We're No Angels

Premiered July 7, 1955.

Joseph:As soon as it gets dark, we'll help ourselves.  

Albert:The old man might object.

Joseph:If he gets in our way, it'll be just too bad for him.  We'll climb down off his roof and cut his throat for a Christmas present.

Albert:That's the kind of thing that could make you stop believing in Santa Claus.

This year's series of "Oscar Takes A Holiday" reviews begins with We're No Angels, which features multiple Academy Award winners.

Film legend Humphrey Bogart won Best Actor for playing Charlie Allnut in The African Queen. 

Humphrey Bogart, accompanied by his wife Lauren Bacall, celebrates his Oscar win.

It was directed by Michael Curtiz, who won a Best Director Oscar for Casablanca, which of course also featured Bogart.

Michael Curtiz poses with the Oscar he won for directing Casablanca.

Peter Ustinov won two Academy Awards for Best Supporting Actor, the first for Spartacus and another for Topkapi.

Peter Ustinov celebrates his Spartacus Oscar with fellow-winner Shirley Jones at the 1961 ceremony.

On to today's review:

On Christmas Eve, 1895, a trio of convicts named Joseph (Humphrey Bogart)...

 Albert (Peter Ustinov)...

and Jules (Aldo Ray), escape from Devil's Island prison.  

They're accompanied by Jules' pet viper snake Adolphe, who spends most of his time in a carry-case. It's easy for them to hide in plain sight on the island, since lots of convicts are out working on parole.

They visit a store owned by Felix Ducotel (Leo G. Carroll) and offer to repair his damaged roof.  They're true intent is to kill Felix, his wife Amelie (Joan Bennett) and their daughter Isabelle (Gloria Talbott) and rob them, then flee Devil's Island on the next boat out.

Felix and his store have been going through a rough patch.  The store has been losing money and Felix is dreading a Christmas visit from Andre Tochard (Basil Rathbone), his cousin and financial benefactor.  Andre knows about Felix's problems and plans to remove Felix from the business.

Isabelle is excited about Andre's visit because he's bringing along his son and sole heir Paul (John Baer).  She's in love with Paul but doesn't know if the feeling is mutual.

As part of their "murder plot," the convicts decide to help Felix.  Joseph, whose criminal specialty was falsifying documents, offers to "adjust" the financial records and save the Ducotel's family business.  Joseph also impresses the Ducotels with his "business acumen" when he manages to sell a hairbrush and comb set to a bald man!

In exchange for their help, Amelie invites the convicts to Christmas Eve dinner.  Albert, Jules and Joseph decorate the house... 

...and prepare a turkey for Christmas dinner. 

The trio even serenades the Ducotels with a Christmas song.  The family invites them to spend the night, not knowing that the convicts have planned to kill them and take their money.

The holiday celebrations are interrupted when Felix's cousin Andre arrives and immediately throws his weight around and belittles everyone in the house.  Andre demands to see the financial records before Joseph has a chance to "fix" them.  

The convicts also learn that Paul is not in love with Isabelle and he plans to tell her so. 

The scenario gets even more complicated when Adolphe the snake goes missing!  

Will Joseph, Jules and Albert go through with their plans to rob and murder the Ducotels?  Can they prevent Andre from learning the financial conditions of Felix's store?  What will happen between Paul and Isabelle? 

J.A. Morris says:

When I was a kid, I was a huge fan of Humphrey Bogart and made every effort to watch every one of his films.  However, We're No Angels was not a movie that was readily available on TV or home video.  That's changed in the last decade and this movie is now part of TCM's annual Christmas programming.  

And that's a good thing, because We're No Angels is lots of fun!  Bogart, Peter Ustinov and Aldo Ray make a great trio and Basil Rathbone is delightfully sleazy as Andre.  Jules' pet snake Adolphe also plays an important role in the film, but to say more about Adolphe would spoil jokes and plot points. 

Bogart didn't appear in many comedies, and he shows off some nice, subtle comic timing here.  It's a shame he didn't squeeze in a few more humorous roles during his career.  Leo G. Carroll, Joan Bennett and Gloria Talbott provide solid support as the Ducotels.   

Some viewers may have a problem with some of the darker jokes.  The "angels" don't express much sympathy for a guard they "tried to kill" during their escape from Devil's Island.  Albert makes multiple jokes about killing his wife (which is one reason he's in prison), not something you usually hear in Christmas movies!  However, 30 minutes into the movie, it's obvious that (SPOILER ALERT), this is a trio of "whimsical" criminals who will commit no violent crimes during the film's running time.  

We're No Angels is based on a stage play called My Three Angels, which was adapted from French play titled La Cuisine Des Anges by Albert Husson.  

We're No Angels has a great ensemble cast and is filled with funny moments and is recommended to all fans of holiday films, especially film fans who enjoy a side of dark humor with their eggnog.  It's a nice excuse to spend time watching "Bogie" every December.  

J.A. Morris's rating: 

4 candy canes!

RigbyMel says:

We're No Angels was unknown to me until a couple of years ago, when we watched it on TCM, which is a shame because it is a delight.   This comedy features excellent performances by Humphrey Bogart, Peter Ustinov and Aldo Ray as criminals who turn out to have hearts of gold.    

