"A Midnight Clear"

There is a wonderful movie that gets little attention this time of the year. It is titled “A Midnight Clear.” Based on the 1914 Christmas truce between German and Allied troops, it is a tragic tale of War II. Directed by boy wonder Keith Gordon, this is not what you’ll expect.

There is nothing as touching as soldiers hurling snowballs instead of grenades at each other. I own this on DVD. It is outstanding, and virtually ignored. It’s a small movie from the 1990’s that is totally disregarded. I don’t know that Keith Gordon [of “Christine” fame] has ever done anything better. He couldn’t have done better the first time out of the box. I am endlessly impressed with his regard for the human experience.

Reviews on the Internet Movie Data Base [IMDB] slag this movie as a pacifistic number. They cite War II movies as superior, especially “Castle Keep”, a nihilistic wipe-out that stars Burt Lancaster.

Okay, I’ll go for “The Guns of Navarone”. “The Longest Day” is pretty good, too. We won the war. There is no arguing with history. "A Bridge Too Far" chronicles the greatest airborne operation ever attempted. Wartime legends of the greatest generation abound.

“A Midnight Clear” is a great Christmas parable about peace. It may be fiction, and ends badly, but there is a message of humanity that flows throughout. This is a Christmas keeper.