I really, in general, don't like the coming of age genre as a whole. It's not the idea of telling a story where a child is forced to look adulthood in the face that bothers me...it's the idea that with this comes with an often perverse loss of innocence. For example, I recently watched [i]Malena[/i] and was grossly disappointed with the idea that the only difference between a child and an adult was sexual discovery, as opposed to the clear message of [i]Where the Wild Things Are[/i], where coming of age entails a true gaining of maturity and introspection. In conclusion, this is why I don't like [i]A Christmas Story[/i]. Loss of innocence.

I don't think I would say that A Christmas Story is about the loss of innocence. How would you even get that? I mean, yeah, Ralphie learns that he could actually shoot his eye out, but if anything the film is a tribute to childhood and the way kids view the world.

[b]BrotherReed wrote:[/b] [quote]I don't think I would say that A Christmas Story is about the loss of innocence. How would you even get that? I mean, yeah, Ralphie learns that he could actually shoot his eye out, but if anything the film is a tribute to childhood and the way kids view the world.[/quote] This.

[b]BrotherReed wrote:[/b] [quote]I don't think I would say that A Christmas Story is about the loss of innocence. How would you even get that? I mean, yeah, Ralphie learns that he could actually shoot his eye out, but if anything the film is a tribute to childhood and the way kids view the world.[/quote] Granted, it was not the main theme, but it was most certainly there. Between realizing the commercialization of Christmas (or at least, it being alluded to in the decoder ring), feeling up the lamp, and dropping the f-bomb, it hovers around in the sub-plots, rearing its ugly head from time to time. Really though, I thought the disconnect was clear between my rant and final sentence. There are a great many reasons why I dislike [i]A Christmas Story[/i], and those scenes are probably my least favorite in the whole movie, but again, I thought the disconnect was evident.