REEL TIME: Five of the best non-holiday holiday films

Because you don't always want to watch films that shove the joy of Christmas down your gullet.

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REEL TIME: Five of the best non-holiday holiday films

POSTED: Tuesday, December 18, 2012, 11:59 AM

Filed Under: Movies

Umbrellas of Cherbourg

After the initial shock of realizing the entire film’s dialogue is being sung operatically, you can start to appreciate Umbrellas of Cherbourg’s cinematography and gorgeous use of color. And just when you’re ready to write it off as another cheesy love story with a happy ending, it hits you like a ton of bricks. In the final scene, estranged lovers Guy and Geneviève (Nino Castelnuovo, Catherine Deneuve) randomly meet at a gas station on Christmas Eve. There they exchange pleasantries with held-back emotion after Guy refuses to meet Geneviève’s daughter, and he then he watches her drive away. In the last shot, the camera pans out to show Guy greeting his wife and son. The frame is consumed by snow — making it one of the most depressing Christmas Eves in cinema history.

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