The Holly and the Ivy

This is a delightful movie--truly one of the best Christmas movies. And it is now available in video in the United Kingdom. Unfortunately, "The Holly and the Ivy" is still not available to those of us who live in the United States.

A fine play in a 1950s screen version, wonderfully cast - Ralph Richardson is the parson who has bred a dysfunctional family (daughters Celia Johnson and Margaret Leighton, son Denholm Elliott).

When the family comes together at Christmas, with the two maiden aunts - the holly and ivy represented in human form? - secrets tumble out, the family comes together, and peace and understanding comes to pass as it should in the festive season.

Leighton's flighty daughter with the grief of a loss in the war hanging over her; Johnson's tired and emotionally drained woman in love (with John Gregson, about to emigrate for his work); Elliott's Army private bristling against authority at all levels - all these characterisations are spot-on.

But the film belongs to Richardson - quietly watching and waiting for his moment in the sun, a long speech to his daughter - although he is saddled with a slightly odd accent.

The Holly and the Ivy is a heartwarming fable of Christmas and should be much better known than it is - can we have a television showing this season?

For a while there, in Canada - in the eighties and nineties, when the television landscape was forever expanding - I could be guaranteed of seeing this movie; there was always some new station looking for filler, particularly during the Christmas season. What a treat!

This movie is not just a great film about the real meaning of Christmas, it is also a relic of a period that is not so long ago in terms of years, but is eons away in terms of social convention, manners, etc.

Even better, although the film was made in a gentler, more genteel time, serious issues (illegitimacy, alcoholism, reckless self-sacrifice) are explored with depth. If this had been a lesser movie, it would have come off as something to be shown in a religion class, but the extremely talented cast runs with the story and helps create a film that is magical and meaningful.

I have a tape of this somewhere, and am always on the lookout for a DVD version. I only hope The Holly and the Ivy makes it to digital transfer soon, and is rediscovered as the Christmas classic that it is.

"The Holly and the Ivy" is a very good film...filled with some exceptional acting. However, before you watch it, you need to consider what content is in the movie. Sure, it's a Christmas film...but also one that easily could trigger your depression if you've been struggling with it. It also brings up things that are NOT fun and Christmassy....such as dead lovers and children. So think about seeing it before you do!!

The story is about Christmas and a group of people who are all returning to a small British town for the holiday and to spend it with the Parson (Ralph Richardson). Most of the people coming have secrets...things they SHOULD talk about with family but haven't for inexplicable reasons. In most cases, they don't bring it up with the Parson because they perceive that he'll be judgmental and a parson first...not a father. How all this plays out is marvelous...with some brilliant acting. My only complaint, and it's a minor one, is that the problems are all worked out so quickly and easily...perhaps a bit too much so. Adding a few minutes to show this process would have made the film even better. Still, the acting is magnificent and the story filled with a gritty realism otherwise. Well worth seeing.

The Holly and the Ivy is a far cry from the usual Christmas story since it is more a family drama set during the Christmas season. It is a powerful story with excellent acting as the group gets together in a country village north of London in 1948.

The family made up of father, aunts, grown children and two male friends come together at the vicarage of the father, the parson in a local church. Ralph Richardson and Margaret Leighton, as father and daughter, have the key roles and are bolstered by a strong supporting cast, including Denholm Eliot and Celia Johnson.

During the evening and Christmas morning, family matters that had been ignored or kept secret, come to the fore. After a series of uncomfortable incidents and heart-to-heart talks, things change and everyone finds comfort and possibly a deeper purpose in this Christmas.

This is certainly a serious movie and totally entertaining. Unlike many of the fantasy films we see at Christmas, this offers a dose of reality. The sets are very plain as they were in most British dramas of that era but the acting is superb. It teaches the audience that Christmas and family difficulties are often played out together. In that sense, family Christmas gatherings may not be that different than they were 60 some years ago.