"Some starry night, when her kisses make you tingle, she'll hold you tight, and you'll hate yourself for being single." (The Tender Trap)

"And all at once it seems so nice..." (The Tender Trap)

"These little town blues are melting away; I'm gonna make a brand new start of it - in old New York..." (New York, New York)

"Shimmering clouds - glimmering clouds, in canyons of steel; they're making me feel I'm home. It's autumn in New York that brings the promise of new love..." (Autumn in New York)

A friend living in the U.S. wrote to me recently that the things I write about are removed from the "real world", as he put it. Apparently I need to "reconnect", in reference to Forster I presume. So to idle away time on the bus this afternoon I put together some ideas about New York/Christmas movies. I also consider it my tuppence-worth contribution to the festive season. Sorry it's a little disorganised, I didn't research it that much.

A Very Saccharine Modern Myth

"All cultures have developed a mythology about the heroic quest. The hero feels that there is something missing in his own life or in his society. The old ideas that have nourished his community for generations no longer speak to him. So he leaves home and endures death-defying adventures. He fights monsters, climbs inaccessible mountains, traverses dark forests and, in the process, dies to his old self, and gains a new insight or skill, which he brings back to his people." (Karen Armstrong A Short History of Myth, 2005)

So what do New York films (where the city takes a role akin to a character in the film itself) and Christmas films (at least partly set during Christmas) have in common? Well firstly a certain type of music is a good indication - generally Frank Sinatra or Louis Armstrong. When Harry Met Sally begins with Louis, as does Serendipity; What Women Want is saturated with Frank Sinatra, as is Surviving Christmas.

Generally speaking, the film will show extravagant lifestyles with lots of money being spent. This is often bound into the idea of America as a 'land of opportunity'. Take The Terminal, where Tom Hanks (as Victor Novorski from Krakozia) proves himself with his skills and takes a job as a contractor.

It also helps if there's a love interest of some sort running throughout. Home Alone I and II are the only films that I can recall that defy the pattern. Different kind of love at stake there...

Snow is a good sign, and features prominently - often in conjunction with pictures of ice-skating - in most of the films. A certain type of man may be found, perhaps best embodied in the example of Frank Sinatra. Often, though by no means always, the female lead is an embodiment of this Anne Michaels passage:

"But sometimes the world disrobes, slips its dress off a shoulder,stops time for a beat. If we look up at that moment, it's not due toany ability of ours to pierce the darkness, it's the world's briefbestowal. The catastrophe of grace." (Fugitive Pieces)

I guess that applies to Claire Forlani alone (in Meet Joe Black). Night is also a big player in NY films. Note how Frank's Strangers in the Night is a constant feature in New York films. It even turns up in Kubrick's sort-of-New-York film Eyes Wide Shut.

The following list of films is in chronological order, with comments here and there:

It's a Wonderful Life (1946) is probably the ur-Christmas film,and went on to be remade as The Family Man with Nicholas Cage, surely a contender for the ultimate Xmas/NY film. When Harry Met Sally(1989) ends during the Christmas 'season', with Meg finally getting together with Mr Sadness in the first seconds of the new year. Home Alone I (1990), as I said, is slightly out of place, but Christmas plays a central role. The fact that 'everything turns out well' is another generally vital feature of Xmas films. But, remember Emma Thompson's sadness in Love Actually, Britain's answer to the NY/Xmasfilm...

Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990) is set in New York, and even has the Gremlins sing a memorable rendition of Frank's New York, New York half-way through. Home Alone II (1992) builds on the success of the original, set in the splendour of a hotel. Sleepless in Seattle (1993) pairs Tom and Meg during the Christmas period. Leon: the Professional (1993) is set in New York, but without the Christmas. Miracle on 34th Street (1997) is a remake of an earlier film. The idea of the 'Christmas miracle' is one particularly cherished by thegenre...

You've Got Mail (1998) returns to the classic combination of Tom and Meg in an update of the usual romance. Great Expectations (1999) once again doesn't feature christmas. Similarly with Meet Joe Black (1999), but the final birthday party for Anthony Hopkins is a Christmas of sorts. Shares many of the main characteristics. Eyes Wide Shut (1999) an oddity within the genre. Bringing Out the Dead (1999) set in NY. Likewise Finding Forrester (2000) with Sean Conneryand Anna Paquin.

The Family Man (2000) with Nicholas Cage is a classic example of the NY/Xmas film. No Sinatra or Armstrong, but a story of a man who needsto 'rediscover' the meaning of Christmas in order to restore some meaning in his life. Modern heroes...

Mel Gibson stars in What Women Want (2000), replete with innuendo and whose soundtrack bursts with Frank et al. A portrait of a "man's man". Kate & Leopold (2001) returns to New York with a time shift. Vanilla Sky (2001) is set in NY. Serendipity (2001) shares the topspot with Family Man, an classic tale of lost loves. Beginning and ending with Louis Armstrong, snow is all around along with the required images of Central Park etc. Use of coldness as a catalyst for romance - often why snow is used in such films.

A.I.: Artificial Intelligence (2001) set in a 'fallen' NY. Autumn inNew York (2001) sees Richard Gere cast in his Pretty Woman guise andwith the fragile Winona Ryder as his love interest. Another good example of a good synthesis of all the key elements. Slight twist to the tale at end.

Coyote Ugly (2001) is just an NY film, slightly out of character. The 25th Hour (2002) as the first 'post 9-11' film is a brooding portrait of the city, and certainly outside the usual type. Anna Paquin proves herself again in this film. Catch Me If You Can (2002) has a NY feel throughout, though doesn't play that long in town. Maid in Manhattan (2002) has the love and the location. Lacking snow and christmas. Panic Room (2002); Phone Booth (2002); Spider-Man (2002); Mr. Deeds(2002); Uptown Girls (2003); Down with Love (2003).

How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days (2003) isn't strictly speaking a Christmas film, but the idea of "frost yourself" lends itself well to the idea. Spider-Man 2 (2004). The Terminal (2004) portrays the 'nice' America: that of Starbucks, Borders, as well as the suggestion that there's a Catherine Zeta Jones around every New York corner. The final release, when Victor gets to "go New York City", is set up almost as a return to the promised land; this is tactfully played against Victor's deep loyalty to the fictional 'Krakozia'.

Melinda and Melinda (2004); 13 Going on 30 (2004); Surviving Christmas(2004) with Ben Affleck as the bored executive trying to find meaning in his life by hiring a family to resurrect feelings of Christmas spirit. Happily-ever-after of course. Hitch (2005) is the most recent example of the New York movie, though without the Christmas.

I want to suggest that many of these presentations of "moonlight and music and love and romance" (Let's Face the Music and Dance) form a mythology of sorts. That of the search for meaning. That of the hero.