At 48 minutes length, "The Best Christmas Pageant Ever" just made the cut from a short to a feature length film. It's based on a 1971 children's novel of the same title by Barbara Robinson. While it may be true to the book, as some reviewers have noted, it's not the great film that some rate it. It is good, but just slightly different as a Christmas movie. There are some laughs, but no big surprise at the end. And, it is dated culturally.
I agree with one reviewer about the little information about the kids. This might have been a better flick with more time to show the character that made these kids the "worst" in the world. Without that, it's a stretch here. Some folks may still enjoy this film today, but there are many more, including some very funny films out there, for viewing over the year-end holidays. This is one of the first roles that Loretta Swit had as the long-running MASH TV series came to and end the same year, 1983.
I agree with one reviewer about the little information about the kids. This might have been a better flick with more time to show the character that made these kids the "worst" in the world. Without that, it's a stretch here. Some folks may still enjoy this film today, but there are many more, including some very funny films out there, for viewing over the year-end holidays. This is one of the first roles that Loretta Swit had as the long-running MASH TV series came to and end the same year, 1983.