Holiday Season in New Orleans
The most wonderful time of the year is upon us again, and what better place to spend it than in the storied city of New Orleans?
Friends, family, entertainment—we've got it all. In fact, there's something for everybody in our multifaceted, diverse corner of the world. In between the familial excursions into what our great city has to offer, it should come as no surprise that there will be times when you just want to kick back and enjoy a nice, holiday-themed movie.
Here is a recommended trio of films that were filmed and/or set in our very own Crescent City. Some you may be familiar with, while others will undoubtedly enter into your consciousness as downright revelations. Perhaps the greatest thing that can be said about these films is that we should be thankful that we live in a time when we can watch any one of these at any time.
Christmas Holiday (1944)
Don't be fooled by the title of this overlooked classic, nor the girl and boy next door leads. It is a dark, adult-oriented film noir that we film historians love to put on a critical pedestal—and rightfully so. Nightclub singer "Jackie" (played charmingly by Deanna Durbin, one of 1940s America's sweethearts) befriends a jilted soldier (Dean Harens) on leave at Christmas (proving that this lovely holiday can most certainly be one of the loneliest times of the year). They attend Midnight Mass at St. Louis Cathedral, and she tells him of her marriage to a Creole scoundrel named Robert Manette (played by a non-dancing Gene Kelly through flashbacks) with a mother fixation (think Norman Bates if he ran a numbers racket in the French Quarter).
Based on the book by timeless author W. Somerset Maugham (Of Human Bondage, The Painted Veil), the setting was changed from Paris to New Orleans, as well as Jackie's occupation from prostitute to "hostess" due to concerns from the notorious Hays Code that once ruled Hollywood. Also featuring direction by film noir auteur Robert Siodmak (The Killers, Criss Cross), you may think this is quite the classic pedigree for a film you've never heard of before, and it is. While you won't find this on TCM or physical media, you can watch it absolutely free on YouTube.
New Orleans (1947)
You may ask why this film is included in a list of holiday movies? Well that's because of the great Billie Holiday, who belts out "Do You Know What It Means to Miss New Orleans" with the incomparable Louis Armstrong on trumpet, alongside the Original New Orleans Ragtime Band. Do you really need any other reason to watch this movie, besides the fact that this was the legendary jazz chanteuse's sole film appearance? Find out about the "Lowdown of Wicked Old Basin Street and the Music that Made It Wicked," which was this film's actual tagline.
There is so much great jazz music on display that no one will blame you if you forget there's an actual plot. Nick Duquesne (Mexican star Arturo de Córdova) runs a nightclub and casino in Storyville. He falls in love with an opera singer (Dorothy Patrick) but soon gets in trouble (because Storyville) and is forced to relocate to Chicago. Don't worry though, he brings Satchmo and "Lady Day" with him, as they discover how lucrative it was to teach the Windy City all about the blues. You won't mind the sudden change in locale when you listen to over 20 great jazz standards—courtesy of the city that birthed the genre. Perfect for Christmas viewing or anytime. Once again, all you have to do to enjoy this classic film is to visit YouTube.
One Christmas (1994)
This delightful television film stars the iconic Henry Winkler, who is no stranger to made-for-tv Christmas movies (for extra credit, check out his 1979 Charles Dickens reimagining An American Christmas Carol, streaming free all over the internet). It also features the great Oscar-winning actress Katharine Hepburn in her last film role as the coolest curmudgeon you're ever likely to see. Based on the semi-autobiographical (aren't they all?) short story by Truman Capote and set during the backdrop of the Great Depression, Buddy (T.J. Lowther) is sent by his auntie and legal guardian Sook (Julie Harris) from Alabama to New Orleans to stay with his estranged and rather curiously unnamed father (but to those in the know, we will forever lovingly refer to him as the Fonz) during Christmas of 1930. Dad is a proto-gigolo con artist, who swindles single women to fund his aspirations of flying a plane in a forthcoming Baton Rouge air race.
The father and son relationship is rocky at first (undoubtedly because this is the first time Buddy has even met his father), but the duo soon learn valuable lessons on love and the strength of family, and you can bet there will be at least one Christmas miracle. The movie, which also co-stars Swoosie Kurtz and Pat Hingle as a talkative Greyhound bus driver, is filmed in Wilmington, N.C. (in those olden days before the attractive Louisiana tax credit), which does a pretty good job filling in for locations such as the Garden District and Rampart Street. Be on the lookout for the numerous posters for bygone local beers, including Dixie. You can watch an HD copy on YouTube for only $1.99.
