A Christmas Eve Chase That Won't Quit: Un soir de réveillon

Is it worth your time?

Honestly, if you have a soft spot for old French comedies that move at a frantic pace, you’ll probably get a kick out of Un soir de réveillon. It’s light, it’s silly, and it doesn’t ask much of you. If you need your movies to be serious or grounded, though, you’ll hate the constant door-slamming and the sheer exhaustion of watching this guy chase someone for an hour.

It’s a holiday movie, but not in the way you’re thinking. There isn’t a warm fireplace in sight, really. It’s all about the chaotic energy of Paris on Christmas Eve.

The chase

The whole premise is built on this one guy just refusing to stop. He’s convinced this innocent girl is part of the party scene, and he spends the entire film just hounding her. It’s kind of funny in that old-school way, but watching it today, you just want to grab him by the shoulders and tell him to go home and get some sleep.

The cast is actually pretty great, though. Arletty is in this, and she brings that specific kind of cool, effortless energy that makes even the weaker scenes feel like they have a pulse. She’s definitely the one holding everything together when the plot starts to feel a bit thin.

Cinematic perspective: Exploring the visual vocabulary of Un soir de réveillon (1933) through its definitive frames.

Odd little moments

There’s this one sequence in a hallway where the lighting is so weirdly dramatic it makes the whole thing feel like a stage play that forgot to close the curtain. It lingers for a beat too long, and you can tell the actors aren't quite sure where to look. It’s endearing, though. It’s not polished, but it’s definitely alive.

It reminds me a bit of the frantic energy you find in Le tourbillon de Paris, where the world just feels like it's spinning way too fast for the people living in it. You get that same sense of vertigo here, just with more party streamers.

Final thoughts

Is it a masterpiece? No. Is it the kind of movie you put on while you’re doing something else, only to find yourself stopping to watch the screen because someone is doing something completely ridiculous? Yes. 🎄

Sometimes the film feels like it’s about to fall apart entirely, but it never quite does. It just keeps stumbling forward until the sun comes up. That’s probably the best way to describe a Christmas Eve party anyway, right?

• The outfits are genuinely wild.
• The pacing is basically a sugar rush that hits a wall.
• The ending is exactly as predictable as you’d hope.

It’s not trying to be The Virtuous Model, and that’s a good thing. It knows it's a bit of a mess, and it’s okay with that. 🍷