A digitally restored version of Remember the Night, the 1940 classic written by Preston Sturges, directed by Mitchell Leisen, and starring Barbara Stanwyck and Fred MacMurray, is one of Turner Classic Movies' Christmas presentations this December. Remember the Night will air several times throughout the month, including on Christmas Eve at 5 p.m. (PT).
“It’s one of those quirky twists of fate that a film as exceptional as Remember the Night has been so overlooked when it comes to great Christmas movies,” TCM host Robert Osborne was quoted as saying. “It’s our hope at TCM that our special Christmas Eve showing of this holiday gem, now fully remastered, will help give it a much-deserved new life.”
Well, if only the powers-that-be at Universal made sure those old Universal and Paramount movies were widely available we wouldn't have this problem of unseen "exceptional" films. But enough carping.
Remember the Night marked the first of four on-screen pairings of Fred MacMurray and Barbara Stanwyck. (For the record, the other three are: Double Indemnity, The Moonlighter, and There's Always Tomorrow.) In the film, MacMurray plays a prosecutor who falls in love with a shoplifter (Stanwyck) during a court recess at Christmas time.
Also in the Remember the Night cast: Beulah Bondi, Elizabeth Patterson and Sterling Holloway. The remastered edition is supposed to have restored the luster of Ted Tetzlaf’s cinematography.
Prior to this new edition, which is currently available on DVD, Remember the Night received only a brief home-video release during the era of VHS. DVD special features include an introduction by Robert Osborne; still galleries, including behind-the-scenes photos; never-before-seen interview segments on the work of director Mitchell Leisen from the TCM Archives; plus the original movie trailer, trivia, biographies and more. The film is available exclusively through TCM.com on a made-to-order basis.