in low-budget westerns, it was an odd choice for Republic to take on a "screwball comedy". Many of the stars had to be borrowed from other studios, including Schildkraut, a legendary silent film star. Principal photography for the production ran from February 1 to mid-March 1945. Reception The unnamed critic for The New York Times gave The Cheaters a scathing review: Republic wasn't kidding when it titled the vapid little film which it delivered yesterday to the Gotham "The Cheaters." It's a swindle, all right. ... the whole thing is trashy—just a compound of witless platitudes. And several good actors are wasted in it. In a later review, film critic and historian Leonard Maltin was much more charitable: "Excellent cast in enjoyable tale of wealthy family of snobs humanized by downtrodden actor they invite for Christmas dinner." Home media The Cheaters has been released on DVD. See also List of Christmas films References Notes Citations Bibliography Connelly, Mark. Christmas at the Movies: Images of Christmas in American, British and European Cinema. London: I.B. Tauris, 2000. . External links 1945 films 1940s Christmas comedy films 1940s screwball comedy films American black-and-white films American Christmas comedy films American screwball comedy films Films directed by Joseph Kane Films scored by Walter Scharf Films set in New York City Republic Pictures films 1945 comedy films 1940s English-language films 1940s American films