No, this isn't the beloved pet teddy bear of "Family Guy's" Stewie. This is a cute little squirrel who has run off from his trainer (Jimmy Conlin) back to the old apartment that Conlin has been tossed out of. An old vaudeville pal of Conlin's (Jimmy Durante) moves in with his down and out family, and the little prankster squirrel plays a trick on the miserly owner (Frank Orth) by tossing down bills hidden by Orth in the walls. Thinking that a Christmas miracle has happened, the family's fortunes begin to rise but Orth becomes puzzled as his stash begins to dwindle.
This sweet low budget Christmas fantasy was created by George Pal, best known for some of the most groundbreaking science fiction films of the 1950's. The cheapness of the film is obvious, but it is done with such humanity that it really doesn't matter that you can tell that this is a mechanical squirrel. You really begin to care about this family as they go through a series of bad circumstances, and hope that the miserly Orth will learn some lessons from this and begin to care more about people than money, and that includes his long-suffering wife (Sara Haden). There are a lot of familiar character actors from the golden age of movies and television, including Frank Cady of "Green Acres" and that queen of the bit part Queenie Smith in a much larger role than normal. Terry Moore of "Mighty Joe Young" fame is the romantic heroine. While younger audiences of our high-tech era might find this silly and sappy, those of us who grew up in more innocent times can sit back and enjoy the film from a non-cynical point of view and hope the younger generation will eventually realize the charm of film like this.
This sweet low budget Christmas fantasy was created by George Pal, best known for some of the most groundbreaking science fiction films of the 1950's. The cheapness of the film is obvious, but it is done with such humanity that it really doesn't matter that you can tell that this is a mechanical squirrel. You really begin to care about this family as they go through a series of bad circumstances, and hope that the miserly Orth will learn some lessons from this and begin to care more about people than money, and that includes his long-suffering wife (Sara Haden). There are a lot of familiar character actors from the golden age of movies and television, including Frank Cady of "Green Acres" and that queen of the bit part Queenie Smith in a much larger role than normal. Terry Moore of "Mighty Joe Young" fame is the romantic heroine. While younger audiences of our high-tech era might find this silly and sappy, those of us who grew up in more innocent times can sit back and enjoy the film from a non-cynical point of view and hope the younger generation will eventually realize the charm of film like this.