There's absolutely nothing wrong with this film. It's visually lush, pleasant to watch, and has its heart in the right place. The film was pure escapism for moviegoers in 1944 suffering through the war, hearkening back to a simpler time four decades earlier, and that has a certain magic to it as well. The trouble is, there was just nothing that excited me as I watched it. It was too pleasant, too canned, too wholesome (even if the little girl in the family is delightfully preoccupied with death and killing). There is one exception, and that comes at the 1:40 point, when Judy Garland sings "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas." I've always loved that song because it touches my heart knowing the troubles she later went through in her personal life, and there's another layer here when you hear words like "someday soon we all will be together" from 1944, when a lot of family members were so far away and with their lives in danger. That's a 5 star moment for sure, but really the only one for me in the film.
It's funny, when I compare it to a Vincente Minnelli musical from just the year before, Cabin in the Sky, I find myself much more drawn to the latter. It has a completely different feel and much smaller budget, but it has a more interesting plot and much better musical performances, with the one exception I mentioned. I would say try the lesser known film instead.
It's funny, when I compare it to a Vincente Minnelli musical from just the year before, Cabin in the Sky, I find myself much more drawn to the latter. It has a completely different feel and much smaller budget, but it has a more interesting plot and much better musical performances, with the one exception I mentioned. I would say try the lesser known film instead.