It Came Upon the Midnight Clear

It is my favorite Holiday movie ever . . . It took me forever to be able to find a copy to purchase and I love watching it . . . I hope that one day it might be released in a dvd format . . . The relationship between the Grandfather and Grandson, reminds me a lot of me and my late Grandmother . .. I recommend it to everybody . . .

It's unfortunate that this movie is no longer played on TV or available for retail purchase. It can however be purchased (for a substantial wad of cash) from eBay or Half.com. I give it nine stars for being one of the best of its genre (Family Holiday Movie). It's wholesome without being too cloying. There are a few scenes of heaven and angels but it isn't dreadfully religious. The young child star in this movie, Scott Grimes, is a great actor. He is a nice, kind but not disgustingly cutesy kid (how I miss this sort of low-key child acting in movies today). Mickey Rooney and Scott Grimes have a believeable synergy in this movie. I really miss watching this movie on TV. I watched it repeatedly during the couple of years it was playing, which is something I don't usually do. It's as good as Miracle on 34th Street, so why did it disappear from our radar?

I actually think this is one of the most underrated Christmas movies ever made. Maybe I'm a sucker for the Christmas tales I watched when I was younger (not that long ago), but I have a special place for this movie in my memory.

I just always thought this movie about a grandfather and his grandson, spending some special days in New York, made me smile during the holidays, and it always made me remember the song with the same title.

I think Mickey Rooney is at his best here, and it also showcases a young Scott Grimes as a likable, everyday kid. I also enjoyed him in "The Night They Saved Christmas", another good-time Christmas flick that came out the same year.

It may not be one of the most WELL-MADE movies of the era, nor is it without the schmaltz of every Christmas movie, but I like to think that the Holidays would not be complete without the token cheesy-storyline movie.

Mickey Rooney plays Mike Halligan, a retired cop from Manhattan living in California with his family who decides to show his grandson, who has never seen snow before, what a real white Christmas in New York is like. But he dies from a sudden heart attack in which Halligan makes a deal with the Archangel of Heaven to return to Earth for a week until Christmas and show his grandson the seasonal glories of New York City.

The film is so well made that you can overlook the flaws. The casting is spot on. There is never a dull moment.

The film works so well because it does make New York City a co-star. I also love the bound between Mickey and Scott.

The film is not available on DVD. You can get used VHS copies. Originally running 96 minutes I am afraid that if the film is shown on commercial television that they will cut about 12 minutes out! If you see a VHS buy it.

This movie offers a humorous look at the meaning of life and the holiday season. Mickey Rooney plays a retired NY City police detective who dies and is sent back from heaven to find a missing Christmas angel. While he and his grandson search for the angel, who was on a mission to spread Christmas cheer, they find that Christmas, and life, is what you make of it. Excellent for all ages.