Every Holiday Season, our family has the same sort of routine. We don’t go crazy rushing into the holidays. The last couple of months of the year, can be quite busy and exhausting as it is. We are all too happy to slowly meander our way into that chaos.
When Thanksgiving rolls around though, it’s on like Donkey Kong! And it all starts with those ever so festive Christmas movies we love to watch every year.
From favorite classics we gathered around the tv to watch, as a children, to heartwarming romcoms that have been recently released, there are more than enough Christmas movies to keep us entertained well into the New Year.
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The Old, The New, And The Outrageous
A lot of these movies can be watched for free on cable, Netflix, or other streaming app. Most are family friendly films that are known for spreading Christmas cheer, and will make even the biggest scrooge, smile.
Then, there are a handful of movies listed for when the kiddos go to bed, and mom and dad are up late wrapping gifts. Those movies fall into the Christmas Horror genre, or are just flat out hilarious films that involve a bit of material more appropriate for mature audiences.
(Just try not to wake the kids up with all of the laughter!)
Whatever your holiday routine involves, one thing is for certain. Sprinkling a bunch of these gems into the mix, will keep the Christmas spirit in your home, all season long.
Family Friendly Classics
1. It’s A Wonderful Life (1946)
Description: After George Bailey wishes he had never been born, an angel is sent to earth to make George’s wish come true. George starts to realize how many lives he has changed and impacted, and how they would be different if he was never there.
2. Rudolph The Red-nosed Reindeer (1964 ABC Tv Special)
Description: Young Rudolph has been born into a tradition of becoming one of Santa’s reindeer as he becomes older. The only problem?
Anytime Rudolph gets excited, shy, or even sad, his nose will glow a bright red. He is an outcast, just like Hermey the elf, who can’t seem to build the right kind of toy.
When they find each other along the road to “The Land Of Misfit Toys”, they not only discover their own strengths and value, but they discover a friendship that goes a long way to saving Christmas, at the end of the day. A timeless classic!
3. A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965)
Description: It’s bound to be a white Christmas with this classic! For years, this timeless special has the distinction of warming hearts young and old.
Whether you are seeing this holiday masterpiece for the first time or the first time in years, you have doubtless heard of that ol’ blockhead Charlie Brown and the little tree that could.
As the gang tries to put on a holiday play, kids big and small will end up with a pretty decent dance party, a lesson for the ages and some good old-fashioned fun.
As for the tree — it’s amazing what a little love can do.
4. Frosty The Snowman (1969 ABC Tv Special)
Description: A failed magician with a small bit of talent and a very mean view of the world. A mischievous, yet good hearted magic rabbit that comes with a magic hat. A group of children building a snowman, and a gust of wind. Happy Birthday, Frosty!
This classic Christmas movie teaches faith, friendship, kindness, and of course, magic. A timeless movie the whole family will love!
5. A Christmas Story (1983)
Description: “You’ll shoot your eye out!” At least that’s what little Ralphie Parker is told when he asks his parents for a Red Ryder Carbine-Action 200-Shot Air Rifle for Christmas.
Hilarity ensues as Ralphie, along with his friend, Flick, try to convince Ralphie’s parents and even his teacher, Miss Shields, that a Red Ryder BB gun is the perfect Christmas gift for a nine-year-old boy.
I grew up watching this movie every year and my family still catches it when it airs. That’s because it airs all day on Christmas day, AND it is charming, funny, and sweet every time you watch. Love it!
6. Die Hard (1988)
Description: Bruce Willis, Alan Rickman, Bonnie Bedelia. An NYC cop visiting his estranged wife in LA must save her and the rest of her company from terrorists who have taken over her office building.
This is such an action packed guy movie, that they can even get behind the mushy love story bit. This is on the list, mainly because it comes highly recommended by my husband. It is one of those traditions. And hey…who doesn’t love Bruce Willis?
7. Scrooged (1988)
Description: Frank Cross is a mean TV executive with perfect qualities of a modern-day Scrooge. Before the night is over, he’ll be visited by three ghosts from the past, present and future.
This is a funny, heart warming classic that’s always a fun addition to your Christmas Movie Marathon!
8. National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989)
Description: The Griswolds spend the holiday in a garish way, especially when a country cousin pulls up in an RV.
We start our Christmas movie marathon off with this one. Every. Single. Year. And believe me, I don’t say that sarcastically. I mean it. If no other movie will get you into the holiday spirit, this one has to.
9. Edward Scissorhands (1990)
Description: Johnny Depp plays Edward, an irresistibly charming creation with razor-sharp metal hands and a heart of gold.
Edward’s lonely life in a Gothic castle changes forever when he meets a kindhearted Avon Lady (Dianne Wiest), who takes him to a pastel paradise known as Suburbia.
Thanks to his fantastic talents, Edward becomes a neighborhood sensation, but when he falls in love with Kim (Winona Ryder), he must go to extraordinary lengths to protect her.
Johnny Depp and Winona Ryder are beautiful in this 90’s classic of teenage love under really unusual and against-all-odds circumstances. This is one of my all time favorites!
