Summary

Getting older doesn’t always mean getting wiser and this statement rings true for Ralphie Parker (Peter Billingsley). Ralphie is married to his wife, Sandy Parker (Erinn Hayes), with two kids, Mark (River Drosche) and Julie (Julianna Layne), living in the big city of Chigaco. However, when Ralphie’s old man passes away the week of Christmas, he and his family return to the old house on Cleveland Street to be with his mother. During this time Ralphie must be there for his mother, make Christmas as magical as ever for his children while reconnecting with his old buddies, Flick (Scott Schwartz) and Schwartz (R.D. Robb), and on top of all of that, he must get his writing published before the new year or he has to quit writing and return to his old job. 

Breakdown

The story recaptures the essences of what made “A Christmas Story (1983)” special with a great balance of Ralphie’s over dramatic imaginative sequences and real sequences of Christmas spirit. The story uses a lot of references to the original film which sometimes help the plot and other times weaken it. Overall, the film relies a lot on the nostalgia of the original to carry weak points of the plot which ultimately just want to make you rewatch the original instead of continuing to watch the new edition. 

Billingsley does a great job at portraying Ralphie and showing the emotional struggle of a parent trying to give their children the best Christmas ever. His chemistry with Schwartz and Robb’s characters makes it feel like the three of them have been close friends ever since the first film. 

Final Thoughts

I enjoyed watching “A Christmas Story Christmas (2022)” with my family, but it’s definitely not a film that is on my “must-rewatch” every Christmas list. While it is not as memorable or quotable as the first film, it is a worthwhile sequel for anyone who wants more of Ralphie and his shenanigans. “A Christmas Story Christmas” is available to stream now on HBOMax with 2 out of 5 film reels.