Christmas on Division Street

Young prep school kid Fred Savage late of The Wonder Years is a preppy kid who has to write a book report on the how the other half lives. So this would be Jacob Riis goes to Philadelphia's skid row for some live derelicts. He finds one in Hume Cronyn.

The two bond in some interesting ways and the scenes between Cronyn and Savage make this holiday film something special. No sugarcoating here in describing what goes on with the daily lives of the homeless. as portrayed by Cronyn and his companion Badja Djola who is a saxophone player who has seen some better days.

Old age is tough enough and I'm now old enough to experience it first hand and for me it's with a state pension and social security and an apartment I can afford at this point. For Cronyn he had a tragedy that scarred him permanently and now he is a derelict in the sense he has no real direction.

The young and old have a memorable Christmas together in this wonderful and surprisingly not that sentimental holiday tale.

I haven't seen such an emotional and warm-hearted film for a long time. This is a GOOD movie.

The Atwood family has just moved to Philadelphia, but Trevor Atwood (Fred Savage), a high school student, is not very happy about it. One day, while Trevor is searching for books in a library for his school assignment on American History, he meets a homeless old man, Cleve (Hume Cronyn). Cleve has a detailed knowledge of history and a good sense of humor. However, Trevor doesn't like Cleve at first. When Cleve tries to talk to Trevor, Trevor says "Mister, haven't people told you not to talk to strangers?" Cleve replies "If you never talk to strangers, how can you ever get to know anybody?"

Cleve helps Trevor collect information for Trevor's report and gradually they become good friends. Looking at Cleve reminds Trevor of his late grandfather. And to Cleve, being with Trevor is comfort, too.

On Christmas Eve there comes a storm, it snows so hard and there are no electricity and no heating downtown. It is difficult for people on the streets to get through the night. Trevor takes a blanket and goes out looking for Cleve, trying to help him...

Eventually Trevor makes his parents see those homeless people differently, in a more sympathetic way.

Watching this film is an enlightening experience. "Christmas on Division Street" is a story about love, friendship and compassion. The actors' performances are marvelous. I hope this movie will be aired on TV again and again so more people can have the opportunity to see this wonderful film.

An made for TV movie with wonderful performances by Hume Cronyn and Fred Savage. Trevor(Savage) moves to a new city and has trouble with the adjustment. When visiting the libary for some research work, he meets a homeless man(Cronyn)and reacts the way most act towards the homeless. But soon the memory of Trevor's grandfather surfaces and he looks at Cronyn differently. He disregards Clive's appearance and begins to appreciate the man for his knowledge. A friendship and bond soon forms. With Christmas fast approaching and a storm on the way, Trevor soon learns about the plight of the homeless and the hopelessness they face.

A movie I saw about four years ago around Christmas time and have been looking for it since. The acting was great and believable. I am so glad that the networks air such movies as these. I would recommend it for all ages but especially the young. It serves as a great learning tool as to what real compassion and respect is all about and a reminder to all who are more fortunate to help those who are not. I loved the movie and wish they would air it yearly. Hats off to the creator of such an outstanding story and thanks.

Hello, my name is Virginia Bagnato. I had the privillege to work as an actrees in the film Christmas on Division Street and I am incredibly honored by the great reviews its gotten. I want to comment that being in the film made me change my perspective on life by experiencing situations that I would of otherwise not of experienced in real life. I got to play the role of Lupe ( a poor little girl struggling with poverty). It took me some time to really understand what Lupe felt, what she faced day after day, her work, her family situation, what the birth of a new baby meant to her family (the joy of a new born yet the worries it brought considering her family's situation). Yet it wasn't until many years after being part of the film, that I got to see first hand what people in extreme poverty conditions face. At the age of 18 I got a chance to visit my home country (Uruguay, South America) for the first time. Uruguay is a small but beautifull country with everything you could ask from nature (great coast, lands, sites, etc). Yet inside all this natural beauty lies a country with a divided economy of high,low and a vanishing middle class. For the first time I got to meet, talk with, and see hundreds of "Lupe's". Little girls and boys living in extreme poverty situations. I got to re-live my role through the eyes of these kids, through their experiences, through their situations and family life. Since then it has been a personal goal to one day be able to give something back to my people, a doorway of hope, a channel-way for their talents which are rich yet unexplored. I want to reach out just like Fred Savage did in the movie, to these people, and touch their lives in a positive way. It's the message the movie tries to portray and it's a philosophy 12 years later, I still try to live by.