Christmas Eve on Sesame Street (1978)

Christmas Movie #2 

Synopsis: Ridiculously-friendly, late-1970s New Yorkers live alongside puppets, spontaneously burst into song every few minutes on December 24^th. 

Blurb From the VHS Jacket: “It’s Christmas Eve on Sesame Street, and everyone is joining in the excitement – until a question from Oscar throws Big Bird into a tailspin. ‘How does a guy like Santa Claus, who’s built like a dump truck, come down all those skinny little chimneys?’ Oscar asks. Suddenly, Big Bird is worried that if he can’t answer the question, there won’t be any presents on Christmas!” 

What Did I Learn?: Big Bird is extremely stupid. 

You Might Like This Movie If: You really, really, really want to hear Oscar the Grouch sing: "I hate Christmas!" Oops - wrong clip. 

 

Really?: 1) Good Lord – it ends with Cookie Monster eating Gordon and Susan’s tree, and then belching into the closing credits. 2) So wait... everyone is worried about Big Bird being out in the cold on Christmas Eve, even though his nest is outside? (Maria explains that BB’s next has an electric blanket and some heating pads, but come on – that’s not terribly convincing). 3) Funny how the Count appears in the opening skating scenes, and then disappears, while Grover appears in a few of the filler segments, but otherwise never shows his face on Sesame Street. Couldn’t somebody have figured out a better sub-plot for these guys? 4) I realize Ernie and Bert are re-enacting O’Henry’s The Gift of the Magi, but don’t they have any other possessions with which they could barter besides Ernie’s rubber ducky or Bert’s paper clip collection? How do they pay their rent? 

Rating: Christmas Eve on Sesame Street is a heartwarming, funny, and timeless holiday classic from the golden years (i.e. before Elmo) of the show, and it’s wonderful to watch David, Mr. Hooper and the rest of the cast I remember from childhood. Believe it or not, but cynical old me actually choked up once or twice. While I often complain when movies run too long, at only 60 minutes, CEOSS really could have used another half-hour. Also, the opening skating segment runs a bit too long, and the scenes of Kermit and Grover interviewing kids are a tad weak. Still, highly recommended. 8.5/10 stars. 

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0331217/?ref_=rvi_tt