Warner Christmas Collection (1 Viewer)

Due for release 11/8 (per a trade publication)

1938 MGM version of A Christmas Carol,
Christmas in Connecticut
Shoes of the Fisherman
The Nun's Story
Boy's Town

Details TBA

This just made my day! A Christmas Carol, and Christmas in Connecticut! About time!

I knew Boy's Town must be in the offing for R1 when Warners announced an October Spencer Tracy box set for R2 with Boy's Town/The Old Man & The Sea/Father of The Bride.

Now come on Warners, where are Northwest Passage, A Guy Named Joe and Captains Courageous; pretty please (with sugar on). (Well, the answer is in a box set right alongside Boy's Town right after I buy it )

I'm looking forward to all those titles, particularly The Nun's Story.

Wow, this really is good news, I also am really looking forward to The Nun's Story, it is one of the few Audrey Hepburn pictures I have never seen.

I guess they would have mentioned it if Son of Boys Town was included as well to the Boys Town, but that's OK. I hope they got Mickey Rooney to record a commentary track.

Christmas classics set for DVD debut
Wed Jul 13, 2005 02:54 PM ET

By Thomas K. Arnold
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - It's Christmas in July. Warner Home Video is jumping the gun on the holidays by announcing the November 8 DVD release of five classic holiday movies, all of them new to DVD.

The titles -- "Boys Town," "A Christmas Carol," "Christmas in Connecticut," "The Nun's Story" and "The Shoes of the Fisherman" -- come with an assortment of special features, including vintage shorts, featurettes, period newsreels and cartoons.

"Boys Town" (1938), which won Spencer Tracy a Best Actor Oscar for his portrayal of Father Flanagan, comes with the 1941 sequel "Men of Boys Town," a 1939 newsreel, the vintage short "The City of Little Men" and a promotional featurette on the real-life Boys Town organization.

"A Christmas Carol" (1938), with Reginald Owen as Scrooge, includes the shorts "Jackie Cooper's Christmas Party" and "Judy Garland Sings Silent Night," along with the classic Oscar-nominated cartoon "Peace on Earth."

"Christmas in Connecticut" (1945), a comedy starring Barbara Stanwyck, includes the vintage Oscar-winning short "Star in the Night."

The Audrey Hepburn starrer "The Nun's Story" (1959), which earned eight Oscar nominations, comes with the original theatrical trailer only.

And "The Shoes of the Fisherman," with Anthony Quinn as a newly freed Russian political prisoner who becomes pope, comes with a featurette of the same name.

Three of the titles -- "Boys Town," "A Christmas Carol" and "Christmas in Connecticut" -- also will be available in the three-disc "Warner Bros. Holiday Collection" gift set.

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter

I'm especially psyched about Christmas in Connecticut. I'll also be getting Boys Town.

THE NUN'S STORY is a christmas film??? That's a rather unconventional idea to put it mildly, it's not some saccharine trash like BOYS TOWN or other christmas films (I know I'm quite nasty again, but christmas films should be only watched on chistmas, the rest of the year they are quite embarassing).

Anyway it's a Zinnemann masterpiece, maybe his best one besides THE SUNDOWNERS and HIGH NOON and probably Hepburn's best role.

Edited to add:


It's not THAT clear whether this is a Box Set or not but if indeed it is -


I see, it's another "weirdly" compiled Box Set from Warners...

Although one should be glad that these are coming out at all - I've watched all of them except for MEN OF BOYS TOWN (1941) and CHRISTMAS IN CONNECTICUT (1945) - I strongly believe Warners should really think harder about which movies fall under any particular header!

The choice of films within the "Controversial Classics" Box Set - which I've just gotten hold of myself, by the way - was already quite controversial in itself over here but then they included CLASH BY NIGHT (1952) into their "Film Noir Vol. 2" Box Set over many more deserving and appropriate candidates.

I don't know but, out of all 6 feature films included in this particular Box Set, the only two which I immediately connect with the Christmas season are the ones which have that very word in their title; perhaps, it's because the other 4 deal with men and women of the Church...

I guess it's no use saying that I would have preferred it had they included the 2-Disc Sets of MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS (1944) and A CHRISTMAS STORY (1983) - both of which I've yet to purchase!

Anyway, as I said, I'm glad that THE NUN'S STORY (1959; a masterfully acted and directed film) and THE SHOES OF THE FISHERMAN (1968; an underrated, intimate and intelligent epic) are finally getting released on DVD - although, again, I'd have liked more supplements on both these titles:frowning:!

WB’s decision to NOT include A Christmas Story is the right one. Let’s face it; most fans of the film would probably already have the excellent two-disc version that’s been available for some time. Including existing titles in newly released boxed sets - forcing double dips - is something I vehemently oppose. I don’t have a problem with any of the titles included in their boxed sets.

"I guess they would have mentioned it if Son of Boys Town was included as well to the Boys Town, but that's OK. I hope they got Mickey Rooney to record a commentary track."

Thanks for posting the press release, that answers my question. It is too bad they did not find a way to utilize Mickey Rooney, one of the last major MGM names from the 1930s.

By the way, all they needed was the Tom and Jerry cartoon, and their A Christmas Carol DVD would have been an exact duplicate of the program on its' early 1990's laser disc release.

I'll certainly grab the "Warner Bros. Holiday Collection" gift set quickly. I just never got into "THE NUN'S STORY" or "THE SHOES OF THE FISHERMAN" (although a great movie just never been an Anthony Quinn fan). But love the other three movies. Watched them each many times.

Yayyyy!!! I hope we're still getting all those silent Dickens films on BBC's Scrooge 1951 DVD, too.

I hope they include the theatrical trailer on the 1938 Carol, in which Lionel Barrymore appears.

A Fireside Chat w/ Lionel Barrymore? That would be great to see! I read about it in "A Christmas Carol and It's Adaptations" by Fred Guida.

Andy

Nice use of Christmas themed cartoons too!

That just boosted one notch on my wishlist.

Ah, reading over the press release again... only "Peace On Earth"??


I hope we'll see a remastered version of this MGM classic!

I saw more of a room for oppurtunity I guess, but I'm not complaining. Why not have included others like "The Pups' Christmas", "The Shanty Where Santy Clause Lives", "Holiday For Shoestrings", etc..?

Please note that is not a press release, but more of a news article.

Andy

I recently saw A Nun's Story and it is a great movie, but what does it have to do with Christmas?


Paul

"Men of Boys Town" - wow, that's quite a "special feature"...

I'm really happy with the announcement of this box set - I think it's a great selection, and I'm glad that it's made up of all-new releases (no double dips). This is by no means a definitive Christmas set, which was what I expected when I read the title.

What I'd really like for Christmas is a commentary or retrospective featurette with Mickey Rooney on "Boys Town," but maybe that's asking for too much. Has he done any DVD special features? In any case, I'm not complaining - just hoping...

I don't think George would inflict that level of pain on his buying public Great actor, but modest and focused he ain't. (In all seriousness, I have great respect for Mr. Rooney's accomplishments.)

I do hope WB is able to secure his participation for the presumed eventual release of his films with Judy Garland and the Andy Hardy series. The Mick is 84 and probably doesn't have that many more years where he could be a viable participant.