Discover a winter wonderland with this list that combines guilty-pleasure tropes with classic holiday fun.
Let’s be real – in a snowstorm of recycled Christmas movie plots, it can be challenging to find an original movie for your winter viewings. This feeling is shared. With Hallmark premiering twenty-eight new productions between November and December (on top of the hundreds already in their catalogue), everyone probably feels like they could write their own screenplay in under an hour.
Yet, sometimes, those formulas just work! Admittedly, we don’t need all the semi-conservative propaganda in the form of an independent woman leaving the big city for small-town life with a more traditional trade and husband. But it’s perfectly reasonable to crave a little cheesiness in your seasonal entertainment.
So don’t let the label of guilty pleasure get in your way!
Whether it’s an easy time of year to fall into tradition, or the stress of the season has you craving predictability, Christmas movie tropes exist for a reason. Let’s look at the most quintessential elements of creating contagious cheer.
Cozy House
If you can’t make it home for the holidays, a Christmas movie might be the next best thing. While large-scale holiday adventures can be exciting, nothing feels as comforting as a well-decorated set. How can you have family drama without sitting down to a meal at the dining room table? (The Family Stone). How can you defend your property without a property to defend? (Home Alone).
So much of the Christmas spirit rests on decor – crackling fires, twinkly lights, and a fresh tree. Of course, the real things that make these places so special are the people in them. And sparkly ornaments.
Your Christmas or Mine? delivers two very different Christmas homes. James’ stately British manor gives you a dose of the trad “Ralph Lauren” Christmas trend. Hayley’s smaller townhouse gives all the familiar chaos of too many people living under one roof. When a last-minute train mix-up sends them to their partner’s house instead of their own, they discover the pros and cons of each.
If you want adorable romance, hilarious extended-family members, and cozy countryside ambiance, this 2022 flick could be your next favorite thing.
IMDb: 6.4/10, Rotten Tomatoes: 63%
Where to Watch: Amazon Prime
Magic!
Some use magic as a word to describe the impossible plotlines of so many of our favorite holiday films. To those Santa Claus deniers, these movies seem silly and childish. But for us true Christmas fans, magic is another way of saying whimsy and fun.
If you can’t indulge in the ‘impossible’ during this season, when can you? It’s a time to trust in flying reindeer, talking snowmen, and holiday miracles.
For the true-believers or the skeptics, Fred Claus (2007) has something for everyone. Sure, it’s not the highest-brow entertainment on the market, but it will make you laugh, and it has all the heartfelt moments you need. Vince Vaughn as Fred, in between jobs, girlfriends, and goals in life, travels to the North Pole to visit his brother, Nick (Paul Giamatti). Instead of getting the loan he wants, he’s put to work as one of Santa’s Little Helpers.
It brings holiday spin to a classic opposite-siblings story, plus you have Ludacris as a high-strung elf DJ. What more could you want?
IMDb: 5.7/10, Rotten Tomatoes: 21%
Where to Watch: Amazon Prime
Self-Improvement
It really can’t be a Christmas movie unless one of the characters goes on a journey to become better. Think of the Grinch’s growing heart, or Scrooge’s ghostly lessons. The true magic is that everyone gets into the giving mood, abandoning their curmudgeonly ways. It’s way more satisfying to see a successful character arc if one has a deadline of December 25th.
And with New Year’s around the corner, it’s inspiring to see someone change themselves in a real way. So if you need inspiration for your list of resolutions, your new favorite genre should be holiday movies.
Last Christmas (yes – inspired by the Wham! hit) features Kate, a crowd-surfing woman forced to wear an elf uniform at work all year round. She’s often inconsiderate of others, electrocuting pet fish, waking up newborn babies, and outing her sister to her parents. When she meets Tom, who spends his spare time delivering gifts to a homeless shelter, she starts to consider a new way of thinking. As she finds ways to help others, she finds her own life improving.
And she doesn’t just do it to get the guy.
IMDb: 6.5/10, Rotten Tomatoes: 46%
Where to Watch: Netflix
Near Tragedy
A movie is only as interesting as the stakes are high. We have kidnapped hostages (Die Hard) and the possibility of an imperfect Christmas sans swimming pool (National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation). It’s all about how close characters can get to disaster without everything blowing up – or, in the aforementioned, only some things blowing up.
In real life, it’s a reflection of our desire to be told that things are going to be okay. Happiest Season is a great example of stakes being high and still being realistic. When Harper brings Abby home for Christmas, Abby discovers she is not out to her family. Hiding their relationship from the others takes a toll on them, causing them to rethink their priorities.
The climax of the film feels tragic, but the resolution brings everyone back into the holiday mood.
IMDb: 6.7/10, Rotten Tomatoes: 82%
Where to Watch: Hulu
Nostalgia
Some holiday movies are only enjoyable because of tradition. The ones that have aged poorly, but you’ve rewatched so many times that it just doesn’t feel like Christmas without a viewing. It’s not a time to let shame overwhelm you. In the same way you might eat a dozen cookies in one sitting, or spend a little too much money on a lavish gift, you’re allowed to ritualistically consume terrible media.
In the case of the Star Wars Holiday Special, nostalgia is the only redeeming factor. It was a cure for fans itching to know more about their favorite characters after the release of A New Hope. The TV film, however, spends much more time introducing bizarre new characters (Bea Arthur as a cantina bartender, Diahann Carroll as an erotic VR singer) and random gadgets than developing the already adored Luke, Leia, Han Solo, and Chewbacca.
Having never been rebroadcast or officially released for home video, the movie has become a time capsule of ’78 – disco musical numbers, shag carpet, and an obsession with futuristic technology.
IMDb: 2.2, Rotten Tomatoes: 25%
Where to Watch: Youtube
Song and Dance
It’s difficult to imagine a true silent night or a holiday season without Christmas music. It blesses our ears in every retail space on an endlessly looped playlist from November to December. While it might become irritating, you must admit, it instantly sets the tone.
For this reason, true Christmas showcases are starting to make a comeback (A Nonsense Christmas with Sabrina Carpenter), which could be attributed to Sofia Coppola’s semi-recent A Very Murray Christmas.
It follows Bill Murray snowed-in at the Carlyle Hotel on Christmas Eve, forced to cancel the taping of his Christmas special. Featuring a slew of celebrities as themselves or playing characters (George Clooney, Miley Cyrus, Jason Schwartzman, Chris Rock, Amy Poehler, and more), Murray performs several musical numbers, tells a few jokes, and helps an engaged couple overcome their wedding anxiety.
As with Coppola’s other films, the needle drops are a perfect combination of classic, “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)” performed by Maya Rudolph, and contemporary indie, Phoenix’s cover of “Alone on Christmas Day”.
IMDb: 5.5/10, Rotten Tomatoes: 68%
Where to Watch: Netflix
Unlikely Bonds
A favorite holiday movie trope is when two opposite people are brought together by the circumstances of the holiday (Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer). It’s a great reminder that no matter how different we appear, we’re all connected in some way. It’s a heartwarming twist on the self-improvement plot and is usually very comedic.
Saving the best (at least in the eyes of critics, award panels, and most moviegoers) for last, The Holdovers delicately tells the story of Angus Tully, a boarding school student abandoned by his parents during the winter break. He’s left with Mr. Hunham, his grouchy teacher, and Mary Lamb, the cafeteria manager.
Their group is an island of misfit toys, each outcast or hurting for one reason or another. The film is oftentimes hilarious, but easily switches into tenderly sweet.
IMDb: 8/10, Rotten Tomatoes: 97%
Where to Watch: STARZ+ on Apple TV
