Favorite Christmas movies

[Stryker2011]

A Christmas story is the best hands down. There a few others but when it comes to be best look no further.

Indeed.

 

[choombaz]

I can't believe no one has mentioned Edward Scissorhands.

Tbh I had forgotten it was set at Christmas. They don’t really make much of it do they? Haven’t seen it in a long time.

My alternate Christmas viewing list:
Die Hard
Raiders of the Lost Ark (for some reason it became a perennial fav at Christmas)
2001 (I got this on vhs for christmas one year and it’s kind of stuck as well)
Gremlins
Trading Places
Most of the good Shane Black films esp Kiss Kiss Bang Bang
And someone else said All Though The House! Yes! Larry Drake as a homicidal Santa!!

 

[pixletwin]

The climax of the film is set at Christmas and the Soundtrack is very Christmasey! I mean, the plot of the movie is set as a myth for why it SNOWs.

 

[Prime Clone]

Not a movie, but... where has this been all my life!

 

[Dark_Knight_89]

Tbh I had forgotten it was set at Christmas. They don’t really make much of it do they? Haven’t seen it in a long time.

My alternate Christmas viewing list:
Die Hard
Raiders of the Lost Ark (for some reason it became a perennial fav at Christmas)
2001 (I got this on vhs for christmas one year and it’s kind of stuck as well)
Gremlins
Trading Places
Most of the good Shane Black films esp Kiss Kiss Bang Bang
And someone else said All Though The House! Yes! Larry Drake as a homicidal Santa!!

I find this interesting. The idea of our own movies that we consider "Christmas" movies not because of the story or setting, but because of the association we hold for that movie with Christmas time.

It could be that we first watched that movie at Christmas, or we received it on VHS/DVD/Blu Ray as a gift, or it is regularly aired on TV at Christmas time, or sometimes just because it is a "family" movie.

I went to a Christmas Music concert at the Royal Albert Hall in London in 2018, hosted by Mark Kermode (famous English movie critic). It included score from "Elf", "The Polar Express", "It's a Wonderful Life" etc. but also music from "E.T." because it was a "Christmas" movie to Mark Kermode due to his family watching it at Christmas.

In England, there are some movies which regularly get shown on BBC or ITV at Christmas time, and are often seen as "Christmas" movies;

• "Raiders of the Lost Ark" is still regularly aired on TV at Christmas
• "The Great Escape" is still regularly aired on TV at Christmas
• "The Wizard of Oz" is still regularly aired on TV at Christmas
• "Singin' in the Rain" is still regularly aired on TV at Christmas
• "Harry Potter" and "Star Wars" movies were regularly aired on TV at Christmas, although not as widely available any more due to the move to contract based Sky TV services, but these used to be regularly shown on free-to-air BBC and ITV channels

For me my favourite non-Christmas "Christmas" movies are;

• Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) - my favourite movie of all time, but also gets shown on TV at Christmas.
• Singin' in the Rain (1952) - gets shown on TV at Christmas, and is just an incredibly entertaining movie in itself.
• The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) - originally released in cinemas in December 2001 so will forever be associated with Christmas for me, I watched the movie in the cinema knowing absolutely nothing about the story and it is still the best cinematic experience of my life.
• Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999)
• Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones (2002)
• Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005)
• Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977)
• Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
• Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983) - applies to all six movies, Star Wars gets watched a lot at Christmas, it's closely associated with Christmas in my house.

My favourite actual "Christmas" movies are;

1. Die Hard (1988)
2. It's a Wonderful Life (1946)
3. The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992)
4. Home Alone (1990)
5. Batman Returns (1992)
6. Elf (2003)
7. The Bishop's Wife (1947)
8. A Christmas Carol (2009) - Disney animated version with Jim Carrey, extremely underrated
9. National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989)
10. The Polar Express (2004)
11. Christmas in Connecticut (1945)
12. Scrooged (1988)
13. Four Christmases (2008)
14. Jingle All the Way (1996)
15. Miracle on 34th Street (1947)

 

[Star What?]

