Christmas Holiday (1944)

Dark drama follows the saga of a cabaret singer (Deanna Durbin) in WWII New Orleans who, through a series of flashbacks, relates to a stranded G.I. the sad story of her marriage to a murderous ne'er-do-well (Gene Kelly). Loosely adapted from W. Somerset Maugham's novel by "Citizen Kane" scribe Herman J. Mankiewicz, the film co-stars Gale Sondergaard, Richard Whorf. 93 min. Standard; Soundtrack: English. Product Description

Musical Stars in Film Noir

Christmas Holiday is very different from the musical you would think Deanna Durbin and Gene Kelly would make together. It is in a completely different genre. This film is definitely part of the film noir genre, a dark film told mostly in flashback by imperfect characters. The title comes from the man being told the story. A soldier is on leave and gets stranded going to San Francisco in Louisiana. There, he meets a nightclub singer named Jackie (Durbin), a seductive woman with many layers and a story to tell. She gets to talking to him and relays the story of her life. Her name is really Abigail; she changed it to escape her past. She is married to a murderer (Kelly), a man she still loves despite his crime.

Durbin is breathtakingly gorgeous here in a mature role that allows her to be emotional in a way that her breezy musicals never allowed. It makes one wonder why she never made more films like it. She does however sing a few songs, most notably the lovers theme, "Always." Kelly is also impressive as a complicated villain, a man one wants to protect, love, and yet fear all at the same time.

Unfortunately, this film is only available through bootlegged versions recorded from rare TV broadcasts. Hopefully, because of the star power involved, it will be released on DVD. October 5, 2007

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