The Holly and the Ivy (1952)

A heartwarming tale of an English minister and his family reunited at Christmas time. Their story includes a remembrance of their WWII trials

Director:

George More O'Ferrall

Writers:

Wynyard Browne (play), Anatole de Grunwald (screenplay)

Stars:

Ralph Richardson, Celia Johnson, Margaret Leighton

Cast

Credited cast:
Ralph Richardson	...	Rev. Martin Gregory
Celia Johnson	...	Jenny Gregory
Margaret Leighton	...	Margaret Gregory
Denholm Elliott	...	Michael Gregory
Hugh Williams	...	Richard Wyndham
John Gregson	...	David Paterson
Margaret Halstan	...	Aunt Lydia
Maureen Delaney	...	Aunt Bridget
William Hartnell	...	C / Sgt. Major
Robert Flemyng	...	Major
Roland Culver	...	Lord B.
Sally Owen
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
John Barry	...	Clubman
Mary Chapman
Dandy Nichols	...	Neighbour

Storyline

A heartwarming tale of an English minister and his family reunited at Christmas time. Their story includes a remembrance of their WWII trials

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Plot Keywords:

christmas

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

4 February 1954 (USA)

Also Known As:

Nosso Natal em Família

Filming Locations:

British Lion Studios, Shepperton, Surrey, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

De Grunwald Productions, London Film Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

83 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Soundtracks

"The Holly and the Ivy"
(uncredited)
Traditional carol

User Reviews

A Lost Treasure

Until recently I had never heard of this little gem of British holiday sentiment. I heard someone call it the "Christmas movie for people who don't like Christmas movies" and the quest to find it was on.

This is the story of a Christmas in which the emotionally wounded family of a Church of England clergyman come home and attempt to have a happy holiday. What happens is not your typical happy tearjerker, nor is it a Christmas nightmare. Its a reasonably realistic, as much as films of the time could be in 75 minutes, look at a family of emotional cripples as they all try to put their lives back on track. The ending while hopeful is far from certain, so much so that I cursed the fact that it didn't go on another five or six hours, my sole complaint about the film.

A word of warning, don't abandon the film until you get to the end. I wasn't enraptured of the film for almost two thirds of its running time. I was interested in what was happening but I didn't know if I liked it, and then suddenly all of the pieces were in place and it became this charming atypical jewel of a movie.

Forget Its a Wonderful Life, watch this instead, its so much more real.