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March of the Wooden Soldiers (1934)

This is a great Laurel & Hardy classic holiday classic that my family used to watch every Christmas. It's filled with all of your nursery rhyme characters from Little Bo Peep to Mother Goose and the Three Little Pigs. Although it's dated in some aspects, in others it still has good entertainment value. If you don't like old movies, you might not like this but give it a try. It's also known as Babes in Toyland, which is vastly different from the later color version.

The story is that Ollie Dee and Stanley Dum need to borrow money from their employer, the toymaker, to pay off the mortgage on Mother Peep's shoe house, where they live and work, and keep it and Little Bo Peep from the evil Barnaby. When it fails, they trick Barnaby into marrying Stanley Dum. When Barnaby finds out, he unleashes the bogeymen from their caverns to destroy Toyland. It's up to Dee & Dum to fight back with giant wooden toy soldiers.

Stan Laurel .... Stannie Dum
Oliver Hardy .... Ollie Dee
Henry Brandon .... Silas Barnaby (as Harry Kleinbach)

It's a Wonderful Life (1946)

This must be one of the most watched and beloved holiday classics of all time, mostly, I believe, because of Jimmy Stewart's charm and down-to-earth personality as George Bailey. He's definitely the star of the show but others are great too. Donna Reed is great as his wife. Thomas Mitchell plays the kind but bumbling Uncle Billy who is the catalyst for George's epiphany. Lionel Barrymore is unforgettable as the grumpy, ruthless, Scrooge-like Mr. Potter who takes advantage of Uncle Billy's mistake. And Henry Travers is unforgettable as Clarence, an angel sent to help George reconsider his life.

This is very much like variation on A Christmas Carol but with George, the Bob Cratchit character, being the one who needs to change and with the angel, Clarence, taking the place of the ghosts, as the one who shows George what would've happened had he never been born.

It's a very sad and happy story at the same time. Frank Capra, as always, does an excellent job directing everyone to get the most out of their abilities. Great ending that will cheer you up in the worst of moods. If you have never seen this, watch it now!

James Stewart .... George Bailey
Donna Reed .... Mary Hatch Bailey
Lionel Barrymore .... Mr. Potter
Thomas Mitchell .... Uncle Billy
Henry Travers .... Clarence

George Bailey: What is it you want, Mary? What do you want? You want the moon? Just say the word and I'll throw a lasso around it and

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