No particular order for movies and shows.

Christmas Movies :

1 - A Christmas Carol (1951)
2 - Scrooged (1988)
3 - Disney's Christmas Carol (2009)
4 - Elf (2003)
5 - The Polar Express (2004)
6 - Home Alone (1990)
7 - The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992)
8 - Bad Santa (2003)
9 - Trading Places (1983)
10 - Edward Scissorhands (1990)


Christmas Shows :

1 - A Muppet Family Christmas (1987)
2 - A Chipmunk Christmas (1981)
3 - The Pink Panther in : A Pink Christmas (1978
4 - A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965)
5 - Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer (1964)
6 - How The Grinch Stole Christmas (1966)
7 - Frosty The Snowman (1969)
8 - Will Vinton's : A Claymation Christmas Celebration (1987)
9 - A Garfield Christmas
10 - Guardians Of The Galaxy Holiday Special (2022)

Still have to watch Miracle On 34th Street (1947), It's A Wonderful Life (1946) and A Christmas Story (1983). There are definitely more movies and shows I am missing, but getting old makes you forget things.

 

[pixletwin]

My "go-to" version of A Christmas Carol is the Jim Carrey animated one.... Not the most popular, for good reasons, but I feel the good outweighs the bad. I may edit my own version that cuts out the cringey theme park ride sequences.

 

[Star What?]

My "go-to" version of A Christmas Carol is the Jim Carrey animated one.... Not the most popular, for good reasons, but I feel the good outweighs the bad. I may edit my own version that cuts out the cringey theme park ride sequences.

Yes, I know exactly what you mean. It is now my go-to version as well. I really like Gary Oldman and Colin Firth as actors already and it is hit or miss with Jim Carrey for me, but I thought he did alright. Really enjoyed the type animation and music.

 

[Dark_Knight_89]

My "go-to" version of A Christmas Carol is the Jim Carrey animated one.... Not the most popular, for good reasons, but I feel the good outweighs the bad. I may edit my own version that cuts out the cringey theme park ride sequences.

I genuinely don't know what the reasons are though haha. I really don't know why it isn't as popular as it should be.

 

[Masao]

What about the Santa Clause?

 

[Zurdo95D]

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Looking at this now in retrospect, I find it kinda strange The Terminator is Darth Vader's father

 

[Masao]

It does explain a few things. In the movie The Villain, Arnold played a character named Handsome Stranger. He was named after his father who was never seen again.

Aahi am your faazer, Daath.

 

[Zurdo95D]

It does explain a few things. In the movie The Villain, Arnold played a character named Handsome Stranger. He was named after his father who was never seen again.

Aahi am your faazer, Daath.

LOL I also noticed when Howard is dressed as Turbo Man and chooses Jaime for the prize, he was going to say "I'm you father."

 

[zeiss]

Today I asked my 7 year old what his favorite Christmas movies are and he listed home alone and…Gremlins . Even at 7 he gets that gremlins is a Christmas movie.

As for me, I agree with most of the movies listed here (Christmas vacation, home alone, gremlins, Batman returns) but a newer movie that has become one of my favorites is 8-Bit Christmas. Takes place in the 80s and is about a kid trying to get an NES for Christmas. Really hits the nostalgic feels.

 

[Khev]

 

[Zurdo95D]

My list, in no particular order:

1. The Long Kiss Goodnight (one of my fav action movies too)
2. Jingle All The Way
3. Elf (2003)
4. A Charlie Brown Christmas
5. This Christmas (2007)
6. Bad Santa
7. How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (1966)

I'll add these too!

8. Shazam
9. Stepmom (1998)
10. Jack Frost (1998)
11. Marvel's Hawkeye
12. Star Wars A New Hope
13. Star Wars The Empire Strikes Back
14. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

 

[Sweet Rabbit]

Jingle All the Way is behind a paywall this year