88
Metascore
10 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 100New York Daily NewsKate CameronNew York Daily NewsKate CameronIt is light, it is charming, it is delightfully funny and completely captivating. It is all that, and something more. It has an undefinable spiritual quality that raises the spirits of the beholder into a happy, hopeful mood.
- 91The A.V. ClubNoel MurrayThe A.V. ClubNoel MurrayIn the battle of the classic Hollywood Christmas movies, It's A Wonderful Life feels charmingly ancient, fixed in an early-20th-century America that scarcely anyone today remembers first-hand. Miracle On 34th Street feels more modern, with slangy dialogue and naturalistic asides, and a general awareness of how Christmas has become about the intertwined stresses of shopping and selling.
- 90Time OutTime OutThe original (and best) version of the cockle-warming tale of a man who claims to be the real-life Santa Claus.
- 90The New York TimesBosley CrowtherThe New York TimesBosley CrowtherThe freshest little picture in a long time, and maybe even the best comedy of this year.
- 88Chicago TribuneMichael WilmingtonChicago TribuneMichael WilmingtonA Christmas season evergreen.
- 88The Seattle TimesJohn HartlThe Seattle TimesJohn HartlChristmas classic. [06 Nov 1997]
- 80Chicago ReaderDave KehrChicago ReaderDave KehrIt's a highly professional piece of Hollywood sentimentalism.
- 80Author-Director George Seaton has laced his sure-fire sentimentality with equally sure-fire wit and some cynical knowledge about how men of business and law might talk, look and act under these extravagant circumstances. The movie handles all its whimsy deftly and is consistently a smooth, agile job.
- 75TV Guide MagazineTV Guide MagazineA touch labored but lovable.