The holiday setting helps to keep the viewer off balance initially.  Then Christmas works its transformative power on our criminals who have a change of heart thanks to the warmth and kindness of their erstwhile victims, the Ducotel family.   

From thence, our non-angelic trio tries to fix the Ducotel's financial and familial difficulties...by any means necessary.   We even get an unexpectedly heroic turn from Adolphe the Viper! 

I really love the dry wit of the dialogue throughout this script, as well as Basil Rathbone's obvious enjoyment at playing cousin Andre, the REAL villain of the piece. 

Another unexpected treat in this film is that the audience gets to hear Bogart, Ustinov, and Ray SING during the family Christmas party scene.   The words concerning angels were written for the movie, but the tune is an old hymn tune called "St. Athanasius" which has had many different lyrics set to it over time.    The singing is far from gorgeous, but is utterly appropriate for the characters and charming in that appropriateness.  

Moreover, I agree with J.A. Morris that it would have been nice to see Bogie in other comedic roles since he handles this one so well. 

Interestingly, Joan Bennett who plays Amelie Ducotel had been caught up in a tabloid scandal a few years prior to this movie -- her husband shot her manager!  Although it was not her fault,  she was tainted by association and was not getting much work.   Humphrey Bogart actually went to bat for her to be cast in this movie as he thought she was treated unfairly -- an example of real-life kindness underpinning a holiday film -- and Bennett's performance is lovely.  

If dry and dark wit is not your thing, We're No Angels is probably not going to resonate with you, but for those that appreciate the humor, this is a non-treacly holiday film that is well worth adding to your seasonal rotation! 

RigbyMel's' rating: 

4 candy canes! 

Last Christmas (2019)

Premiered November 8, 2019.

Kate (Emilia Clarke) is going through a rough patch as Christmas approaches. She has no real place to live, has flopped in her latest singing audition and has a complicated relationship with her immigrant family.  The only stable part of her life is her job. Kate works as an elf in a Christmas shop. Her boss “Santa” (Michelle Yeoh) likes her “elf,” but feels Kate’s work ethic has faltered ever since she recovered from a health crisis the previous Christmas.  

Her life improves when she meets a customer named Tom Webster (Henry Golding).  He encourages Kate to “look up” and appreciate all the good things in her life and in London.  Tom also suggests that Kate should swallow her pride and go stay with her parents, which she does.  

Kate and Tom spend lots of time together, exploring bits of London that she never knew existed.  When she visits a homeless shelter where Tom volunteers, Kate realizes she can fund raise for the shelter by singing Christmas songs in the street for money.    She learns that doing good things for others makes her feel much better about life.  

Will Kate manage to patch things up with the family and friends she has alienated?  Will she find happiness with Tom? You’ll have to go see this movie which was written by Emma Thompson and features the music of George Michael to find out. 

J.A. Morris says:

Last Christmas is a good movie that features a great cast.  Emilia Clark and Henry Golding are very likable actors and I found myself rooting for them right away.  Since Kate works in a Christmas specialty store, we get a lot more holiday decorations and imagery than you see in most Christmas films.  Emma Thompson is one of the greatest actresses of all time and she's great here as Kate's mother Petra.  

Michelle Yeoh is almost perfect playing the "good boss" role.  You might say that Yeoh's Santa character is a sort of "second mother" to Kate.

London is a great city and director Paul Feig does a nice job showing it off.  While the city is lit up for Christmas, the London of Last Christmas isn't a fairy tale version of the city, and the script isn't afraid to comment on current events in the UK (my co-blogger will say more about this).

I'll admit that I've never been a fan of the Wham! song that gave the film its title.  However, Clarke performs a version of "Last Christmas" that's a bit more up tempo and I liked it better than the original (and most other cover versions I can think of).  The soundtrack features "Last Christmas" and about a dozen other George Michael/Wham! songs.  So you'll probably like this film more if you're a George Michael fan. 

I'm reluctant to say too much because this movie is still in current release and I don't want to spoil the story.  So I'll just say that Last Christmas is recommended and I encourage fans of Christmas films to see it while it's playing on big screens.  George Michael fans will probably like it more than others.

J.A. Morris' rating:

3 candy canes.

RigbyMel says: 

Last Christmas is an enjoyable holiday trifle with a lot of heart.  Christmas movies do have a tendency to be pretty formulaic,  but this is a well-told holiday tale with a twist, that I don't want to spoil.  Credit is due to Emma Thompson for crafting a touching story. 

As J.A. Morris says, the cast is top-notch and the leads are appealing and likeable.   

Plus, it's always nice to see bits of London done up for the holidays.  We see a fair amount of Oxford Street as well as Covent Garden (where "Santa's" Christmas shop is located) and bits of Camden Market (I think) and Marylebone.  

It's not all fairy lights and tinsel though, and I appreciated the embedded message regarding Brexit- related xenophobia that is directly addressed in a couple of scenes and more subtly addressed by showing that London is (and has always been) a multicultural city via good casting choices.  

One's mileage may vary in terms of the soundtrack -- I quite like George Michael's oeuvre in general, but have never particularly been a fan of the title song -- but it's well used in service of the story and the uptempo version of "Last Christmas" sung by Kate and friends made me like the song a little better.

Overall,  Last Christmas is a very enjoyable holiday confection and is well worth a visit to the cinema this season if one is so inclined!  

RigbyMel's rating:  

.5

Three and a half candy canes