Recuerdo de una noche

When you think of holiday classics you might not think of "Remember The Night." You may have never even heard of it. But it is a must see and as good as "Miracle on 34th St." or "It's a Wonderful life."

Fred MacMurray and Barbara Stanwyck star perfectly together (before they re-temed for "Double Indemnity.")

He is a prosecutor for the district attorney, she a shoplifter who gets caught stealing some jewelry just before Christmas. With the Christmas weekend holiday approaching, he arranges her bail so she won't be locked up over the holiday. Thinking he only did this so she would, um you know ... she shows up at his apartment as he is preparing to go home for the holiday. He convinces her that he's not after her uh ... you know.

Over dinner they discover they are both from Idaho, "how'd you like to go home for Christmas?. he asks her. He offers to drop her off at her folks on the way to his.

A road trip, comedy, drama, funny and likable supporting characters, and love and tears follow. Also, a wonderful moral to the story. All this without bit of sex, a word of profanity, violence or an explosion. This picture is for all ages. It won't offend or insult anyone.

Don't miss it.

A really well done piece from two top notch stars, three years before they would be paired again as one of film noir's classic doomed couples in DOUBLE INDEMNITY. After working on this film, Stanwyck gave Sturges an automatic 'Yes!' when he asked her to be in THE LADY EVE. MacMurray and Stanwyck would be paired in two others, THE MOONLIGHTERS (a western in 3-D, no less) and the soapy THERE'S ALWAYS TOMORROW, but REMEMBER THE NIGHT is their best romance, both of them bringing a fast patter and no nonsense attitude to their characters that is both winning and believable. There are some charming Christmas scenes when they reach his home - a square dance, a dear gift giving sequence and some great supporting work from Beulah Bondi, Sterling Holloway and Elizabeth Patterson. However, I think the previous comment hit it on the nose - it's as close to a noir holiday comedy as you can get. Highly recommended to get you into the holidaze...MDMPHD

Remember the Night is directed by Mitchell Leisen and written by Preston Sturges. It stars Barbara Stanwyck, Fred MacMurray, Beulah Bondi, Elizabeth Patterson, Willard Robertson and Sterling Holloway. Music is by Friedrich Hollaender and cinematography by Ted Tetzlaff.

A lovely heart warming tale for the Yuletide season, story pitches Stanwyck as a lady thief and MacMurray as the prosecutor who takes pity on her and takes her home to meet his family. Back stories are revealed and the chemistry between the two principals is palpable. The genius pen of Sturges provides much humour, romance and family values, while Leisen smartly directs his cast to bonzer performances. Also of note is that the director never lets the film slip into deep treacle territory, getting the various balances just right.

A must see Christmas movie across the board. 8/10

TCM aired this Christmas Eve this past year. I can't believe so few people have seen this judging by the 20+ reviews and 500 votes. It is an undiscovered gem waiting to be found. Hopefully with more airings around the holiday it will build a much deserved following.

This is such a charming film with two superlative stars - Fred MacMurray and Barbara Stanwyck. While they both play roles they easily inhabit - her as the tough broad and him as the good-as-gold good guy - they both bring such warmth, charm and ease into their portrayals as to seem like a warm pair of gloves on a cold's winter night.

I love the references to Indiana. Both of my parents were Hoosiers and we went back to visit many times for reunions and Christmases. So much of the film seemed like a visit home to me. "Back Home In Indiana" is such a great melody, as was "A Perfect Day". Wouldn't it be great if families still gathered 'round pianos for a sing-a-long? MacMurray's farmhouse was such a wonderfully authentic set.

Wouldn't all of us love to be welcomed into a home like this, with so much love and warmth. There are so many nice old-fashioned touches, like popping corn over the fire, stringing popcorn for the Christmas tree, making popovers, a church bazaar, and a New Year's Eve Barn Dance. There is a wonderful touching scene when the spinster Aunt is letting Stanwyck borrow a gown of hers - only to find out it was a wedding dress she never got to use. I had to laugh at all the undergarments that went along with it (corset, bust lace, hip lace, etc, all to make a woman appear curvier). At one point she asks Stanwyck the size of her waist, which she answers is a 25 or 26. The Aunt says when she was young, they thought 19 inches was big. Ouch, those corsets must have hurt!

There are many different moods to this film which made it so interesting. At times, it felt like a screwball comedy, then a noir-ish piece, there's drama, and there's romance. I think this is a film the whole family can watch as it will appeal to most everyone. This one will have you laughing and tearing up at sentimental moments. A true classic that should be more appreciated today.

Watching Remember The Night I remembered something else that audiences might have forgotten in 1940 in seeing this film on screen. The District Attorney of New York County was one Thomas E. Dewey who was definitely not one for mixing business with pleasure. If one of his Assistant District Attorneys went bail for a prisoner he was prosecuting and took her home for Christmas and across a few state lines to boot, that man would not have had a job and Dewey wouldn't have cared about reasons of love.

But with a script by Preston Sturges and direction by Mitchell Leisen you could forget about reality and concentrate on Christmas romance. Leisen assembled a great cast of character players in this very charming comedy/drama. And you can't miss with leads like Fred MacMurray and Barbara Stanwyck in the first of four films they did together.

MacMurray's the ADA who's prosecuting Stanwyck for shoplifting and this ain't her first offense. But a combination of her beauty and charm and one flannelmouth defense attorney has him feeling sorry for her and then going her bail and taking her home because, after all it's Christmas.

They have an eventful drive to Indiana where they both coincidentally hail from and MacMurray himself winds up a fugitive from a speed trap in a hilarious sequence. And the two see the kind of homes each came from, something that prosecutors and criminals don't often see from each other's point of view.

Beulah Bondi and Elizabeth Patterson play MacMurray's mother and aunt and are quite the contrast to Georgia Caine who is Stanwyck's cold hearted mom. Spencer Charters does a good job as the speed trap judge in Pennsylvania.

My favorite however is Stanwyck's attorney Willard Robertson who is really carried away with himself as her lawyer. He's giving her a defense on the shoplifting charge that Clarence Darrow gave Leopold&Loeb. Man does love to hear himself talk. But his talk keeps the trial over the holidays allowing cupid to work.

Stanwyck and Sturges became friends and he confided in her that he would be directing as well as writing soon and next year he might just have a project perfect for her. The project turned out to be The Lady Eve according to a recent biography of Stanwyck.

Remember The Night is a charming film by some charm masters. But I suspect that Thomas E. Dewey probably hated it.