TheMegaCritic2000 . i'd never heard of this movie until this Christmas (2015). I decided to sit and watch it when I came across it in the TV schedules and it was a pleasant surprise to find a pretty good Christmas movie with a real heart.I've been a Harry Dean Stanton fan for many years and he turns in a great performance as the angel Gideon in this movie. Far from the conventional angel, he looks almost creepy, in his black hat and long back coat. But when he smiles, he lights up the screen.The rest of the cast do a very good job, too. Jan Rubes play an great Santa Claus and the kids play their parts very well.It's well worth a watch if you see it on the TV schedule!

qcloes09 As others have warned, this is NOT a movie for children (unless you love to torture them with horrific events).My mother took my sisters and me to see this, based on the title and it was at Christmas time.SPOILER ALERT!! SPOILER ALERT!! (Don't read if you plan on watching anyway) Our younger sister, only 10 years old at the time, had nightmares for weeks. She was scared to get in the car and afraid our parent would get killed. Why? It's in the movie. This heartwarming little film has someone being short to death and children drowning when a car plunges in the water. We see it all. Since we had no internet at the time, our Mom didn't know these visions would appear in front of us kids until the "surprise" ending. Unfortunately the ending didn't quite redeem what you see for most of the movie. Oh yeah....there's the depressing issues of bankruptcy, a Suicidal mother, and an "Angel" who looks like a Pedophile and skulks around children as though he is one.I know the world has changed, and children are a bit more savvy. However, I am writing this to let parents know and be forewarned.

Shawn Watson One Magic Christmas is a world away from the safe, schmaltzy family fluff Disney is responsible for today. It's actually quite a bleak, downbeat and miserable film for the most part, with realistic and mundane photography and a drab production design. All of this actually serves the film well, I must point out.A young Mary Steenburgen (who has always been cast beyond her years thanks to her deep facial folds) plays a mum who is very emotionally subdued, she walks around in a daze, enjoying little of life. At Xmas her kids and husband are excited but she only worries about money and is brought down even further by people treating her badly.An angel shows up and encourages her young daughter to help find 'the true meaning of Xmas' (a theme which is quite common in Xmas movies). The film then plays out as a cross between It's a Wonderful Life and A Christmas Carol. It's effective, but it's not for everybody. I only saw it once before when I was 12, and I was depressed by it, but it's a welcome change of pace to the usual festive fare.

monologuer I'm really picky about my Christmas movies and this has to be right up there in my top five with Rudolph, Charlie Brown, It's A Wonderful Life, and White Christmas.I still have the same VHS copy my mom recorded in the 1980s off the Disney Channel. We watch it several times every year, so often that I have the entire movie (including every fuzzy sound dropout and warble and 1980s commercial) memorized- and believe me, I'm not the type of person to do that! Not your typical saccharine Disney movie, it's real life and gets fairly serious/dark at times (although I never noticed that as a seven-year-old kid, interestingly). I see no reason not to let children watch it, with a caring adult around to talk to about the more complex themes. I'd rather have my kids watch this than the inane cartoons out these days. The music is subtle and appropriate, the photography is gorgeous and sticks in your head long after viewing. The acting is top-notch, heartfelt, and true. I can't imagine Christmas without it.