A Reel Retro Review: HOLIDAY INN (1942)

 With no new films to review for the foreseeable future, Reel Speak will randomly review a classic film from the TCM library every week. Not just for the sake of filling time, but to hopefully introduce some overlooked and perhaps forgotten screen gems from the past to those of us who may be unfamiliar or unawares of their existence. In the spirit of the season, now comes the holiday series…

 

In 1954, composer Irving Berlin and actor/singer Bing Crosby collaborated for WHITE CHRISTMAS; a film destined to become a holiday classic. But it was in 1942 where the ideas and groundwork were founded for that film, in their musical HOLIDAY INN. 

 

After retiring from show business, Jim Hardy (Crosby), establishes a country inn with live entertainment that only opens during holidays. He recruits Linda (Marjorie Reynolds), an aspiring singer and dancer to perform, only to have her be wooed by his former partner Ted Hanover (Fred Astaire). 

 

HOLIDAY INN at its core is a love-triangle story. The early goings have Ted looking to retire with Lila (Virginia Dale), who shocks him by revealing that she actually in love with Ted. Over the course of the next year as Jim gets his new business together, Ted and Lila split…leaving Ted to come back into Jim’s life and looking to steal Linda away from him. It doesn’t become a heated rivalry as much as playful banter, and it’s good fun to see the three characters dodge and weave around each other. 

 

Similar to WHITE CHRISTMAS, HOLIDAY INN doesn’t hang much of its hat around Christmas itself. The film covers the span of nearly two years, as Jim opens his unique inn just a few times a year and basing performances around holidays, including Valentine’s Day, the 4^th of July, and Abraham Lincoln’s birthday. Despite this, the film still has that holiday spirit; beginning with Christmas and New Year’s Eve and ending with those same holidays. With a playful atmosphere and breezy plot, it feels right at home during December. 

 

The musical numbers are well-executed and full of the giddy optimism that cinema was known for at the time. Crosby and Astaire are a blast together, and Marjorie Reynolds is a delight. Astaire comes off as a sleaze for most of the film which is something different for the usual charmer. Viewers who go into this film blindly will be mildly surprised to hear Crosby perform White Christmas; the debut of the famous tune. 

 

WHITE CHRISTMAS would ultimately be a loose remake of HOLIDAY INN, which makes the former film an interesting piece of cinema history. But even without that, it stands just fine on its own as a movie to take in with the Christmas lights glowing. 

 

BOTTOM LINE: See it 

 

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Reel Facts: The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor occurred during filming. As a result, the 4^th July segment and performance was expanded. The film also includes a blackface performance during Lincoln’s birthday which is often edited out of broadcast showings. The song White Christmas had been conceived by Berlin as far back as 1935, and he would win an Oscar for Best Original Song. The film would be adapted to a Broadway production in 2016, and would be the inspiration for the name of the Holiday Inn hotel chain.