Product Details

• Actors: Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye
• Directors: Michael Curtiz
• Format: Widescreen, Dolby, Digital Sound, Surround Sound
• Language: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround), English (Dolby Digital 5.1), French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround)
• Subtitles: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: Paramount
• Run Time: 120 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (734 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B00004YNIX
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #29,483 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• Learn more about "White Christmas" on IMDb

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

This semi-remake of Holiday Inn (the first movie in which Irving Berlin's perennial, Oscar-winning holiday anthem was featured) doesn't have much of a story, but what it does have is choice: Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, Rosemary Clooney, an all-Irving Berlin song score, classy direction by Hollywood vet Michael Curtiz (Casablanca, The Adventures of Robin Hood), VistaVision (the very first feature ever shot in that widescreen format), and ultrafestive Technicolor! Crosby and Kaye are song-and-dance men who hook up, romantically and professionally, with a "sister" act (Clooney and Vera-Ellen) to put on a Big Show to benefit the struggling ski-resort lodge run by the beloved old retired general (Dean Jagger) of their WWII Army outfit. Crosby is cool, Clooney is warm, Kaye is goofy, and Vera-Ellen is leggy. Songs include: "Sisters" (Crosby and Kaye do their own drag version, too), "Snow," "We'll Follow the Old Man," "Mandy," "Count Your Blessings Instead of Sheep," and more. Christmas would be unthinkable without White Christmas. --Jim Emerson

Product Description

White Christmas is a 1954 Technicolor musical film starring Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye that features the songs of Irving Berlin, including the titular "White Christmas." The film was directed by Michael Curtiz and co-stars Rosemary Clooney and Vera-Ellen. It was distributed by Paramount Pictures. The film is notable as being the first to be produced and released in VistaVision, a wide-screen process developed by Paramount that entailed using twice the surface area of standard 35mm film. This large-area negative was used to yield finer-grained standard-sized 35 mm film prints.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

242 of 253 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars White Christmas Has Received a Face Lift--of Sorts October 11, 2009

By Tom Anderson

Format:DVD

"White Christmas," one of my favorite movies of all time, had always looked bad on home video. The VHS version was a pale, pastel shadow of the original until the 40th anniversary edition of 1994 when all Paramount did was greatly darken the picture. Unfortunately, this was also the print that was used to make the first DVD release in 2000: a dark, dark picture with no contrast, tons of grain, and a barely-in-focus picture that revealed little detail. Fortunately, most of this has been improved in the newly-released 2-disc Anniversary Edition that has just hit the stores.

Although Paramount obviously did not want to fund a complete restoration, the picture now has vibrant colors (the "Mandy" number will knock your socks off!) with much better sharpness and detail and very little grain to speak of. However the picture is still a little too dark and flat, at least one scene still has registration problems (when Bing meets Doris, the "Mutual, I'm sure" girl), some scenes could have a sharper focus, and there's some trouble with minor flicker (stability) of the image. The bonus material is very enjoyable and above average, with family members, critics, and cultural historians to add perspective.

So in summary I definitely recommend this latest version of "White Christmas" as a rebuy on the strength of the improved picture alone, with the bonus material as a very nice plus. I would have given it my highest rating if the picture quality had presented absolute clarity and if the film itself were more inspired, but it still remains a sentimental favorite and a must-see!

109 of 115 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Bing Croons....Rosemary Swoons....Watch It In June! May 25, 2004

By L. Shirley TOP 100 REVIEWER

Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase

This review refers to the Widescreen Collection(Paramount)DVD edition of "White Christmas"...

This DVD should be held up as an example of what DVDs are all about.The transfer and restoration of this 50 year old film is superb. It is the reason we are willing to spend a little more to upgrade from VHS and are awed when we see the wonderful results. Filmed in "VistaVision", the widescreen picture lets you take in every scene of this wonderful classic from edge to edge. The picture is clear, sharp and in glorious technicolor.The colors are beautiful and vibrant.
You have the choice of viewing it in DD5.1 surround or the restored Mono. For those looking for some special features, Rosemary Clooney helps out with a retrospective interview and also commentary. There are English subtitles for those needing them and may also be viewed in French(mono).

