Holiday Inn

Colorizing black and white films became popular in the mid 80s, early 1990s in order to appeal to the Generation X-ers and beyond. Interestingly, colorization began in 1902 with the film short "A Trip To The Moon." But in 1902, colorization was an arduous process. With computers, colorization is much easier.I was a bit disappointed with the colorized version of "Holiday Inn" because the colors seemed faded; at times the color it wasn't noticeable. However, with the tools and software they had at the time "Holiday Inn" was colorized, it was still nicely done. And the computer technicians were avoiding mistakes of earlier colorized films from mid 80s, such as the 1986 colorized "It's a Wonderful Life", where the skin tones were garish and even the teeth and whites of the eyes were skin-toned because the process hadn't been perfected to mask out the teeth and eyes. The computer techs also did extensive research with "Holiday Inn" in order to get correct coloring for costumes and even eye color. The colorized DVD has an fascinating documentary on the colorization process for "Holiday Inn" as an extra.With the advent of AI, I would love to see "Holiday Inn" colorized using that technology. It would be interesting to see the results. I believe it might be much closer to a color film, because amazing things are done with old black and white photos (see the photo of Abraham Lincoln).The colorized version of "Holiday Inn" reminds me of old black and white photos that were hand-tinted from the 1940s and 50s. In the 1930s-1950s, black and white photos were the norm; in the 1960s, color appeared, but were reserved for special portraits or occasions, since processing color photos were still expensive. I've included screenshots of both the colorized and black and white versions, so you can decide for yourself if you prefer colorized or original of "Holiday Inn." What's great about this set is that both versions are included. The black and white version also has interesting commentary from film historian Ken Barnes, the theatrical trailer and two related short documentaries, one about Fred Astaire and Bing Crosby.Both versions are uncut and does include the blackface number, "Abraham." The only highlight of this section is Louise Beavers singing to her kids--she had a beautiful voice. When I first saw this film on TV, I was 6 years old. The "Abraham" number seemed so discordant, because I wondered why everybody wore such clownish makeup. I didn't realize at the time what black face was. Marjorie Reynold's makeup was the worse, and as a 6-year-old, I knew that Black women did not have platinum blonde hair with jiggly braids that stuck out all over the head. My little friends did not have braids like that. I also was confused as how the director and choreographer had the backup actors dance to "Abraham", standing still and moving in bouncy circular motions, like the old hula dolls people stuck on their car dashboards. Having seen Bill "Bojangles" Robinson and The Nicholas Brothers in movies, I knew Black people did not move or dance that way.Doing "Abraham" in blackface was part of the plot line to avoid Astaire's character Ted Hanover recognizing Jim Hardy's (Crosby) love interest Linda Mason (Reynolds) and steal her from Jim, like he did with Lila Dixon. Blackface was still acceptable in films of the 1930s and 1940s, so "Holiday Inn" was a product of its time. Thankfully it was eliminated from film by the time Irving Berlin filmed "White Christmas" in 1954, supposedly an "updated" version of "Holiday Inn." The song "Abraham" was transformed into a super fast instrumental, which featured an energetic tap number by Vera-Ellen and John Brascia.If you find the number "Abraham" highly offensive in "Holiday Inn", fast forward the DVD or record "Holiday Inn" on cable TV to your DVD recorder (if you still use cable instead of streaming services), since the "Abraham" number is usually cut from TV broadcasts. I'm not sure what streaming service is doing with "Abraham", since I've only watched "Holiday Inn" on cable or on DVD. I still recommend this DVD because you can view the movie in its original black and white or colorized, and because there are so many interesting extras. There's also a version on Amazon of "Holiday Inn" which features a documentary that explores the "Abraham" number and its impact on today's audiences, so you can purchase that version of the film as well as this one.

Stellar cast all the way down the line. The writing is ahead of its time, the mix of direct and implied humor is keen. Great music, dancing, and plot twists. Good pacing for the day, some will find it slow compared to modern film.For context: In 1942, Democrat-Party President Franklin Roosevelt had pushed his progressive New Deal deficit spending/welfare state into existence, had brought ethnic cleansing of Mexicans through deportation to completion (setting the precedent for Japanese internment), blocked Federal anti-lynching legislation, avoiding appointing a single African American to political office, and was pushing the USA into World War II. Prior, FDR instituted upper limits on the number of Jews to be admitted into Harvard, and after Kristalnacht in 1938, he refused over 190,000 Refugee Visas to Jews fleeing Germany.Sooooo yes, there is a scene with blackface. Yes, there is a stereotypical trope "Mamie" character. Are you offended? Good, such bravery. Now pull up up your shorts and look up Louise Beavers (who played Mamie), and how she viewed it, at the time. Learn about how she advanced the condition and status of black people not only in entertainment, but across many aspects of life. To remove the scene, to remove the film from Amazon, would be to erase her incredible legacy. Were you offended by Mary Alice's character "The Oracle" in the movie The Matrix?Further, blackface is a part of entertainment history, going back to the earliest days of Vaudeville, with roots in the more general practice of "clowning" that goes back thousands of years. Both whites and blacks did blackface. Was it racist and stereotyping? Of course. But this is part of history, part of black history, part of white history, and most importantly part of American history. Erasing that history, again, does a disservice to those who actually lived and navigated it.

Gostei do filme , e dos grandes Bing Crosby e Fred Astaire e as músicas também

Schöner Film

Il film è famoso per la canzone natalizia " White Christmas " cantata da Bing Crosby. Ma non ha solo questo pregio, ne ha molti altri, tra i quali la magia della musica di Irving Berlin , la voce di Bing Crosby e le coreografie dei balli di Fred Astaire. Sono rimasto molto contento di questa edizione perchè il film l'avevo in vhs versione italiana, ma nell'edizione italiana erano stati tagliati alcuni dialoghi e alcune scene , peraltro importanti, come una scena di ballo con Fred Astaire!!! Purtroppo questa pratica italiana di diminuire il minutaggio dei film è famosa e ha rovinato un sacco di film classici dell'epoca. Per fortuna che sono arrivati i supporti digitali che hanno reso giustizia alle scempiaggini italiane. Anche un film innocente come questo ha incontrato le forbici "censorie"! In questa edizione lo vedrete completo e potrete sentire i dialoghi originali con le bellissime musiche ed i balletti interpretati da Fred Astaire. Per gli amanti dei musical hollywoodiani è un film imprescindibile.

ningún problema.

Una de las mejores películas navideñas, con canciones inolvidables y la participación de dos grandes iconos de Holllywood. Recomendada para todo el que se jacte de cinéfilo.