Even if it doesn't quite put you in the Christmas spirit, 1942's
Holiday Inn still has a certain high-camp quality to draw you in: two middle-aged, balding entertainers (Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire) wooing the same women; the former quitting the showbiz grind to open an inn that's open only on holidays, presenting themed entertainment 15 days a year. It's a tenuous framework on which to hang some Irving Berlin compositions, but there's lively fun to be had — except for a cringe-inducing blackface episode that celebrates Lincoln's birthday (no, really) — particularly the dance numbers, during which Astaire defies the law of physics, both with and without a partner. Of course, there's also Bing crooning the Oscar-winning perennial favorite "White Christmas." The 1:30 p.m. matinee of Holiday Inn repeats Sunday at Tivoli Cinemas (4050 Pennsylvania, 913-383-7756). Admission is $5, with two-for-one tickets available from select Westport merchants. See
tivolikc.com for details.
— Brent Shepherd
Sat., Dec. 18, 1:30 p.m.; Sun., Dec. 19, 1:30 p.m., 2010
