Christmas in July [Blu-ray]

Director: Preston Sturges Preston Sturges

Overview

This modest Preston Sturges comedy stars Dick Powell as an office clerk dreaming of better things and Ellen Drew as his more pragmatic girlfriend. Powell convinces himself that his fortune will be made if he can win a slogan contest sponsored by a coffee company. Powell's contribution: "If you can't sleep at night, it isn't the coffee, it's the bunk!" Three of Powell's fellow workers decide to have some fun with him; they fake a telegram which announces that he's won the contest. The deception snowballs to the point that even the head of the coffee firm (Raymond Walburn) labors under the misapprehension that Powell has won. When the painful truth is revealed, Powell finds himself broke (because of all the creature comforts he's bought) and jobless, but at least he's retained the love of his wife. A cute deus ex machina to the story appears in the person of William Demarest, the foreman of the "jury" that is judging the slogan contest.

Product Details

Release Date:	11/26/2019
UPC:	0738329237264
Original Release:	1940
Rating:	NR
Source:	Kl Studio Classics
Region Code:	A
Presentation:	[B&W]
Sound:	[DTS 5.1-Channel Surround Sound]
Language:	English
Time:	1:07:00
Sales rank:	29,101

Special Features

Audio commentary by film historian Samm Deighan; Trailers; 1920x1080p

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Dick Powell	Jimmy MacDonald
Ellen Drew	Betty Casey
Raymond Walburn	Dr. Maxford
Alexander Carr	Mr. Schindel
William Demarest	Mr. Bildocker
Ernest Truex	Mr. Baxter
Franklin Pangborn	Radio Announcer
Harry Hayden	Mr. Waterbury
Rod Cameron	Dick
Adrian Morris	Tom
Harry Rosenthal	Harry
Georgia Caine	Mrs. MacDonald
Ferike Boros	Mrs. Schwartz
Torben Meyer	Mr. Schmidt
Julius Tannen	Mr. Zimmerman
Alan Bridge	Mr. Hillbeiner,Mr. Hillbeiner
Lucille Ward	Mrs. Casey
Kay Stewart	Secretary
Victor Potel	Davenola Salesman
Byron Foulger	Mr. Jenkins
Arthur Hoyt	Mild Gentleman
Robert Warwick	Large Gentleman
Jimmy Conlin	Thin, Sour Gentleman
Dewey Robinson	Large, Rough Gentleman
Frank Moran	Patrolman Murphy
Georges Renavent	Sign Painter
Preston Sturges	Man at Shoeshine Stand
Fred 'Snowflake' Toones	Porter
Michael Morris	Tom
Jan Buckingham	Secretary
Arthur Hull	Cashier
Esther Michelson	Sophie's Mother
Charles Moore	Porter
Pat West	Man with Telephone
Sigmund Krumgold	Composer

Technical Credits

Preston Sturges

Preston Sturges	Director,Screenwriter
Paul Jones	Producer
Walter Oberst	Sound/Sound Designer
Harry Lindgren	Sound/Sound Designer

Editorial Reviews

Christmas in July finds director/writer Preston Sturges operating near the top of his game, and when he's in good form, there's no one who can touch him. If July is not quite in the same league as an absolute Sturges masterpiece like Sullivan's Travels or The Lady Eve, it's still head and shoulders above most films. July is filled with the sparkling, snappy dialogue one associates with Sturges, dialogue that is all the more remarkable in that it feels natural and unforced; even when placed in the mouth of a regular working-class character, Sturges's words manage to make the character sound eloquent without sounding artificial. The writer clearly has a genuine, deep affection for the "common man," but unlike so many others with good intentions, he doesn't patronize or sentimentalize him. Sturges also displays his skill at creating a perfectly structured screenplay, one that builds to a fade-out that one can clearly see coming but which one welcomes nonetheless. As a director, Sturges knows how to keep his pace from ever flagging, but more importantly he knows just how and where to hit the dramatic and emotional high points. Another director might have overplayed the tragic consequences of the practical joke at the heart of the plot; Sturges modulates the emotions, making it therefore both more palatable and more affecting. He is aided in all of this by a superb performance from Dick Powell and a heartfelt one from Ellen Drew, as well as by a supporting cast of character actors that is perfectly in tune. July is a delightful Christmas present at any time of the year.