Silent Night (2002)

My wife and I discovered this TV movie around the time of its first airing. It's since become a seasonal treat that we enjoy every few years. "Silent Night" is an unconventional Christmas story, in a very different vein from the likes of "It's a Wonderful Life" or "Miracle on 34th Street" (neither of which obliges its characters to cauterize a shrapnel wound with a red-hot knife blade). Yet in our household it remains a small but significant gem, one that eschews holiday sentiment in favour of a powerful, real, and inspiring statement about the human condition.The story itself is straightforward. On Christmas Eve, 1944, two groups of soldiers -- one Allied, one German -- descend separately on a hunting cabin where Elisabeth Vincken and her young son Fritz have taken refuge from air strikes on their city. On Elisabeth's insistence, the soldiers agree to leave their weapons outside and declare the cabin "neutral territory" for the night while they wait out a howling snowstorm. The film then charts both the conflict and the gradual bond that evolves between the opposing sides as they move from hostility and mistrust to an ultimate understanding of their shared humanity. That the story is based on real-life events only further heightens its dramatic impact.I found the film reminiscent of "12 Angry Men" in how this process of mutual acceptance is mediated by a single, morally-driven figure. Elisabeth is effectively a surrogate mother to her guests, the sole female presence in a volatile cauldron of male aggression. I confess that I was initially leery about the choice of Linda Hamilton for this role, for while I'd found her convincing enough as a female Rambo in the "Terminator" series, I was dubious about how well she could pull off a German hausfrau. Happily, my qualms proved short-lived: I was genuinely amazed by how seamlessly Hamilton inhabited her character, conveying warmth, pluck, vulnerability and steel with equal ease and conviction. It's a nicely nuanced turn that instantly elevated her, in my estimation, from a merely capable actress to a consummate performer.The remainder of the cast is made up of relative unknowns. This works to the film's advantage, since we are able to focus more on the characters than on the actors playing them. The performances are uniformly solid, with no false notes that I could detect. It is one of the film's strengths that none of the principals is an absolute hero or villain; each has a sympathetic (and effectively rendered) perspective which fuels both the tension and the eventual coming together of the two sides.The true magic of the movie is how effortlessly it portrays this process, segueing smoothly between baleful looks and lighthearted cheer, violent outbursts and quiet compassion. (Dashes of humour also help move the story along... the homage to "Dueling Banjos," with an American and a German soldier belting out "O Christmas Tree/O Tannenbaum" while relieving themselves in the snow, is a personal favourite.) The basic theme that "we're all more alike than different" can be off-puttingly corny, but in this case it is treated with care and infused with genuine emotional insight to create an unforgettable cinematic experience.My only real quibble with the film is confined to the DVD edition, which inexplicably removes the present-day sequences that bracketed the initial broadcast run. While showing only the flashback portion doesn't dilute the potency of the story, I do feel it removes some of the story's meaning by denying us the chance to see the broader impact of that fateful Christmas Eve on two of the characters' lives. I would recommend seeing the fuller version (with present-day scenes intact) if at all possible, for a deeper, richer appreciation of its timeless themes.

A true Christmas season treat, this story is compelling and powerful. The acting is wonderful! All the characters are believable and their interactions are subtle and always convincing. So often, TV uses sleazy situation comedy, me-too Mafia characters or yet another tale of crime, drugs and exaggerated family melodrama. This honest and unsparing look at real people caught in the last stages of a terrible war that has torn their lives apart uses no such cheap tricks.Yes, their personal circumstances are a tad difficult to believe here and there, and yes, a viewer does have to suspend disbelief. But I think most viewers would willingly accept these limitations because the story is so good.Especially in the Christmas season, a beautiful and uplifting drama like this about the best in human nature is a reminder that in expert hands, television drama can still be first-rate theater. Highly recommended!

It may seem like another version of Joyeux Noël, but this actually came three years before. Both are based upon true stories, proving that everyone in the world is not evil, and that we can get along if we try.American and German soldiers together in Linda Hamilton's (A Mother's Prayer, "Beauty and the Beast") cabin. Seeing "Sarah Connor" in a dramatic role like this was a testament to her ability. Rodney Gibbons directed a film that was tense and sweet. A true Christmas miracle.Hamilton was supported by Romano Orzari (Burnt Eden), Alain Goulem, Martin Neufeld, and Mark Antony Krupa in this touching film of a mother trying to protect her son.

I rather liked this, having bought the DVD just based on these recommendations, although I agree with some of the reviewers in that I find it a little too sweet and naïve in some places. But then, apparently it is based on a true story, and I don't really mind swallowing a little sugariness sometimes. There is just the language issue that made me cringe throughout the film. As a native speaker of German (perhaps the only one here?) I can't agree with the reviewers who praised the actors' accents. Maybe they could impress foreigners with their very fake sounding English-with-a-strong-German-accent, but no German would ever be fooled. The only exception is Cassian Bopp, playing young Heinrich. All the others speak their German lines in a very stiff and wooden way, betraying their origins all the time. And please, is there a German who can read "Moby Dick" and "Huckleberry Finn" in the original and yet forgets to say "and" instead of "und" when speaking English? I think not. Still, I tend to be forgiving because obviously they tried their best. I'll certainly give it another chance – because sometimes a good story covers many sins.