I am still unsure as to whether ‘White Christmas’ (1954) is a genuine Christmas classic. If it is, it is a film that I have only been aware of for the last couple of years. Even bringing it up with my parents before watching it they asked if I meant ‘Holiday Inn’ (1942). So, you can see how little exposure the film had in my house and one of the reasons I might not see it as a classic. Well, now it has the chance to become a personal favourite and who knows I may come to see it as a classic after seeing it. The film follows Bob Wallace (Bing Crosby) and Phil Davis (Danny Kaye), two WWII veterans who after the war became a famous musical duo. But, because it is the 50s, Phil is worried that Bob is lonely and needs to find him a woman, tasking himself with becoming a matchmaker. This leads him into tricking Bob into following a female musical duo, Betty Haynes (Rosemary Clooney) and Judy Haynes (Vera-Ellen), to Vermont so that he can match him up with Betty. However, while there they find their old General (Dean Jagger) who now owns a failing inn. In order to help him out Bob and Phil, with help from Betty, Judy, and their old army corp., decide to put on a show to show the General he is not forgotten.
This film was pretty much exactly what I expected it to be. I mean, it is a big studio musical from the 50s after all. They have a definite feel and look to them. And that feel and look is melodramatic acting on obvious sets. There is nothing inherently wrong with this in general, in fact, I find it quite charming, but it is something to point out because it does mean that the film has an atmosphere that makes it feel somewhat fantastical rather than realistic. Then again, it is also a musical so why would it be realistic anyway. Speaking of the sets they all look good, as do the costumes. It probably also goes without saying that the film is well made. In terms of how it looks technically it is solid. It never steps beyond the realms of that classic Hollywood style, but it is shot and edited well. This is especially true in the musical numbers where the film is able to both make the sequences visually impressive while allowing for the frame to be filled with movement and action in almost all corners.
But this being a musical there is nothing more important than the music, and the film is a pretty mixed bag in that regard. Obviously, White Christmas is a good song, and you get to hear it twice in the film’s runtime, but the rest of the songs basically went in one ear and out the other. And that isn’t to say that the songs are bad because they are not. They are not terribly written, and I did find myself tapping my feet along with more than one of the songs. But could I hum the tune to any of them now? No. I can’t even imagine how any of them sound in my head. But they are all performed very well. Again, that is not particularly surprising seeing as Bing Crosby is the lead in the film. But he is also surrounded by strong musical and acting performances from the whole cast. Like I mentioned up top, it can be melodramatic, which is probably helped by the narrative also being melodramatic. I mean the main crux of the film is based around a misunderstanding which gets in the way of the show and our two leads falling in love, it is pretty basic, dramatic shit, and the acting matches up to the narrative. None of it is bad, but it has a vibe which I think people may find a little comical today.
So, the big question is whether I will be adding this to my must-watch t list each Christmas. The simple answer is probably not. It is not a bad film and I would recommend it if you haven’t seen it already. But it didn’t make a huge connection with me. It was fun enough while I was watching it and it is well made with good performances, but I never felt that spark for it that would make me feel like coming back to it each year. I am not saying I will never watch it again, but I can’t imagine I will be watching it again anytime soon.
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