Just Films and That is a podcast that celebrates underrated and underseen films. In this episode, one of our guests chose White Christmas from 1954, as he reckons it might be a bit underseen. You can listen to the full episode on White Christmas, and all episodes of Just Films and That, wherever you get your podcasts
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Short filmTranscript
00:00 A wonderful story that will warm your hearts, just as the breathtaking scope of a new screen wonder will widen your eyes.
00:07 White Christmas.
00:09 So, White Christmas, for those who don't already know, is a film from 1954.
00:13 It's a musical about two song and dance men who meet during the war and then form a successful partnership.
00:19 Then many years after the war, they find out that their beloved general from the war is now managing a hotel in Vermont and struggling a little bit financially.
00:26 So they decide to put on a show for him.
00:29 This was picked by one of our brilliant guests, the actor and podcaster Mike Fenton-Stevens.
00:34 He picked it because a lot of people know the song White Christmas is one of the most successful songs of all time.
00:39 But I think what he was saying was he thinks that it's a little bit underseen now because a lot of people aren't seeking it out.
00:45 So over on IMDb at the time of recording, it gets a 7.6.
00:49 And then over on Rotten Tomatoes, it gets 77% from the critics and 88% from the audience.
00:56 And that was a little lower than what I was expecting when you think about some of the other films that we've done of this nature as well.
01:02 I'd actually never seen it before, but a lot of it did feel a bit familiar.
01:06 Some of the things I really enjoyed about this are just some things that I really like about these classic films.
01:11 There's a lot of very, very long takes in this.
01:14 There's not many edits at all, which means there is nowhere for the actors to hide.
01:18 You've got to stay in character and you've got to deliver for very long periods of time.
01:22 And I think the actors in this really nailed it.
01:24 And they were a joy to watch.
01:26 I also really enjoyed some of the dance numbers in this and thought they were just expertly done.
01:30 I love musicals anyway, and so I really enjoyed some of those.
01:34 And Vera Ellen especially was so impressive.
01:37 If you watch her feet as she's dancing, she's going so fast.
01:40 The skill that she shows in this film, I just thought was so impressive.
01:43 And I was really in awe of her.
01:44 And I felt a bit similar to how I did when I saw Jane Russell in Gentleman Prefer Blonde.
01:48 She just really had that gravitas when she was on screen.
01:51 I enjoyed it.
01:52 It was lighthearted. It was funnier than I thought it was going to be.
01:54 Some great patter between the four leads.
01:56 It was the sort of film you want for Christmas.
01:58 It's real Christmas escapism.
02:00 A time gone by sort of thing. I really enjoyed it.
02:04 Was there anything then that you didn't like about it?
02:07 I think the main thing for me is that I did find it a little bit long for what it was.
02:12 So obviously the concept and the story are quite simple and quite predictable.
02:16 And some of the elements in there are a bit repetitive.
02:19 There's also, like I said, some very long singing and dancing numbers.
02:23 Now, whereas I enjoyed this because I like that sort of thing,
02:26 I think if you weren't really into it, it would really struggle to hold your attention for the length of the film.
02:31 So I think that maybe that's where it may be struggling with some more modern audiences
02:35 because I don't think there is enough in there to keep you fully engaged for that amount of time.
02:40 Yeah, I'd agree with what you're saying there in terms of the length and keeping people,
02:44 particularly younger viewers, engaged.
02:46 I think it probably is a little bit underseen and I actually think it's a tiny little bit underrated as well.
02:51 It did invoke a lot of feelings for me as I was watching it.
02:54 Maybe it's just because it's Christmas. I don't know.
02:57 But I had a really good time and I think it did hold up to the same standard
03:00 as some of the other classic films that we've done that have been rated very highly indeed.