Die unvergessliche Weihnachtsnacht (1940)

Die unvergessliche Weihnachtsnacht: Directed by Mitchell Leisen. With Barbara Stanwyck, Fred MacMurray, Beulah Bondi, Elizabeth Patterson. Love blooms between a sympathetic attorney and the comely shoplifter he has taken home for the Christmas holiday.

“TCM aired this Christmas Eve this past year. I canu0026#39;t believe so few people have seen this judging by the 20+ reviews and 500 votes. It is an undiscovered gem waiting to be found. Hopefully with more airings around the holiday it will build a much deserved following.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThis is such a charming film with two superlative stars – Fred MacMurray and Barbara Stanwyck. While they both play roles they easily inhabit – her as the tough broad and him as the good-as-gold good guy – they both bring such warmth, charm and ease into their portrayals as to seem like a warm pair of gloves on a coldu0026#39;s winter night.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eI love the references to Indiana. Both of my parents were Hoosiers and we went back to visit many times for reunions and Christmases. So much of the film seemed like a visit home to me. u0026quot;Back Home In Indianau0026quot; is such a great melody, as was u0026quot;A Perfect Dayu0026quot;. Wouldnu0026#39;t it be great if families still gathered u0026#39;round pianos for a sing-a-long? MacMurrayu0026#39;s farmhouse was such a wonderfully authentic set. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eWouldnu0026#39;t all of us love to be welcomed into a home like this, with so much love and warmth. There are so many nice old-fashioned touches, like popping corn over the fire, stringing popcorn for the Christmas tree, making popovers, a church bazaar, and a New Yearu0026#39;s Eve Barn Dance. There is a wonderful touching scene when the spinster Aunt is letting Stanwyck borrow a gown of hers – only to find out it was a wedding dress she never got to use. I had to laugh at all the undergarments that went along with it (corset, bust lace, hip lace, etc, all to make a woman appear curvier). At one point she asks Stanwyck the size of her waist, which she answers is a 25 or 26. The Aunt says when she was young, they thought 19 inches was big. Ouch, those corsets must have hurt!u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThere are many different moods to this film which made it so interesting. At times, it felt like a screwball comedy, then a noir-ish piece, thereu0026#39;s drama, and thereu0026#39;s romance. I think this is a film the whole family can watch as it will appeal to most everyone. This one will have you laughing and tearing up at sentimental moments. A true classic that should be more appreciated today.”