Accadde nella quinta strada

Of all the Christmas movies produced over the last 50-60 years I vote it in the top 5. It's heart-warming, funny, and thought provoking. Hey, I'm a man and I like to cry during a movie every once in a while, and this movie is one that will surely leave a lump in your chest and a tear or two on your cheek. I can't remember the last time I saw this movie. It's one of my favorite classics and I hope that it will make it to the video/laser/DVD format before it becomes too late. Ted Turner, is this one in your TCM library?

This a movie for all to see for it is so superb in the story, the actors and the directing!!! I would recommend it to everyone and it sure would be wonderful to be able to see it on television or even better to have a copy on DVD or VHS. It is so sad that great movies like this are forgotten in lieu of action films of today that are all too often do NOT have a good story or acting! Most are full of foul language and sex scenes which are not at all necessary for a truly great film such as "It Happened On Fifth Avenue". In summary this is a wonderful Family Film that will truly bring tears to your eyes.

In 1946 Monogram Pictures decided to upgrade their image by creating a new bigger budget style of film and presenting them by new in-house section ALLIED ARTISTS..... and this delicious humane film was their second big budget outing. IT HAPPENED ON 5TH AVENUE has been mostly lost to TV and cinema goers for over 40 years and now it is available on WB label DVD.... The first Allied Artisis film was BLACK GOLD which also wonderfully humane and kind shows what a focus on viable films they embarked upon. IT HAPPENED ON 5TH AVENUE is a very funny and witty and ultimately wise family comedy about how a group of genuinely homeless people (in every sense of the word) re discover their home and family. As a Christmas movie it is terrific...and there are some hilarious sequences, notably an old tailor who delivers an uproarious monologue about moths and a waiter in a restaurant trying to set a table from wobbling (while Ted FioRito plays the violin). With a perfect cast for each role and the $1.4m budget resulting spectacularly well decorated and very elaborate sets, this Monogram-Allied Artists film must have been a box office bonanza. Other films they made in this period that reflected their new image are THE GANGSTER and SUSPENSE both equally compelling, well made and worth a DVD release soon.... what a find IT HAPPENED ON 5TH AVENUE is and presented in a spotless gleaming DVD. I really applaud WB for releasing this charming humane and delicious film. Nominated for an Oscar for script, it should have also been nominated for Victor Moore's wry turn as the hilarious hobo who secretly babysits mansions while their owners go to another house for their holiday. Gale Storm is gorgeous and her clothes - as are all the qualities of this well made film - peppered with Blake Edwards' added sight gags - are A grade.

In some ways, IT HAPPENED ON FIFTH AVENUE is like a reworking of the marvelous 1941 film, THE DEVIL AND MISS JONES. Both films consist of an old rich crank (in THE DEVIL it was Charles Coburn, here it is Charlie Ruggles) assuming the identity of a poor man--and finding friendships and love among the working poor. However, the set up for this film is truly bizarre and clever. It seems that hobo Victor Moore has made a career out of breaking into mansions while the owners are away and living like a king. But, in an odd twist, his solo act starts to include others--others who are homeless due to the housing shortage following WWII. Soon, there are eight living in the mansion of the second richest man in the world (Ruggles) and soon Ruggles himself pretends to be in need of a home--at the insistence of his lovely young daughter (who has fallen for one of the squatters, Don Defore). There's a heck of a lot more to the film's plot than this but I don't want to spoil the film by discussing the plot further.

If you think too much, the movie really is quite silly and hard to believe. However, it works very well--mostly because of the marvelous direction. While the film could have been played for wacky laughs (and there are many opportunities for this), the director instead chose to emphasize the humanity of the characters as well as a fundamental sweetness to them. In many cases, the laughs take a back seat to allowing this goodness to slowly come out through the course of the film. In doing this, it avoided overt laughs but instead is a very sentimental and nice film--but never cloying. Of course, the acting sure helped as well. Victor Moore was a joy to behold and this is one of his best roles (for his best, I suggest you see MAKE WAY FOR TOMORROW). Likewise, Ruggles is excellent as the rather befuddled but ultimately likable mega-millionaire. As for the rest of the cast, they were very good as well and it was nice to see Ann Harding (who had virtually retired from films since being a star in the 1930s), Don Defore ('Mr. B' from "Hazel") and Alan Hale, Jr. (in a non-goofy role that is light-years from "Gilligan's Island").

This is one of those cute, kind of fantasy, holiday movies of the 1940s with acting veterans, Victor Moore and Charles Ruggles leading the show. It's a decent NYC-set film, albeit far fetched most of the way through. Don Defore and Gale Storm add to the fun. Also, look for a very young Alan Hale Jr long before his Skipper role in the tv show, 'Gilligan's Island'. 'It Happened on Fifth Avenue' despite its many flaws, is a lot of fun and worth watching.