tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3166297507174717122.post6705098354134477645..comments2024-03-27T21:42:56.131-05:00Comments on 1001plus: Trial of the CenturySJHoneywellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13550007053995112090noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3166297507174717122.post-86695975658980333492016-12-25T19:40:37.284-06:002016-12-25T19:40:37.284-06:00There's a lot to love with Miracle on 34th Str...There's a lot to love with <i>Miracle on 34th Street</i>. There's no way that anyone can do Santa Claus without referencing Gwenn in some respect these days. Everything is either trying to replicate Gwenn or a direct response to this role. He really is the perfect Santa. <br /><br />You're right about Natalie Wood as well. She doesn't play the role as a little adult but as a genuinely precocious child. Susan isn't an adult, but a child trying very much to think like an adult, and that's a hard thing to do well. Jerome Cowan is great, but it's Gene Lockhart who makes the trial for me. SJHoneywellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13550007053995112090noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3166297507174717122.post-2109290440312587792016-12-24T23:35:39.067-06:002016-12-24T23:35:39.067-06:00Although it's not my favorite Christmas movie,...Although it's not my favorite Christmas movie, I lean more towards White Christmas and Christmas in Connecticut or if I'm looking for something weightier All Mine to Give, it's definitely something I can't go through the holiday season without seeing.<br /><br />You're spot on about Edmund Gwenn, no one will ever fill the role of Santa better. I watched a shortened TV redo of this once with Thomas Mitchell as Kris Kringle and while being Thomas Mitchell he of course gave a good interpretation of the part it just didn't feel right. <br /><br />Edmund Gwenn is vital to the success of the film but the same can be said of Natalie Wood. It's the gravity she brings to Susan that makes her portion of the film work, as with Gwenn no other child actress has been so indelible in the role. Others who have attempted it have either been too kiddie-ish or play it like little adults. She's neither but there is a placidity to her that hints at being grown up while she still unmistakably reacts like a youngster. Watching her here you see why she was able to bridge the gap from child performer to adult star, there is a quality and specialness to her that remained into adulthood, she registers. It's a common thread shared by the few other child stars who managed that treacherous transition.<br /><br />Glad you mentioned those smaller roles, they all add so much. I particularly love Jerome Cowan's reaction after his son testifies. Even the judge's grandkids in their small bit are spot on. <br /><br />And of course it holds a special place as the film that brought Thelma Ritter into film. Her role is tiny but boy does she make it count.joel65913https://www.blogger.com/profile/14526657073681774683noreply@blogger.com