White Christmas (1954)
from Reel Deep Dive Hosted by Ryan Valentine
Shot and released during a troubled period where Hollywood was losing audiences to both television and the "white flight" to the suburbs, White Christmas used vibrant technicolor, an expanded aspect ratio, playfully light acting, and lots of expensive spectacle in the hopes of giving people a reason to go out of their way to buy a ticket to the movies. It was an impressive success, taking in far more money than any other American film released that year. Its seasonal dressing also turned it into a festive perennial; above all else, White Christmas is a nostalgic favorite that's reliably revisited by millions of people every December. A carefully cultivated sense of nostalgia is a trademark of both the film and Bing Crosby, its leading man. Ryan is joined by Sylvan and Cheryl for a discussion about White Christmas' rose-tinted look at a revisionist past, but other thematic topics include the movie's propagandistic undertones, its perceptions of feminine body types, and how White Christmas serves as an awkward chapter in how American musical theater approaches its history with minstrel shows.
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