Two days after Christmas, 1948, in a city that could be New York, a young woman prepares to get a life-altering haircut. She's a princess, a post-war refugee, from an Eastern European principality that no longer exists. And she's being forced by her guardians-- her nefarious aunt and uncle-- to marry an obscenely rich industrialist who's got something of a hair fetish. The man, it seems, is aroused only by her amazingly long, glorious hair. So to save herself, she decides to get it all cut off. But she doesn't count on falling in love with the handsome young barber who refuses, at first, to do her bidding. Nor does the barber count on becoming entranced by the strangest customer he's ever encountered. Even after the severely shorn former princess is beaten beyond recognition for her act of rebellion, the barber, a widower still grieving for his late wife, finds her irresistible. Add to the mix Misha, an angel from the Old Country whose specialty is New Year's Eve. Ultimately, "The Haircut" is a story that weaves whimsy with romance, plus more serious themes, as it underscores the timelessness and hope of the season in which it's set.
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