Rom-com of yesteryear

The Shop Around the Corner (1940)
Director: Ernst Lubitsch

https://www.rosendaletheatre.org/movies/
the-shop-around-the-corner-1940/

It is interesting to observe how the concept of a romantic comedy (romcom) has evolved over the years. The idea of a rom-com in the 21st century is one where the protagonist is between relationships and finds perfect love most romantically. It could be a comedy of errors, a mix-up, or occasionally it could start with both parties not looking eye-to-eye on something, but later get closer and then decide to be a couple. Along the way, that would be casual sex, nudity, crisis and resolution. That is the sure formula for a box office blockbuster. 

Refreshingly, a light romantic drama from yesteryear does not reveal too much of their intimacy. In this 1940 film, there is hardly any physical contact. Still, the spark was obviously electric between the protagonist, a young James Stewart, who is well known for his feel-good Christmas films, and the lesser-known co-star, Margaret Sullavan. 

The festive atmosphere remains in the film. The setting is a gift shop in Budapest during the lead-up to Christmas. The owner and his staff share a warm and friendly rapport as they run the shop. A new staff member, Sullavan, joins the team. She does not get along with Stewart, the clerk. Unbeknownst to them, they are pen pals who enjoy each other's company through their correspondence. Meanwhile, the shop owner learns through his private investigator that his wife is unfaithful.

Everything concludes happily in this feel-good film. It is quite a cheerful movie that finishes on a positive note. Despite being vintage, the film remains fresh and relevant as ever.

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It is that time of the year!

Holdovers (2023)
Director: Alexander Payne

This one comes close to being a feel-good Christmas spirit movie in the vein of 'It's a Wonderful Life' (1946), 'Miracle at 34th Street' (1947), and 'Diehard!' (1988). Maybe not 'Diehard' for its destruction and violence that happens around X'Mas.

When everything looks hopeless, and there is no reason to be merry, one can be a Scrooge, making life a living hell for people or, alternatively, try to at least a little bit better for others. After all, that is how life has been for aeons. Life, with its ups and downs throughout our civilisation, only makes one's life more colourful. Despite all the maladies and tragedy, we still come out unscathed, dusting the dirt off our backs and moving forward to face another challenge. That that does not kill us makes us stronger.

The sombre settings around Christmas make the soul go pensive. Tradition has made one long for lost relatives and reminisce about a carefree childhood. The colours of Yuletide bring out the best of human qualities and only go to square one after one usher in the new year. Is it any surprise that the days following the Christmas-New Year are hailed as the busiest days for divorce lawyers. Maybe the long soul-searching triggered them to seek out new partners.

The film revolves around three characters in an elite boarding school. An uninspiring teacher who is not everyone's idea of a favourite teacher, Mr Hunham, is forced by the headmaster to care for students who cannot return home for Christmas. A parent arrived on a helicopter to take all students off for skiing, except for Tully, whose money had gone off on a honeymoon trip with her new husband. Tully is actually quite disturbed that his biological father is institutionalised for a severe psychiatric illness. Staying back also is the grieving canteen manager, Mary Lamb, who had recently lost her 19-year-old son in the Vietnam War. This movie was set in 1971.

Together, through the holiday period, the three of them found friendship, which did not magically change their past sadness, but it did help them mend their broken hearts and strengthen them to endure the rest of the days ahead. 4/5

(P.S. 'Holdovers' are people surviving a previous administration or such.)

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Vintage Christmas Moments

Christmas is said to be a time of love, cheer and human compassion.
These photos may be decades-old, but the stories they tell are not much different than the stories of today.

British and German troops sharing the unofficial ceasefire during WWI in No Man's Land (1914)



The first Norwegian Christmas tree in Trafalgar Square, donated to London by the city of Oslo as thanks for England's help during WWII (18 Dec. 1947)



Using old WWII flamethrowers to clear up snow (December, 1947)



A poor woman taking a donated Christmas dinner from the Salvation Army (1910)



A young girl leaving a message for Santa Claus in the Brecknock School for Blind Children (1925)



Rehearsals for the first ever New Year's Eve Time ball drop (1907)



A young German couple welcoming the new year on top of the Berlin Wall with a kiss (1989)

Santa riding an elephant (1925)



John Lennon, Yoko Ono and Mary Hopkins at a Christmas party (1968)

Bostonians out for Christmas shopping (1930)



Unemployed New Yorkers celebrating Christmas during the Great Depression (1938)



Republicans and democrats enjoying a friendly snowball fight (December 14, 1923)



Father Frost on a rocket during the Soviet occupation of Czechoslovakia (1959)



Brothers reunite after being separated by the Berlin Wall for 2 years. In 1963, residents of West Berlin were allowed a one-day pass into East Berlin to visit relatives.



King George V giving the first Christmas Day address to the people of Britain over the radio (1932)



Queen Elizabeth giving the first televised address (1957)



President Reagan dressed as Santa, hearing his wife, Nancy's requests for Christmas (1983)



President Roosevelt addressing the audience during the White House Christmas Tree Lighting (1941)



Christmas dinner at an interim camp for Americans of German, Japanese and Italian descent during WWII (1943)



A British pilot handing out gifts to children in the Netherlands during its liberation. The Germans stopped providing the locals with food and fuel, causing a famine (1944)



American soldiers decorate a Christmas Tree during the Vietnam War (1967)



English schoolboys going home for Christmas (1926)



A French soldier dressed as Santa delivering his comrades parcels from home (1939)



The first Capitol Christmas Tree (1913)



A young child hugging his father's leg as he holds his wife after returning from the war (1944)



Children in London, celebrating Christmas in a bomb shelter (1940)

A couple from West Berlin, waving to their relatives on the other side of the Berlin Wall (1961)

Injured soldier feeding his buddy Christmas dinner in a Belgian hospital (1944)



Jewish residents of the Westerbrok concentration camp lighting Hannukah candles in hopes of a better time (1942)

The Lincoln Heights "drunk tank", where Police used to keep inebriated people(1952)

Traditionally, people would line up to visit the open day at the White House. The president of the U.S.A. would personally shake the hands of anyone who arrived (1927)