The film is a treasure in itself. Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye,Rosemary Clooney,and Vera-Ellen are the stars of this 1954 musical with songs by Irving Berlin that you'll want to sing along with and keep humming long after the film has ended. Directed by Michael Curtiz it's a feel good film that although takes place during the Christmas season, is one that you can pull out and watch anytime of the year.

Bing and Danny were Army buddies, now a successful song and dance team and are out to help their favorite old retired General(Dean Jagger),who is having trouble coping with retirement. The General is now running a country inn in Vermont, but the big problem is there is no snow to bring up the tourists. Bing and Danny to the rescue, as they turn the inn into a showcase of talent, and fall for the Haines sisters along the way. Can these wonderful voices also bring the snow out of the sky?...well..you know....

This film is filled with Berlin's wonderful tunes. When Bing takes Rosemary's little hand in his and croons "Count Your Blessings" to her..well it's movie heaven. Rosemary also treats us to several numbers, Vera-Ellen does some fabulous hoofing, and Danny clowns and keeps us smiling like only Danny can. And how much fun is it watching Bing and Danny do the "Sisters" number together?...alot! Then there's the goose bump evoking, wonderfully nostalgic scene of the four of them singing "White Christmas" together with the Winter Wonderland of Vermont as a backdrop.I would be remiss if I didn't mention the wonderful character actress Mary Wicks, she's a great busy-body who causes misunderstandings, and also keep an eye out for George Chakiris and Barrie Chase.

Thanks Paramount for bringing us this great old classic holiday film on this great DVD...enjoy...Laurie

also recommended:
It's A Wonderful Life (1946)

The Bells of St. Mary's

or both together on DVD:
Christmas Collector's Pack (The Bells of St. Mary's / It's a Wonderful Life) Read more ›

48 of 50 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful...like you've never seen it before!! November 5, 2010

By Philip S. Mclaughlin

Format:Blu-ray|Amazon Verified Purchase

I do not have to relate the story of White Christmas. Anyone who watches Christmas movies has seen it over and over. It is a highly entertaining film that leaves you with a good feeling inside. The stars, Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, Vera-Ellen and Rosemary Clooney are all wonderful.

The new Blu Ray transfer is magnificent. The picture is so sharp, so crystal-clear, so detailed and so alive with brilliant color, that it is hard to believe that the film is over fifty years old. While watching it, I almost felt like I was there in person. Fortunately, the picture was shot in real Technicolor, and was filmed using Paramount's VISTA-VISION, which created a much larger image on the film allowing for incredible sharpness of vision. The newly remastered 5.1 DTS soundtrack fills your viewing room with rich, lush sound and sharp dialog.

You cannot go wrong by buying this new Blu Ray of White Christmas. It's a film the whole family can enjoy.

68 of 79 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars New 2007 "remaster" huge disappointment! October 10, 2007

By Lars Sandell

Format:DVD

Recently, Paramount has offered us wonderful new DVD-issues of classics like To Catch a Thief and Funny Face, both shot in Vista-Vision, and now looking better than ever on home video thanks to Paramount using original camera materials for the transfers. Naturally, I expected that the same loving treatment would be given an old favorite like White Christmas, which was the first feature film shot in Paramount's superb wide-screen process called Vista-Vision.
Not so! This new "remaster" is just as dreary-looking as the older DVD. Grainy and soft with an unstable look and dull colors except in some brightly lit "performance" scenes. Also lots of dirt marks and scattered speckles, plus an ugly splice or two. And NO new extras! Where is the expected featurette about the Vista-Vision system - newly made or at least some old promotional reel taken from a shelf in the archives? A huge disappointment! And by the way, where are all the many beloved Paramount classics from the fifties and sixties that have not yet been released on DVD? Not a single title in sight for the coming months. Sad.