Oct 081942
 
five reels

After he loses a girl to his partner, Ted Hanover (Fred Astaire), song man Jim Hardy (Bing Crosby) quits the business to run an Inn which will only be open on holidays.  He hires singer-dancer Linda Mason (Marjorie Reynolds) for his shows, and the two are quickly a romantic item.  But Ted is dumped and shows up at the inn, attempting to sweep Linda off her feet and take her away as both a romantic and dancing partner.

I saw the film White Christmas every year from my infancy onward, or at least that’s how I remember it; I’m a little vague on the details of my life at age two.  I always loved it, but Bing Crosby was fifteen years too old for his role, and looked it.  More importantly, he sounded it.  He stands up to sing White Christmas, and…it’s good.  Really it is.  But, it’s not a Christmas classic, not with that rendition.  I’d heard a much better performance by Crosby on the radio (my folks didn’t own a record of it at that time), but the version in the film was what I was used to.  Then when I was a much more aged second grader, I got a chance to see Holiday Inn.  My father had told me about the movie for years, but in those savage, pre-VCR times, some films just weren’t available on request.  And watching, I finally got to see the performance that made White Christmas part of everyone’s holiday tradition.  Is it that good?  You know, it really is.  And the film as a whole?  Yeah, it’s that good too.

Made when both warbler Crosby and dance sensation Astaire were at their best, Holiday Inn gives them thirteen Irving Berlin songs to play with.  There was no way the film could fail.  Berlin came up with the idea of a show with a song for each Holiday; it was good financial planning.  Thirteen times a year—every year—people would buy music, and he’d get paid.  Well, no one is singing his Thanksgiving tune, but with the royalties from White Christmas, the rest hardly matters.

Not being financially concerned with the music, it all matters to me, particularly as there is rarely a song-free moment in the movie.  This is a musical, and musicals sink or swim based on the songs.  No sweat here.  The already mentioned White Christmas is performed twice and is superb both times.  Several others, such as Easter Parade and I’ll Capture Your Heart are a lot of fun, while You’re Easy To Dance With gives Astaire a chance to recapture his white tie RKO days.  Then there is Let’s Say It With Firecrackers, where Astaire taps to small explosions, which is generally considered one of the great film dances.  Oh, there’s a couple misfires.  Be Careful, It’s My Heart would cause punk rockers to flinch from its lack of sophistication (“Be careful, it’s my heart.  It’s not my watch you’re holding, it’s my heart”).  But a thankfully-long section without lyrics and the Astaire-Reynolds dance saves it from being too painful.  I Can’t Tell A Lie is almost as bad (“I could say that you’re homely, Just as homely as pie. But this is Washington’s Birthday, And I’ve got to say you’re beautiful, ‘Cause I can’t tell a lie”), but it is performed as a comedy bit, so it squeaks by.  Hey, could anyone write a good Washington’s Birthday song?

The few moments where no one is singing or dancing work almost as well.  The plot is frothy silliness set in a nonexistent world (during WWII, people were not going to be driving from New York city to the back roads of Connecticut to see a show put on by nobodies).  The romances are marvelously shallow, which is one of the film’s greatest pleasures.  The two females will get engaged to anyone who asks and as quickly dump their foolish fiancées.  Ted and Jim will backstab each other for a girl, “fall in love” at the drop of a hat, and lie, cheat, and steal to win.  No cheap sentiment here.  Any real emotion is carried by the songs.  The dialog is left free for sharp jabs and wit.

Holiday Inn is a film of its time, so it helps to keep in mind what was going on during the early ’40s.  WWII was a part of every person’s life, and it was not clear that we were going to win.  The montage of military aircraft, navel vessels, a general (MacArthur), and FDR, in the middle of a song, looks a bit odd now, but would have had great emotional resonance at the time.  There is also a topical joke with an animated turkey that relates to Roosevelt changing the date of Thanksgiving and about half of the states rejecting the move.  Congress settled the issue.

Some people might find themselves uncomfortable with a black-face routine for Lincoln’s Birthday.  Many TV stations are as they cut the scene, but unlike Mildred Pierce and Gone With the Wind, it isn’t ripe with racism.  Watching it may give individuals a chance to figure out if it is the appearance or racism, or actual racism that they oppose.

Holiday Inn debuted one of the great Christmas songs, gave Crosby and Astaire a chance to do what they do best, and named a hotel chain (yes, the name came from this film).  It should be on everyone’s annual Christmas movie viewing list.  And, if you need a film for Washington’s Birthday, it works for that too.