If you find yourself sitting on your hands to prevent putting the Christmas tree up early, then perhaps these holiday movies can help to satiate your seasonal spirit in the meantime. There’s nothing better than curling up with a rum hot chocolate, a pile of blankets, and your beloved friends, family or pet to get all weepy at these fabulous Christmas classics…
Home Alone
The 90’s Macaulay Culkin classic sees a child left home alone by accident at Christmas. Cue hilarity as Kevin McCallister has to face his fear of the basement, torture a couple of burglars, and learn how to use coupons. Iconic scenes, excellent performances, and a killer seasonal soundtrack to boot. The only baffling thing left is to work out what the hell Kevin’s dad does for a job to afford a house like that along with all expenses paid vacations for his extended family. Thoughts most definitely welcome!
Carol
If you are looking from a heteronormative break from the likes of Love Actually, then Carol could be the Christmas sit in you crave. A visually gorgeous adaptation of the Patricia Highsmith novel The Price of Salt, this story follows a love affair between Rooney Mara and Cate Blanchett with plenty of festive scenes filmed in a department store in the run-up to the big day.
Santa Claus The Movie
A cult childhood classic, this original Santa Claus story sees the likes of John Lithgow and Dudley Moore hash it out as Christmas is put in danger of a corporate takeover from a dodgy toy company. David Huddleston makes one of the most convincing Santa’s we have ever seen on screen and there are lots of lovely eighties vibes to lap up.
Gremlins
Don’t feed them after midnight. While Gremlins doesn’t exactly scream seasonal slush, we love it for its hilarious horror-comedy vibes that provide a dark relief to all that Christmas sentimentality. A cute little creature is taken home as a gift but quickly gives birth to raging naughty monsters after the owner ignores the mystical shopkeeper's instructions. As you can expect chaos reigns.
Elf
Will Farrell ups the seasonal laugher stakes as a grown orphan raised by elves in the north pole before being thrust back into a tense family dynamic in the modern world. Rippled with impeccable one-liners, loaded with holiday cheer, and with a few questionable storylines easy to overlook, Elf is without a doubt one of the most beloved holiday movies of all time.
Scrooged
Bill Murray as Scrooge is an absolute mood we are loving. This Dickens classic has been heaved into the 20th century and showcases scrooge as a mean-spirited TV executive. Of course, we all know the story, but it's delivered with great gusto and plenty of craziness to see us through to the much-lauded and applauded character arc endings.
It’s a Wonderful Life
A tearjerker favourite from the golden era. Who doesn’t love a good cry in the runup to Christmas, particularly when there’s wine involved? Jimmy Stewart plays a man on the verge of committing suicide when he is visited by an angel who shows him the true meaning of life. Pack plenty of tissues for this one.
Die Hard
Do we really need to say more?
Which holiday films are you loving this year? Share your faves in the comments and let’s kickstart this season of cinematic goodwill.
TOP
