Joyeux Noel
Merry Christmas (2005)
Directed by Christian Carion
Genres - War | Sub-Genres - War Drama, Holiday Film | Run Time - 116 min. | Countries - France, Germany, UK | MPAA Rating - PG13
Synopsis by Jason Buchanan
The year is 1914, and as World War I continues to rage across the European countryside, four individuals stuck on the front lines find themselves faced with the unthinkable in director Christian Carion's Academy Award-nominated account of the true-life wartime event that would offer hope for peace in mankind's darkest hour. When the war machines began rolling in the summer of 1914, the devastation that it waged upon German, British, and French troops was palpable. As the winter winds began to blow and the soldiers sat huddled in their trenches awaiting the generous Christmas care packages sent by the families, the sounds of warfare took a momentary backseat to the yearning for brotherhood among all of mankind. It is here that the fate of a French lieutenant, a Scottish priest, a German tenor, and a Danish soprano's lives were about to be changed forever. On Christmas Eve of that year, the lonely souls of the front lines abandoned their arms to reach out to their enemies on the battlefield and greet them with not anger or hostility, but with the simple, kindly gesture of a much needed cigarette or a treasured piece of chocolate, and to put their differences aside long enough to wish their brothers a sincere "Merry Christmas!"
http://www.allmovie.com/movie/merry-christmas-v327278
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| Produced by | Christophe Rossignon
Benjamin Herrmann |
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| Written by | Christian Carion
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| Edited by | Judith Rivière Kawa
Andrea Sedlácková |
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| Running time | 116 minutes
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| Country | France
Germany United Kingdom Belgium Romania |
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| Language | French
English German |
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| Budget | $22 million
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| Box office | $17,709,155
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- Finnish censorship visa # 201339.
- The Scottish regiment depicted in this film, judging by the badges displayed on the "Glengarry," were the Royal Scots Fusiliers. On December 20, 1914, the 2nd Argyle & Sutherland Highlanders took over the front line trenches at Houplines until after Christmas, it was widely reported at the time in numerous letters that it was this regiment that arranged to play a football match versus the Saxons in no man's land.
- The football match depicted was probably inspired by the documented game between the 2nd Battalion The Royal Welsh Fusiliers and the Saxon Infantry who played football on Christmas Day 1914. In 2008 the British and German Armies sent teams France to play a game of football in honour of their predecessors.
- French opera singer Nathalie Dessay did the singing for Diane Kruger's character.
- Towards the end of the film Major General Audebert says "i've been ordered to arrest a cat for treason", A cat portrayed in the film as Felix/Nestor, was actually arrested and shot for espionage after it arrived in French lines wearing a new collar and bearing a note (in french) which read "which regiment are you from?". The general in charge decided just to follow the letter of the law, the cat was shot for spying.
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