's no shame in that; a good idea remains a good idea. But the Christmas spin and the wonderment of wishing your family back together over any material gain is one that everyone can appreciate.

Fun Fact:

Many mice were needed to play the main mouse involved in the production, some of them ended up being male, and some of them female.