It’s Christmas Magic Time Again
The seasonal magic of the movie Sleepless in Seattle
Nora Ephron had a knack for writing great Christmas and holiday scenes in her movies. And Sleepless in Seattle is no exception. When Anne went home with her fiancé, Walter, on Christmas Eve and talked about her engagement to her family, there were beautiful Christmas decorations all around.
The movie starts with Christmas and ends with a trip to the Empire State Building on Valentine’s Day.
This great story had the perfect backdrop thanks to the magic of Christmas, New Year’s, and Valentine’s Day holidays.
“It was magic”
Anne’s mother was the first person to say the word “magic”, which became a recurring theme throughout the movie. She described to her daughter, Anne, again how she and her father fell in love. She said specifically,
“It was like magic.”
Then, when Anne left and started listening to the radio, she heard Sam describe how he met his wife, Maggie. Sam uttered the phrase “It was like magic” as Anne said “magic” in unison with him.
Was it “magic” that the two of them would eventually meet?
The use of the word “magic”became a major foreshadowing device that would test the fate of Sam and Annie’s future together.
The magic of old movie romance
The movie itself was a throwback to old Hollywood romance. It referenced the movie, “An Affair to Remember,” with Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr on several occasions. Real footage and a musical score from that movie were used in this film.
Can a person really fall in love today like an old Hollywood movie of yesterday?
Even her best friend, Becky, posed that question to her. Is it possible?
The magic of Christmas
It was Christmas Eve when Jonah called the radio station to ask the relationship doctor, Dr Marsha, how he could help his father find a new wife.
Dr Marsha then pleaded with Sam to talk to her because it was Jonah’s Christmas wish for her to do so.
On the call, Sam said, “It’s Christmas,” to imply how magical Christmastime is.
Christmas is magical for all of us. This time of year is often marked by feelings of specialness, nostalgia, and love from our family and friends.
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What could feel more magical than that?
Does grief change how you feel about Christmas?
Does Christmas have the same meaning when you lose a loved one?
How does Christmas feel now knowing they are not there to spend it with you?
Anyone who’s experienced the grief Sam has knows that things aren’t the same without having the person who’s passed on to share the holidays with.
Even so, Sam acknowledges that life continues.
Sam knows that life goes on.
Sam has to deal with the grief in his own way.
Until Jonah’s call opened his eyes to it, Sam couldn’t see how his grief affected his and his son’s happiness.
Sam’s realization made it easier for him to express his feelings of loss and grief to Dr Marsha, allowing him to deal with it openly.
Conclusion The magic of Christmas is felt by everyone
Christmas is special. And so is the magical feeling of the season. How do we see the magic of Christmas?
- We see it through our own eyes.
- We experience feelings of enchantment the holiday season brings every single year.
- We are capable of believing in forces that are greater than ourselves.
- We become children again, lost in our childhood Christmas memories.
- We retain all of our own family traditions, such as togetherness, innocence, hope, and imagination during the Christmas season.
So, what does the magic of Christmas mean to you?
What do you remember and feel the most during the Christmas holidays?
May you forever maintain the joy, spirit, kindness, service, love, and magic of Christmas today and always.
“As long as we know in our hearts what Christmas ought to be, Christmas is.”-Eric Sevareid
