Customer Reviews
Don't mind the plot; it's the singing, dancing, songs and charm that count, and they're great - By: C. O. DeRiemer, 02 Aug 2007 
Few things are as enjoyable as watching the two old smoothies, Bing Crosby & Fred Astaire, at the top of their game doing what they do best, & doing it better than anyone else. With Holiday Inn, make it three old smoothies: Crosby, Astaire & Irving Berlin. In fact, the only thing to get in the way of the movie is the plot. It's boy meets girl, boy loses girl to his best friend & partner. Repeat with another girl. Then bring back the first girl. Do another roundelay until boy & second girl & partner & first girl alll have a happy ending.
What makes the movie work so well & is such a pleasure to watch, of course, is Crosby singing, Astaire dancing, & both doing their charming best with songs, some new, some old, by Irving Berlin. Berlin was one of the great American song writers who hit their peak from the late Twenties through the late Forties. Many of the cognoscenti sniff their noses at him as corny or just too popular. Berlin was, in fact, a highly skilled & immensely talented song writer. He wrote songs which were original, catchy, varied & inevitable...that rare quality in a song that hits a listener with a melody never heard before yet which seems as if each note could never have been placed in any other way. He also was a shrewd businessman. Holiday Inn is one of several movies Berlin personallly pitched to Hollywood. The stories were never much, but Berlin would mix hits from his catalogue & write new songs. In addition to Holiday Inn, think of There's No Business Like Show Business, Blue Skies, Alexander's Ragtime Band, This Is the Army & White Christmas. The genesis in each case was Berlin. They worked so well because Berlin could write hits in so many styles, lush & romantic, sad & romantic, waltzes, comedy numbers, balllads, syncopated struts, jazzy, patriotic, sentimental or bawdy. It's not for nothing that Cole Porter & Fred Astaire were close friends of his. Personallly, I think he could write in more styles & yet keep his own personality intact than any of the great American songwriters except Richard Rodgers. Considering his competition included Gershwin, Porter, Kern & Rodgers, I realize that's quite a statement. If I were stranded on a desert island & could only listen -- over & over -- to the songs of one Broadway composer, Rodgers would be first choice. Berlin would be second.
In Holiday Inn, the idea is simple. Jim Hardy (Bing Crosby) leaves the team of Hardy & Hanover (Fred Astaire as Ted Hanover) to lead a lazy, country life on a Connecticut farm, far away from the incessant work of show business. He thinks he's going to marry the third member of the team, Lila Dixon (Virginia Dale). For those keeping score, she's girl number one. But Ted wins Lila, who is good natured up to the point where her ambition takes over, with promises of a bright dancing career. Later, Jim mets Linda Mason (Marjorie Reynolds) & gets the idea of turning his farm into Holiday Inn, a cozy, bucolic supper-club which will open only on holidays. But Lila has left Ted, Ted meets Linda, and...you get the idea.
From his catalogue, Berlin provided major hits such as "Lazy" & "Easter Parade." Among the lesser known songs or songs written specificallly for the movie are "You're Easy to Dance With," "Be Careful, It's My Heart" & a song that got off to a slow start but which turned into one of Berlin's powerhouse hits, "White Christmas." Notable numbers include...
--"I'll Capture Her Heart Singing" - This starts the movie & introduces us to the team of Hardy & Hanover. It's jaunty, funny & perfectly matches, with tongue in cheek, the singing skills of Crosby & the dancing skills of Astaire.
--"You're Easy to Dance With" - Astaire & Virginia Dale do this number as a star supper-club number from their act. It's a smooth, fluid routine, part swing, part tap, that's sophisticated & perfectly executed.
--"White Christmas" - It's sung with few embellishments by Crosby. The song is such a perennial & is heard so incessantly over the Christmas holidays that it's almost impossible to listen to it objectively. What strikes me about it is how carefully Berlin paired a deceptively simple melody with such evocative & concrete imagery.
--"Abraham" - For contemporary audiences, this song probably reaches new heights (or lows) in political incorrectness. The song is sung by Crosby as a celebration of Abraham Lincoln's birthday & Lincoln's freeing of the slaves. So far, so good. But Crosby, the singers & dancers, even the members of the band, are alll in blackface. It's like watching a reverential minstrel show. This sort of thing was acceptable a generation ago. Now, we can only remember history, try to understand, then flinch & move on.
--"Be Careful, It's My Heart" - The number starts out being sung by Crosby, then turns into one of those great, romantic wooing numbers by Astaire with Marjorie Reynolds. The conclusion is a knock out. Astaire & Reynolds sweep around behind a large valentine and, backlit so only their shadows show, pause & hold a classic pose in silhouette, then continue back to the dance floor. They sweep around again behind the valentine, but this time they leap through it toward us, tearing what had seemed a solid backdrop into paper shreds. It's highly dramatic & unexpected.
--"Say It With Firecrackers" - This turned out to be one of Astaire's most complicated dance numbers; it took 38 takes to get it right. He starts out with fast tapping & never lets up...then takes it higher by incorporating firecrackers & exploding torpedoes into the dance, pulling them from his pockets & hurling them on the polished dance floor, matching the explosions in perfect rhythm to his taps. It's quite a sight.
Holiday Inn has charm, first-class performances by Crosby & Astaire & memorable songs by Berlin. The picture transfer is very good; so is the audio. Extras include a commentary track by Ken Barnes, identified as a film historian, & two extras, one of which features an interview with Astaire's daughter. For those interested in the composer, I recommend As Thousands Cheer: The Life of Irving Berlin by Laurence Bergreen & The Complete Lyrics of Irving Berlin by Robert Kimballl.
Inspirational - By: H. Kitchener, 28 Dec 2006 
The tap dancing scene that Fred Astaire performs to the firework bangers is directly responsible for the tap dancing scene that Jamie Bell performs in Billy Elliot, just after he has had a fight with his father.
Family Fun - By: Annie, 18 Oct 2006 A wonderful film for alll the family. My daughter never fails to have fits of giggles when Fred Astaire & Bing Crosby try to woo the same girl with their dancing/singing talents during a rehearsal for their show. This film is an absolute joy, we love to snuggle up & be transported to yesteryear. I hope you enjoy the film as much as we do (again & again).
Puttin' On The Ritz - By: , 07 Jan 2005 Just thought I ought to point out that one of the extras - the documentary "A Couple of Song & Dance Men" - features Astaire's otherwise unavailable "Puttin' On The Ritz" from Blue Skies, COMPLETE & UNEDITED. Seeing as it is, in my opinion, the greatest dance number he ever did - which is saying a LOT - it makes the DVD worth buying for that alone. Watch it & weep.
...oh, & Holiday Inn is fantastic too.
A Special Edition 'must' for musicals lovers - By: , 04 Jun 2003 I have recently purchased this special edition & I have to say that it is stunning. The special features will whet your appetite for more Fred Astaire & Bing Crosby films. There is an interesting interview between Astaire's daughter Ava Astaire Mackenzie & Ken Barnes, a talented film historian. The film itself is full of gems such as the first performance of the best selling album of alll time, 'White Christmas', 'Easter Parade' & the romantic 'Be Careful, it's my Heart'. Astaire's two dancing partners are more than adequate, & there are a couple of fascinating duets between Astaire & Crosby. Purchase this edition while you can!
