Review of The Bells of St. Mary's (1945) by Tim H — 09 Dec 2007

This really isn't one movie. I mean, it's not like it is composed of vignettes or anything, but the main plot just doesn't exist. Really, this is subplots, the movie. And you know what? I really don't care. (Too much...) The weird thing is that there is no over-arching conflict except the fact that the two main characters don't agree on a lot. It's not like they dislike each other, but they simply have differentiating teaching styles. That's the throughline. I know...pretty weak, eh? Who cares? It's Christmas. (At least in one scene.).

Now I'm going to point out the epiphany that I had during this movie. I am crazy forgiving for corniness in older movies. Maybe because the movie's overall mood allows for some really cheeseball moments to come off as heartwarming. I giggled like a schoolgirl when I saw the first grade Christmas play. But if I saw that in Cheaper by the Dozen 3? I would swear at the screen violently. It's probably because contemporary movies are so dependent on low-brow silliness that cornball moments just seem out of place. Anywa,y there are ton of cornball moments in The Bells of St. Mary's, but that's really okay. There's some really touching stuff in something that is basically a light character study.

Now, I am really wondering why this movie is considered a Christmas film. Yes, one very important scene takes place during Christmas, but it is not about this scene by any means. Heck, if you took out the Christmas scene, the film wouldn't change all that much. That scene is one among many "fun scenes". Also, I found this movie unusally touching considering it had oh-so-little actual structure. It seemed to be full of substance. Perhaps I should classify this under meatloaf movies. But that makes it seem like a Hallmark movie and, by no means, is it a Hallmark movie. Maybe this can be safely categorized as gourmet meatloaf.

Man, that sounds good. Anyway, it's got a bit of a long runtime and has very little actual conflict in the story, but if you just want a heartwarming solid time, enjoy this one.