Der Wunschzettel

When 7 year old Leo posts a "wish list for Santa Claus" at a tree on a busy side-walk, the boy was the only one expecting a Christmas miracle. His sister Lotte and their recently widowed father Daniel were already resigned to the worsening situation in their family. The father's carpentry business was failing, and Children's Services would soon declare Daniel incapable of caring for his children. But then the door bell rings, and Pauline, a middle aged woman who had been unlucky in love and was bound for spinsterhood, enters their life. Without a doubt, Santa must have sent her!

The story is not only bitter sweet, but it shows the many sides of the ups and downs, the joys and problems within an extended family, who always meet up for a "sleep-over" with all of the familiar traditions of Christmas at the spacious home of "Mom and Dad". Seemingly "picking on one another" for perceived shortcomings, there is a lot of love and harmony between siblings and in-laws and the next generation of children. Any personal crisis becomes a family matter, the unbreakable support system.

If there really was a Santa Claus, he could not have brought this family a better batch of presents! You will enjoy this film. I've seen a lot of "Christmas Stories", this one is one of the very best!