Christmas in Connecticut

Barbara Stanwyck could convey merriment, realization, longing and enchantment with a throaty chuckle, a knowing look, a downward glance and a dazzling smile. Boy, does she nail it all in this film. Christmas in Connecticut is one of the most romantic, fun holiday movies with even a cow that nudges the fireworks between Stanwyck, she a food writer with no actual culinary skills and an imaginary farm, and Dennis Morgan as the sailor sent to celebrate a swell ( but trumped up) holiday gathering at her home.

Dennis Morgan singing his gorgeous tenor voice in a spectacular living room overlooking a snowy landscape wishing Stanwyck was his, while Stanwyck decorates the tree, wishing he was hers, is a dreamy, fabulous scene. So is the hoedown on Christmas night as the two glory in promenading and meaningful looks and then escape to a sled, just to sit mind you, while the horse has other ideas and takes them for a ride on a starry night.

The supporting cast is a right-on combo. S. Z. Sakall plays the kindly restaurant owner who supplies Stanwyck with the succulent recipes, who is wise in picking up the vibes between Stanwyck and Morgan and supporting the match - the alternative is Reginald Gardiner, the loyal but boring boyfriend with the farm, who hopes to turn Stanwyck's made-up premise of farm and marriage into the real thing. The ins and outs of the plot are skillful and clever and there are even two babies in the mix adding to the belly laughs. It's a great holiday film that says goodbye to the war years.

This romantic comedy stars Barbara Stanwyck as Elizabeth Lane, a woman who writes a lifestyles column for a popular magazine. Her publisher commands that she host and prepare a dinner for Jefferson Jones (Dennis Morgan), a sailor who was lost at sea for eighteen days. Because Miss Lane's own lifestyle is a literary fabrication, she resorts to an elaborate ruse. Her deception has consequences that complicate matters, leading to both romance and comedy.

There is a strong supporting cast, including "Cuddles" Sakall and Sidney Greenstreet, who is fun to watch in a comedic role.

Stanwyck and Morgan display a convincing chemistry that is the focus of the film.

Anyone who has watched the recent remake of 'Christmas in Connecticut' will fully appreciate just how wonderful the slim story was in the hands of Barbara Stanwyck, Dennis Morgan and Sydney Greenstreet. No masterpiece, but so much better than the weak remake. The whole film revolves around the mistaken belief by editor Greenstreet that Stanwyck (his favorite Martha Stewart-type of writer) is a homemaker with a house, husband and baby in the country. This, of course, means that the inventive woman has to enlist the aid of others to play out her scheme when Greenstreet invites himself and a ship-wrecked sailor (Dennis Morgan) for the holiday week-end.

The slight comedy develops a few complications along the way--and it all looks very holidayish with the lovely country home in Connecticut--which, thanks to Warner Bros. art decoration, looks like something from a magazine cover. Stanwyck's forte is really heavy drama but here she displays a light enough touch to make her scenes with Morgan and Greenstreet delightful to watch. She gets great support from Una O'Connor, S.Z. Sakall and Reginald Gardiner under Peter Godfrey's light-hearted direction.

It's as unpretentious a confection as a child's homemade Christmas card and just as charming--light and fluffy entertainment that makes no great demands on your viewing pleasure. Worth viewing, especially around the holidays.

This lightweight but pleasant holiday feature makes the most out of a pretty slim premise, thanks to a solid cast and some resourceful writing. Not meant to be taken very seriously, it provides easygoing entertainment with some simple but upbeat themes.

Barbara Stanwyck was an interesting choice as the lead, and she makes it work well enough. The premise of Stanwyck's writer character trying to fool everyone and maintain her image is more suited to screwball comedy than to a holiday feature, but the tone is kept light and funny while having just enough of the holiday atmosphere to be believable. The supporting cast helps out, with the likes of "Cuddles" Sakall and Sydney Greenstreet getting some good moments.

This kind of light but worthwhile feature is not as easy as it looks - as witness the string of crass, barely watchable holiday features of recent years. While hardly anything deep or brilliant, "Christmas in Connecticut" holds up well enough to be among the more enjoyable movies of its kind.

This is a screwball comedy disguised as a Christmas movie. I almost prefer Barbara Stanwyck in this than in the Lady Eve. She is a bit less restrained, a bit warmer. She moves with ease in an almost all male cast. The holiday theme is almost incidental, it definitely takes a sideline to the charade in the house of her being a domestic goddess. Barbara Stanwyck carries the movie right through to the end. Her extra slim figure is pleasing in very simply tailored clothes. Your heart almost sinks for her when she is going to be married to the very droll architect. The actual farm setting is fun and makes it more believable. Not very well known, but not to be missed.