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Too much of everything

Good movie but grossly overrated

Tells a fascinating and unsettling true story, and does so well, without pretending to have all the answers.

A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

Joyeux Noel is a film that beautifully balances the horrors of war with the spirit of Christmas. What makes this heart-warming tale even more fascinating is that it is based on actual events during the first World War. It is well-made, well-acted and well-executed. I'm glad I got to see this film.

I fell in love with this unique piece of art, it is really touching, humane, artistic, ethical, aesthetical and entertaining. it doesn't just immortalize the true and honored story of "The Christmas Truce" of 1914 during the World War I, but gives a lesson about humanity and how pure morals could be spoilt by the war machine and by the widespread of ignorant hatred, I loved how the first scene resembled three school children from France, England and Germany all repeating a memorized speech of hatred against the other nations then the film ended with three scenes of the three supposedly confronting armies rejecting hatred and returning to their regular state of humanity. P.S. I liked that the commander of the German troops was a Jew that's married to a French woman, and I liked that everyone spoke his own language, it affirmed the message of accepting people's diversity.

Based on the Christmas truce of 1914, this is an excellent, thought- provoking and often very moving film with a powerful message of humanity. Contrary to the propaganda at the time and, in some cases (rather worryingly), more recently, the First World War was not fought for the sake of freedom. It was fought for the sake of the vaulting ambition of imperialists on both sides. There was not a great difference between fighting for Liberty, Equality, Fraternity / King and Country or Kaiser and the Fatherland, something which is illustrated very effectively throughout the film. As in reality, the British, French and German political and military leaders in their ivory towers came down very hard on their subordinates when they learned of the truce. There is one rather unbelievable development but the film is otherwise very well written and directed by Christian Carion. This is the first French film that I have seen but only about a third of it was actually in French with the remainder being in English or German. It was a co-production with Britain, Germany, Belgium and Romania, which is rather appropriate given the film's positive attitude towards international cooperation.Daniel Brühl, one of the few actors in the film with whom I was already familiar, gives the best performance as the German Lieutenant Horstmayer. The commander of the German 93rd Infantry Regiment may be a bit of a slow-burner compared to some of the other characters but he eventually develops into the most interesting character in the film. Horstmayer initially seems to be the stereotypical German military marionette. However, he is shown to be a good and decent man when he agrees to the Christmas Eve ceasefire with the Scots and the French. Although he is Jewish, he is deeply moved by the impromptu Christian service held in No Man's Land and involving soldiers from all three nationalities. He is initially contemptuous of the tenor turned private Nikolaus Sprink, played quite well by Benno Fürmann, but he warms to him after the truce. Horstmayer often speaks lovingly of his wife of two years, something to which the Scottish and French can relate, and in a poignant moment it is revealed that she is French.Guillaume Canet is likewise excellent as Horstmayer's French counterpart Lieutenant Camille René Audebert. In his first scene, he is as apprehensive as his men prior to a major assault on the German trenches, becoming physically sick as he has been through it before and knows just what to expect. However, this is not the only thing that he is worried about as his wife is living in Lens in the occupied part of France and he has not had contact with her in months. She was heavily pregnant when they last spoke and he does not even know whether she has given birth to a boy or a girl. Audebert has a nice relationship with his aide-de-comp Private Ponchel, who starts out as a comic relief character but has one of the most moving scenes in the film when he describes his daily ritual of 10 o'clock coffee with his beloved mother. Danny Boon excels as Ponchel, displaying a flair for both drama and comedy. During the truce, Audebert and Horstmayer seem to bond more than any of the other soldiers and it is suggested that the two would have been friends if they had met before the war. Carion announced recently that is thinking of a sequel focussing on the two of them after the war and I really hope that he does make it as it is an excellent idea. There are so many things that could be explored, not least the discrimination that Horstmayer would face as a Jew once the Nazis rose to power.Canet's then wife Diane Kruger has the only substantial role of any woman in the film as Sprink's fiancée and fellow opera star Anna Sørensen from neutral Denmark. While Kruger is a wonderful actress, I found it incredibly hard to believe that a woman would have been allowed into the trenches under any circumstances in 1914. She does have a pass from Kaiser Wilhelm II but this is merely a plot device designed to make it seem plausible. Carion was essentially trying to shoehorn a woman into the plot so that it would not be entirely male dominated but it does not work at all as it just rings false. I would have preferred it if they had kept the exploration of the pain of separation from loved ones more subtle, as in the examples that I mentioned earlier. The film also has strong performances from Gary Lewis as the Scottish priest Father Palmer, Steven Roberston as Jonathan, Alex Ferns as Lt. Gordon, Bernard Le Coq as the French general (whose identity I correctly guessed), Ian Richardson as the jingoistic, racist Bishop and Thomas Schmauser as the German heir apparent Crown Prince Wilhelm, the only historical character in the film.Overall, this is an excellent anti-war film which illustrates that people are basically the same in spite of national borders and different languages. In that sense, it is surprisingly upbeat and perhaps even a little life affirming. For the season that's in it and given the subject matter, I feel that it is appropriate to wish a Joyeux Noël, Frohe Weihnachten and Merry Christmas to everyone who celebrates it and peace and goodwill to everyone else.

This is The Best Christmas Movie to watch on Christmas/Eve. Even better for Christmas than 'It's A Wonderful Life.' It displays the true Spirit of Christmas that the soldiers experienced, ending at the foot of the cross with all its meaning. The Christmas truce actually happened on many fronts in WWI, but it was mainly to bury their dead. The screenplay is a compilation of many stories. In real life there was a cat that went between both sides, but when it turned up with a new collar, it was shot by the other side for spying (typical SNAFU with officers following the letter of the absurd). As always there is just plain stupidity in killing each other which the movie exemplifies along with the contrast between basic goodwill, moral duty and institutionalized hatred.