Joyeux Noël

I was looking forward to finding out how this historical yet forgotten event would be put to film, and how accurately it would be depicted. I am not disappointed. This evokes emotion without ever slipping into sentimentality or sap. It personalizes without robbing the true occurrence of attention. There is focus put on certain characters(all of which are quite well-written), but never to the point of such being lost on what really happened. The plot is great, and develops well. Some liberties are taken with the story, and they are not all justified, but the core is kept intact, and this manages to both tell what happened and make us feel and care about it. The overdubbed singing could have been subjected to better synchronization, but there is little to any criticisms directed at the acting itself. The same goes for the production value. The technical aspects of this are excellent, as well. The cinematography and editing are just about flawless. Pacing is rather good. Writing and directing are commendable. All three sides each speak the actual languages, adding to the already well-established sense of realism. I recommend this to anyone interested in the period, and the specific situation in particular. 8/10

Thanks to a special showing as one of the events to mark the centenary of the Alliance Française in Canada's capital, I had the privilege of attending a North American premiere of this remarkable film just two days before today Remembrance Day (Veterans Day in the U.S.) Both an appropriate theme and a cinematic Christmas gift come early. I think it may become my top film among several hundred seen this year, just as A Very Long Engagement - also set in the trenches of the First World War - captured my heart and critic's choice last December. Writer-director Christian Carion and all the actors do an amazing job in this multi-country Euro co-production. It should appeal not only to audiences across that continent but to film goers around the world. In addition to presenting a parable from real life relevant for any war-torn age, including our own I might add, Carion works wonders with front-line incidents great and small while drawing compelling individual character portraits from a top notch Scots, French and German cast, each speaking in their native language and accents. That goes for even relatively smaller roles: for example, that of the junior German officer at the front, Lieutenant Horstmayer (ironically a Jew who recalls a Paris honeymoon with his French-speaking wife), as played by the superb young actor Daniel Brühl (Goodbye Lenin, The Edukators). There is so much more that could be said about this remarkable and timely movie with a timeless message. Even had France not chosen Joyeux Nöel as its selection for the 2006 Oscar best foreign-language film category, I would herald it and rejoice in the advent of a new classic that is in another class altogether from the general run of "holiday movies". A story of harsh truths as well as transcendent art, it finds humanity and hope in the midst of battlefield horrors. Seasonal glad tidings indeed!

A truly powerful and must see film about the futility of war.

It depicts that whatever those in power would have us believe there are more similarities between various nationalities than differences.

Wonderful performances by many little known actors.

First class cinematography and other production values.

Illustrates that there can be no war if if if you have no enemy. It is impossible to kill a man with whom you have shared drinks and stories and grown to like

Wonderful music and singing as those who have suffered and fought each other in the trenches slowly gather to mark Christmas Eve by drinking and talking with each other, swapping addresses, singing Christmas carols common to all three nations (Germany, France and Scotland), burying frozen corpses and playing soccer together.

Not perfectly historically accurate but very close to an actual incident, A vivid illustration of the foolishness of war. While some have laid the blame at the feet it is clear that the primary blame lays with those who order others to go to war while safely enjoying the better of things far from the trenches

I saw this film the day before Christmas Eve last year and I have to say that it was the highlight of my Christmas. No, I did not have a rubbish holiday - the film just made me realise what Christmas must be like for the people who do not enjoy the relative peace we take for granted.

I cannot think of a single bad thing to say about the film. And this from someone who usually avoids foreign language films like the plague because it annoys me when the words are out of time with the movement of the lips.

I thought that using actors from each of the countries involved in the conflict was a master-stroke and made it all so much more believable. I shed a tear at the end, though I could see why the men needed to be moved from the front having made friends with 'the enemy.' I know that this is going to be a must see film for me every Christmas and I am eagerly awaiting the release of the DVD.

I was sceptical before watching this film but by the end I had tears running down my cheeks.

By depicting the feelings and destinies of the soldiers, the film demonstrated the absurdity of war and how each soldier is more than a mere cannon target. It is a commentary on the utter stupidity of politics governing war events from behind curtains while not actually experiencing the real war. By depicting a unique event in European war history that occurred on Christmas day 1914 it shows viewers that Europeans can be as one even as "enemies".

About ten years ago I watched Paul McCartney's video "Pipes of Peace" and thought that what it depicted was completely fictitious--nothing more than pacifists' dreams. I have now learned that it was true.