Next up...whoops! Much like Piccadilly Circus will reveal itself to be a pretty crappy circus (no animals or clowns!) I was fished in by the title of 1940’s Christmas in July which turns out to have pretty much zero to do with the festive season. Saying that, it’s still a decent, enjoyable little film from director Preston Sturges about an ambitious clerk who’s tricked into thinking he’s won $25,000 in an advertising competition and goes on a spending spree with his girlfriend. He’s so happy he exclaims that it’s “like Christmas in July!”, hence the title.
I find this a fun little movie and watch it all the way through, so feel it’d be rude not to at least discuss it a wee bit. Dick Powell is Jimmy, a young dreamer living on the breadline who hopes to be rich, though he sure doesn’t fancy putting too much effort into it. He enters a local coffee company’s slogan competition, convinced the odds will be in his favour and that he’ll then be able to make an honest woman of his dame Betty (Ellen Drew). Jimmy is a little dim and a whole lot deluded as he’s sure his slogan – “If you can’t sleep at night, it isn’t the coffee, it’s the bunk!” - is the bee’s knees, even though it’s awful and he has to keep explaining it to people. People keep pointing out that it doesn’t make sense as coffee keeps you awake at night, but Jimmy’s sure he read in an article somewhere that a scientist proved coffee helps you sleep and he’s so pig-headed he won’t be reasoned with. Sheesh.
Jimmy’s denialism totally reminds me of many nutty Covid conspiracy theorists I’ve encountered online recently. People who believe that because they read something somewhere and it’s convenient for them to believe it, that it simply must be true and so they’ll keep insisting on it until people either give in or just ignore them.
Some cruel work buddies stitch Jimmy up with a fake telegram making him believe he’s won the prize and hilarity ensues. A ridiculous twist of fate leads to the coffee Czar actually giving him the cheque, so Jimmy and Betty hit the town for a spree. Jimmy’s so grateful though that he spends much of the dough selflessly, filling his car with loads of wrapped presents for his family and the poor people of his neighbourhood. I suppose the film is a bit Christmassy in this respect, with Jimmy acting as a kind of neighbourhood Santa Claus and the film spreading a powerful message about the importance of giving, but it’s still a bit of a stretch.
It's more a film about self-belief and realising the magic we look for was inside us all along, kind of like Dumbo’s magic feather. Still, I can’t pretend this really qualifies as a Christmas movie, so I end up watching another festive bonus short film to even things up a bit.
And what a delightful little short it turns out to be. Star in the Night from 1945 was the screen debut for director Don Siegel and really they don’t come more Christmassy than this Nativity-inspired tale, which won the 1946 Oscar for ‘Best Short Subject (2 reel)’.
Siegel’s short, in the spirit of the season, is suitably cheesy and sweet, opening with three rugged cowboys riding out across the desert , armed with loads of presents they’ve bought for nobody in particular. Spotting a big bright star in the sky they decide to check it out – turns out it’s a dazzling neon hotel sign.
The owner of said hotel is Nick (J. Carrol Naish), a rather stereotypical Italian-American fellow who runs the joint with his wife Rosa (Rosina Galli). Nick has a lively debate with a mysterious hitchhiker about the true meaning of Christmas. ‘Hitch’ (Donald Woods) is all about goodwill and festive spirit, while Nick is cynical, complaining that people are jerks most of the year, then pretend to be nice for the holidays. Nick disparages all his guests and essentially shows he’s lost his faith in human kindness.
Of course, a young couple shows up desperate for shelter and the woman is expecting. Naturally the hotel is full, but hey, they can stay in the shed. Sure as sugar the lady almost immediately goes into labour and all the hotel guests, previously shown to be mostly selfish gits, rally round to help out and pitch in to deliver that baby. And you can bet your ass that the three wise me- I mean cowboys, turn up just in time to deliver some lovely gifts.
It sounds horribly twee but is honestly very well done. It’s just a good old-fashioned tale of faith rediscovered through the magic of Christmas kindness and giving. It feels a bit quaint and hokey taking this one in on a sunny May afternoon but I’m certain that on a frosty December night this would be just the ticket.
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