Gues who's Back? Back again?

 I was thinking over Christmas time about blogging, and how I used to enjoy crafting posts that examined movies or books or just shared some creative projects I had been working on. I stopped blogging because people now favor quicks videos on Instagram and TikTok rather than lengthy blogs. However, I never wrote because I expected to garner a big audience; I wrote because I liked doing it. So, I decided to come back.

The holiday season for me means indulging: cookies, egg nog, shopping and classic films.

Although I love my usual standbys like Bright Eyes, Meet Me in St. Louis, Miracle on 34th Street and of course It's a Wonderful Life, I decided to try a couple new ones out this year.

The first one was Star in the Night. This short film from 1945 is an updated version of the nativity story, with the setting being the American Southwest. 

Three cowboys see a flashing star-shaped light on a water tower, and follow it to a small motel. The Innkeeper is an old man, beaten down by life who has no time for the Christmas spirirt until a young Mexican couple, Jose and Maria come seeking a room for the night. His wife talks him into helping the young couple, and he agrees to let them stay the night in his shed. All the while, a mysterous hitchhiker watches the events unfolding, including how the motel guests come together to provide much needed supplies for the couple as news of their soon-to-be-born baby slowly spreads. Definitely worth watching and I found it for free on YouTube.

The second movie I watched was The Man Who Came to Dinner (1942). I admit that I came across this movie on some Instagram videos, which were highlighting a very funny exchange between the two main characters:

It stars the inimitable Bette Davis in her prime, as the assistant to a cantankerous radio personality, a perfectly cast Monty Woolley.

While visiting a well-to-do family, he slips on the steps and gets injured, forcing the family to let him stay and recover under the threat of a lawsuit. While there, he delights in insulting people and meddling in people's business for his own entertainment. Also in this film are two of my favorite actresses, Billie Burke (most famous for playing Glnda the Good Witch) and Mary Wickes, who is more than a few of my favorite movies/TV shows (I Love Lucy, The Trouble with Angels, Sister Act, Little Women, Punky Brewster and more).

The dialogue is hilarious, and my 10 year old son ended up watching most of it with me, laughing along. Plus, now we get to say "Shut your nasty little face!" to each other like an inside joke.

Although I had heard the title of the movie before, and I understood that the Frasier episode titled The Ann Who Came to Dinner was a play on the words, I didn't realize that the plot of that episode actually mirrors the movie, too.

*The annoying character of Ann the insurance woman on Frasier is actually played by Julia Sweeney, a Saturday Night Live alum who introduced me to the glory of Pat, the androgyne.*

This movie was available free on Tubi, but the number of comercials made the movie much longer, which was annoying.

The last movie I sampled was Our Vines Have Tender Grapes. This movie is not necessarily a Christmas movie but it does have a couple nice scenes set during the holiday.

This film stars Edward G Robinson, departing from his typical gangster character to play a soft-spoken farmer, who lovingly teaches his young daughter the lessons of life.

His wife is played by Agnes Moorhead, who is most recognizable as Endora, the mischievous mother of Samantha on Bewitched. 

Margaret O'Brien plays Selma, and her recitation of the Christmas story in church is as full of Christmas wistfullness as the "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" scene in Meet Me in St. Louis.

The film follows the family from day to day in their small Wisconsin town, and it reminded me of the play Our Town by Thornton Wilder. And when her father gives her a newborn calf to raise, I couldn't help but smile because it reminded me of one of my favorite books, Charlotte's Web.

This film was not available anywhere for free, so I had to rent it on Amazon Prime.

Overall, I have three good movies added to my Christmas film repetoire.