A Christmas Story 2 Goes Direct-to-DVD
Just when you thought the concept of direct-to-DVD sequels had been all but replaced by remakes and reboots, along comes Warner Home Video to remind us that DTV flicks are still alive and well… and equally as frustrating. Apparently someone out there thought it was a good idea to create a sequel to the timeless holiday classic A Christmas Story without any of the original cast or creative team (admittedly, director Bob Clark and writer Jean Shepherd are no longer with us). Thirty years have passed since the original film was released but somehow Ralphie is only a teenager in this sequel, which certainly makes for some chronological confusion (I assume it is set in the 1940s?). Either way, Ralphie now has his sights set on a new toy for Christmas: a 1938 Hupmobile Skyline Convertible, which sounds slightly safer than a Red Ryder BB Gun.
Braeden Lemasters (Men of a Certain Age) will play Ralphie, while Daniel Stern plays his Old Man and Stacey Travis his mother. The movie is being directed by Brian Levant (Snow Dogs, The Spy Next Door), who may seem like a questionable choice until you realize that he also directed a Christmas classic of his own with Jingle All the Way. The screenplay comes courtesy of Nat Mauldin (Open Season, Doctor Doolittle).
I wasn’t aware that the characters from A Christmas Story had already appeared in a couple of pseudo-sequels including Ollie Hopnoodle’s Haven of Bliss and It Runs in the Family aka My Summer Story, both of which were narrated by Jean Shepherd. The former starred Jerry O’Connell as Ralphie, while the latter had Kieran Culkin instead. Either way, I’m just disappointed that the original Ralphie, Peter Billingsley, could not be involved. After all, he’s a director himself now, having helmed the Jon Favreau / Vince Vaughn comedy Couples Retreat. A Christmas Story 2 hits DVD and Blu-ray on October 30th; will you take a chance on this travesty?
Comments (13)
I thought I was the only one that remembered Ollie Hopnoodle’s Haven of Bliss! Now I’m not alone in my pain…
Posted by PlanBFromOuterSpace on August 13th, 2012Oh boy, just in time to scare people on Halloween
Posted by Colin on August 13th, 2012Well this will blow large moose cock! Taking the best Xmas flick and destroying it with a crappy sequel with absolutely no one from the original. Peter Billingsley was smart to stay away, this is going to be pure shit!
Posted by Chopper on August 13th, 2012KILL IT WITH FIRE
Posted by Drew on August 13th, 2012At least they’re trying to tell a story in the same universe with the same characters, rather than just slap the name ‘Christmas Story 2′ on some random holiday flick.
Posted by rjdelight on August 13th, 2012That box art looks like it’s “Not A Christmas Story: A XXX Parody”
Posted by Derek on August 13th, 2012They already made a sequel with Charles Grodin, I thought. “MY Summer Story”?
Posted by Goon on August 14th, 2012I came here to say exactly what Goon said (and it looks like is in the OP):
This was already done!
Now, part two was only about 10% the film the original was and as much as I love Charlie Grodin, he’s not half the “old man” that Darren McGavin was. Still, it was somewhat enjoyable for what it was.
But this… without Jean Shepherd, this should be burned to the cutting room floor before it kills someone.
Posted by Andrew Olson on August 14th, 2012Couples Retreat was the worst kind of garbage, maybe its problems lied more with the terrible script though. Haven’t seen A Christmas Story, but maybe Billingsley should go back to acting.
Posted by Zac on August 14th, 2012How can you call it a travesty if you haven’t seen it? Pretty smug for a blogger with questionable knowledge of the biz. Wait for it to come out before a review. I guess it is an opinion anyway. I for one will be happy to see this one.
Posted by Behindthescenes on August 15th, 2012the movie takes place 6 years later, I worked on the movie,Not sure how it will turn out but recreating the 40′s was pretty cool.
Posted by Korey on August 15th, 2012Sequels are a funny thing. Sometimes they’re as good as or better than the original, (Superman 1 & 2, Back to the Future 1 & 3), and with others, some are so awful, or so “out there,” you wish they’d just stopped after the first movie had wrapped. (Pirates of the Carribean sequels are at the top of that list for me. Apologies to anyone who actually liked them). Sequels are like a “box of chocolates,” you never know what you’re gonna get.
Posted by Michelle on September 6th, 2012Hey Putz,
You put down Levant and upgrade Billingsley’s Couple’s Retreat? Really?
This was an excellent sequel. Should have been released theatrically.
You’re a real dildo wannabe.
Posted by bilko on February 25th, 2013Leave a Reply