The 2022 sequel to A Christmas Story features the same fantasy sequences as the original, changed to reflect Ralphie’s fears and hopes in 1973.
It is made clear early on in A Christmas Story Christmas that the adult Ralphie Parker (Peter Billingsley) still has the same imagination that often got the better of him as a child. Shortly after having his novel rejected by a cruel editor, Ralphie daydreams about winning a Pulitzer Prize as the same editor begs for forgiveness for doubting Ralphie. This mirrors a similar scene from A Christmas story, where a young Ralphie imagines being carried around the classroom by his friends, while his teacher sings the praises of his essay. The fantasy sequences continue throughout A Christmas Story Christmaswith subtle changes to reflect the 1973 setting.
How Black Bart Returns In A Christmas Story Christmas
One of the most famous fantasy scenes from the original A Christmas story centered around Ralph’s battle with a desperado known as Black Bart. Dressed up like a cowboy hero in the same vein as Roy Rogers and Gene Autry, Ralphie made short work of Black Bart and his men using the Red Ryder BB gun Ralphie’s dad bought him in the movie’s climax. A Christmas Story Christmas It also features a Western fantasy scene, but it is radically different from the daydream in the original movie.
This time, Ralphie’s fantasy takes the form of a Sergio Leone style Spaghetti Western, with Ralphie dressed up like Clint Eastwood’s Man With No Name. The nature of the daydream changes as well, with Ralphie being struck down by Black Bart because his wife and children are unable to help him in a snowball fight with the bullies that menaced his children. This reflects the adult Ralphie’s fears that he may have made things worse for his children by not allowing them to fight their own battles, and that they might not be able to overcome their bullies like he did.
Ralphie’s Jail Fantasy In A Christmas Story Christmas Explained
Ralphie’s fears are reflected by another dream sequence in A Christmas Story Christmas, where Ralphie runs into his childhood bully Scut Farkus, who has become a police officer, while breaking into a bar. This causes Ralph to imagine a grim future where his family visits him in prison. Beyond the implication that his wife is cheating on him, Ralphie is horrified to discover his son has become a punk and his daughter, still suffering from the eye injury he gave her, is pregnant. While not drawing direct inspiration from the original A Christmas story Like the cowboy fantasy, the sequence showcases Ralphie’s vivid fantasy life as an adult.
A Christmas Story Christmas is now streaming on HBO Max.