With Thanksgiving behind us and now in December there is no argument that it’s the holiday season! Now comes the urge to watch your favorite holiday classics that make you feel all warm and fuzzy on your own or with your friends and or family.
With that in mind, I am back with my personal “must-watch” holiday movies. Please keep in mind that this list is really meant to celebrate the season and serve as a guide in case you need a holiday movie to watch. I know there are a lot more movies that I’ll watch that don’t make my top ten, but that doesn’t mean they can’t make yours! Also, these aren’t ranked from one to ten, just in a list. So here we go!
BATMAN RETURNS (MAX)
“Santa Claus? ‘Fraid not… I’m just a poor shmo, got lucky. And sue me… if I wanna give some back.”
The entire beginning and plot of Tim Burton’s “Batman Returns” kicks off with a tree-lighting ceremony in Gotham City. Not to mention we witness Santa getting beat up by goons before Batman is called upon to save the day. This was the first Batman film I ever remember seeing when I was a child, leading to my love for DC. So every winter this holiday season often reminds me to revisit my favorite Batman film.
THE MUPPET CHRISTMAS CAROL (Disney+)
If you know me, you know how much I love the Muppets. Which then makes the 1992 feature film “The Muppet Christmas Carol”, a must-watch for me. This film had no business being as good as it is. Besides our favorite classic Muppets like Kermit, Gonzo, Fozzie, and Ms. Piggy, the key to the film was finding the right Ebenezer Scrooge. Oh boy did they ever, with Michael Caine delivering a phenomenal performance with Muppets as co-stars. It’s my favorite adaptation of Charles Dickens’ classic Christmas story.
THE HARRY POTTER FRANCHISE (MAX / Peacock)
This encompasses all eight films together. While I won’t make the argument that these should be considered traditional holiday movies, they do include a lot of key moments throughout the films that take place during Christmas time. But for me in particular, their inclusion on this list comes from years of conditioning by networks that play Harry Potter marathons during the holidays, and now it’s a tradition for me. For a few years, I even did a 24-hour marathon during the holidays where I watched all the films in one sweep.
KRAMPUS (MAX)
Michael Dougherty knows how to make those holiday classics. For Halloween he served up “Trick ‘r Treat”, and keeping it spooky for Christmas he directed “Krampus”, showcasing what happens when a dysfunctional family going through the motions of Christmas make a boy lose his festive spirit, unleashing the demon, Krampus. It’s got some great scares and some terrifying Christmas creatures that may stick with you. Simple storytelling and some names you’ll recognize like Adam Scott, Toni Collette, and David Koechner to name a few.
JINGLE ALL THE WAY (Hulu)
Who would have ever thought that an Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sinbad holiday comedy would have worked, and become such a classic? Well, it did. The 1996 film follows a family man named Howard who is desperately trying to get his son a Turbo Man doll for Christmas. The problem? It is the hottest toy of the year and he has waited until the last minute to try and buy one. Myron, a mail man is also after one, making for a hilarious adventure. In this era of shopping “Jingle All The Way” also serves as a nostalgic trip down memory lane of a more turbulent, but fun, holiday shopping season where you had to go out and buy your gifts.
DIE HARD (Hulu)
Is “Die Hard” a Christmas movie? Or Not? Probably the film that has conjured the biggest debate over the years. It’s on my list, so you can do the math on where I stand on the debate. The film’s plot centers around a group of terrorists taking people hostage during a Christmas party, there, simple. My inclusion of this film on my list is a lot more personal. There were a few years when I was on my own for Christmas. Luckily one of my good friends would invite me over to celebrate with his family and his tradition was to watch “Die Hard” and of course, it stuck.
HOW THE GRINCH STOLE CHRISTMAS (Not Currently Available On Streaming Services)
One of my top holiday movies as I know in my heart that there will be no actor who will ever be able to surpass Jim Carrey’s Grinch. Carrey along with director Ron Howard took an already beloved Dr. Seuss classic book and animated film and elevated it with a fantastic movie that also now become a winter tradition at Universal theme parks. It’s a shame we don’t see Carrey as much anymore unless it’s in Sonic.
FRIDAY AFTER NEXT (Tubi)
A California Christmas Classic. This was the third film in the “Friday” franchise with a holiday theme. Craig and Day-Day (Ice Cube & Mike Epps) are back in the hood and it’s Christmas time! Except in this story, Santa Claus is stealing presents and rent money! Katt Williams as Money Mike and Terry Crews as Damon is hilarious. Shoutout to the late John Witherspoon who was one of the best characters in the franchise.
HOME ALONE 1 & 2 (Disney+)
One of my favorite scenes in “Home Alone” that always boosts my mood is with all of the cutouts and mannequins “Rocking Around the Christmas Tree”, as Macaulay Culkin’s Kevin rocks out himself moving them about. It’s such a fun movie to watch as an adult as you can poke fun at how much money Kevin’s dad must make and how much the groceries cost Kevin. I love John Candy’s small role in the film, which always brings a smile to my face.
THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS (Disney+)
I’ll start with the cliché “this one is one of my favorites growing up” because it was. I’ll be honest I almost left it off of this list because over the years I feel that it has been so over-showcased probably because it can be shown during two holidays. It’s gotten to the point where it is almost annoying. But despite that, I still watch it once or twice during the holiday season and have a good time singing the songs.
SOME THOUGHTS ON HOLIDAY MOVIES
Interestingly enough I tried to think of more recent holiday films that I have added to my lists as of late and to be honest the only one I can think of that I would consider adding is “Violent Night”. Other than that I do feel that a lot of recent holiday movies are not very memorable, yes that includes you “Red One”.
Whatever your top holiday movies are, I hope that you enjoy them with your friends and or families. Even if its “Terrifier 3”.
