There's no nice to say it. It sucks.
The original with Geraldine Page and Donnie Melvin, which IMDb doesn't even list, is far and away probably one of the best short movies EVER made. It's almost as if Page is not playing "Sook" - she IS Sook, as she comes out of the shadows with an oil lamp on Christmas Eve to comfort Buddy...it gives one chills to watch it. It brings home the full sadness, the emotions, which the remake is sadly lacking in, of a poor boy taken from the only person in the world who loves him.
I first read the story in sophomore English near Christmas, and our assignment was to write up our own "christmas memory." My paper was short and sweet: "I don't have one." I was excused from the assignment.
I found the 1966 film version some years later, and it was a very moving experience to watch.
It's unforgivable that the 1966 version isn't restored to full glory on DVD. I'd pay almost anything to see that.
The original with Geraldine Page and Donnie Melvin, which IMDb doesn't even list, is far and away probably one of the best short movies EVER made. It's almost as if Page is not playing "Sook" - she IS Sook, as she comes out of the shadows with an oil lamp on Christmas Eve to comfort Buddy...it gives one chills to watch it. It brings home the full sadness, the emotions, which the remake is sadly lacking in, of a poor boy taken from the only person in the world who loves him.
I first read the story in sophomore English near Christmas, and our assignment was to write up our own "christmas memory." My paper was short and sweet: "I don't have one." I was excused from the assignment.
I found the 1966 film version some years later, and it was a very moving experience to watch.
It's unforgivable that the 1966 version isn't restored to full glory on DVD. I'd pay almost anything to see that.