Miracle on 34th Street

Dir: Les Mayfield

1994

*

One of the worst and most pointless remakes ever made. The original 1947 Miracle on 34th Street is perfect in every way. It didn't need to be updated, it was in fact ahead of its time in many respects. In Les Mayfield's 1994 remake, he decided to show the viewer all those things that they decided, quite wisely, not to show in the 1947 version, as it seems the art of suggestion and the wonder of imagination have become obsolete in the fifty years since. They then threw in some cheap slap-stick, rushed out an awful script, added one of the worst endings to a film in the history of cinema and made loads of money doing it because that's what seems to work these days because it seems people are too ignorant/lazy to watch old films because they're in Black and White and require a couple of brain cells to be working. Mara Wilson wasn't the brilliant little actress everyone thought she was in my opinion, all she ever did was open her mouth wide and have large eyes. As much as I love him and love the idea of him being Santa, the great Richard Attenborough wasn't that great either. He doesn't come close to being as lovable, and more importantly believable, as Edmund Gwenn. Memories can be rose-tinted, a re-watch might make you agree with me but I would argue that it would be a better use of your time to watch the original instead if you haven't already.