Christmas in Connecticut (1945)

Director:

Peter Godfrey

Writers:

Lionel Houser (screenplay) and
Adele Comandini (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

11 August 1945 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Romance

Plot:

Journalist Elizabeth Lane is one of the country's most famous food writers. In her columns, she describes herself as a hard working farm woman...

Plot Keywords:

Christmas | Food | Connecticut | War Hero | Cooking

Cast

Barbara Stanwyck	...	Elizabeth Lane
Dennis Morgan	...	Jefferson Jones
Sydney Greenstreet	...	Alexander Yardley
Reginald Gardiner	...	John Sloan
S.Z. Sakall	...	Felix Bassenak
Robert Shayne	...	Dudley Beecham
Una O'Connor	...	Norah
Frank Jenks	...	Sinkewicz
Joyce Compton	...	Mary Lee
Dick Elliott	...	Judge Crothers

Also Known As:

Indiscretion (UK)

Runtime:

102 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

USA:Approved (certificate #10197) | Canada:G (video rating) | Finland:S

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

The character of Elizabeth Lane was loosely based on the then popular Family Circle Magazine columnist Gladys Taber, who lived on Stillmeadow Farm in Connecticut.

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): When Jones is getting ready to diaper baby "Roberta," he starts putting the folded diaper on upside down, despite his tales of being experienced in baby care.

Quotes:

Elizabeth Lane: John, when you're kissing me, don't talk about plumbing.
John Sloan: What? Oh, I'm sorry, what should I talk about?
Elizabeth Lane: Well, do you have to talk?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Hollywood Wonderland (1947)

Soundtrack:

For You

Pleasing holiday comedy thanks to splendid cast...

Anyone who has watched the recent remake of 'Christmas in Connecticut' will fully appreciate just how wonderful the slim story was in the hands of Barbara Stanwyck, Dennis Morgan and Sydney Greenstreet. No masterpiece, but so much better than the weak remake. The whole film revolves around the mistaken belief by editor Greenstreet that Stanwyck (his favorite Martha Stewart-type of writer) is a homemaker with a house, husband and baby in the country. This, of course, means that the inventive woman has to enlist the aid of others to play out her scheme when Greenstreet invites himself and a ship-wrecked sailor (Dennis Morgan) for the holiday week-end.

The slight comedy develops a few complications along the way--and it all looks very holidayish with the lovely country home in Connecticut--which, thanks to Warner Bros. art decoration, looks like something from a magazine cover. Stanwyck's forte is really heavy drama but here she displays a light enough touch to make her scenes with Morgan and Greenstreet delightful to watch. She gets great support from Una O'Connor, S.Z. Sakall and Reginald Gardiner under Peter Godfrey's light-hearted direction.

It's as unpretentious a confection as a child's homemade Christmas card and just as charming--light and fluffy entertainment that makes no great demands on your viewing pleasure. Worth viewing, especially around the holidays.