I recorded this movie from a TV broadcast and before watching it heard from a few people how much they enjoyed it. When I watched it I felt that it must have been recorded live because it was quite a mess on the screen due to unusual interferences during the recording. Pass the frustration of the spoil we managed to see it and all of the 5 of us enjoyed it tremendously. I'm glad that there were notes on IMDb about the story versus the history. Yes it was a little too much to think it may have been true. It's one thing to be inspired by an event but it's another to compare the two if too much liberty has been taken with the inspiration. So one should not loose touch with the reality of war. Although I'm prepare to believe that some extraordinary events took place during this tragic period, I feel it would not have been to the scale portrayed in the film. But it is a film not a documentary and I think it told the story very well, with humour, feelings and class. For the entertainment, from me: Tres chouette! (and here for those who wonder about "chouette", originally I believe it's the noun that describe an owl in French, but it's also a light way to describe something good, nice etc... and the "hibou" it's male counterpart, but the same bird in English, is usually associated with ugliness!) Unlike a comment I read, I appreciated the willingness of the German officer to throw this word in.
Review of Joyeux Noel