10. Home Alone (1990)
Description: The original comedy classic! Little Kevin gets left behind when the family leaves for an overseas Christmas vacation, and finds himself outwitting a pair of bumbling burglars in this slapstick riot!
Love, Love this movie! We giggle every single time, no matter how many times we have watched it.
11. A Miracle On 34th Street (1994)
Description: Six-year-old Susan Walker has doubts about childhood’s most enduring miracle…Santa Claus; then Susan meets Kriss Kringle, a department store Santa who believes he’s the genuine article.
12. While You Were Sleeping (1995)
Description: Lucy, a lonely subway worker, becomes smitten with a handsome stranger. But when she saves his life after he’s been mugged and fallen into a coma, his hilariously offbeat family mistakes her for his fiancé! Soon, the mix ups escalate as Lucy fabricates a life between herself and a man she’s never met!
13. The Preacher’s Wife (1996)
Description: Remake of the Cary Grant classic where an angel comes to earth a few days before Christmas to help a disillusioned reverend regain control of his life.
Whitney Houston and Denzel Washington are the stars in this movie and they do a beautiful job of creating a bit of Christmas Chemistry.
14. How The Grinch Stole Christmas – Dr. Seuss (2000)
Description: Jim Carrey brings Dr. Suess’ holiday-hating heel to gloriously sinister life in this effects-filled adaptation of the classic story.
We love this version as well as the animated version. When you’re feeling a bit under pressure through the holidays, look to this one for a bit of cheering up!
15. Elf (2003)
Description: As a baby, Buddy crawls into Santa’s toy bag and is whisked off to the North Pole, where he is raised as an elf. A misfit who grows to be three times the size of his elf family, Buddy heads to his birthplace to seek out his roots.
16. The Polar Express (2004)
Description: A doubting young boy takes an extraordinary train ride to the North Pole that shows him that the wonder of life never fades for those who believe.
17. The Family Stone (2005)
Description: The outgoing and eccentric Stone family unites in common cause when their favorite son brings home his uptight and reserved girlfriend to meet the family at Christmas.
18. Merry Christmas (2005)
Description: During WWI, French, Scottish and German troops hold their own cease fire on Christmas Eve and do the unthinkable of coming out of their trenches, leaving their rifles behind to shake hands, have a drink and even play soccer with the enemy.
I love the sentiment behind this flick and when you realize it’s based off of true events, it’s a bit hard not to reflect upon what is most important in life.
19. The Holiday (2006)
Description: Two women meet on the internet and swap houses for the Christmas holiday discovering that a change of address really can change your life.
I love every actor and actress in this movie and I absolutely love the story. It’s a great Rom-Com to add a bit of holiday cheer to your life.
“Baby, It’s Cold Outside…..We need warm blankets for movie watching.”
Check out these fuzzy options!
20. Last Holiday (2006)
Description: Queen Latifah stars in this comedy as a woman who spends her substantial life savings on a whirlwind European vacation when she learns she has only weeks to live. Timothy Hutton and LL Cool J costar.
Yet another wonderful movie to remind you of the most important thigs in life. And Queen Latifa is perfect for conveying just those things.
21. This Christmas (2007)
Description: This year, Christmas with the Whitfields promises to be one they will never forget. All the siblings have come home for the first time in years and they’ve brought plenty of baggage with them.
As the Christmas tree is trimmed and the lights are hung, secrets are revealed and family bonds are tested. As their lives converge, they join together and help each other discover the true meaning of family.
22. Four Christmases (2008)
Description: When their plans for a holiday getaway fall apart, a couple must spend Christmas Day trudging to a quartet of family get-togethers.
23. Arthur Christmas (2011)
Description: How CAN Santa deliver billions of presents to the whole world in just one night?
With an army of one million combat-style Field Elves and a vast, state-of-the-art control center under the ice of the North Pole! So how could this incredible operation have MISSED one child?!
24. Almost Christmas (2016)
Description: A new comedy from David E. Talbert that tells the festive story of a beloved patriarch who asks his family for one gift this holiday season: to get along.
25. The Christmas Chronicles (2018)
Description: After accidentally crashing Santa’s sleigh, a brother and sister pull an all-nighter to save Christmas with a savvy, straight-talking St. Nick.
26. Little Women (2019)
Description: Four sisters come of age in America during the aftermath of the Civil War.
This timeless classic follows Jo as she has a life in New York as a writer, Amy as she studies painting in Paris, Meg as she navigates life married to a schoolteacher, and finally… Beth who develops an illness that ultimately brings the entire family together again.
27. Klaus (The Movie) – (2019)
Description: A selfish postman and a reclusive toymaker form an unlikely friendship, delivering joy to a cold, dark town that desperately needs it.
28. Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey (2020)
Description: Decades after his trusted apprentice betrayed him, a once-joyful toymaker finds new hope when his kind and curious granddaughter comes into his life.
29. 8 – Bit Christmas (2021)
Description: Set in 1980s Chicago, a 10-year-old boy goes on a quest to get the latest and greatest video game system for Christmas… A Nintendo.
This new holiday classic is a humorous, heartfelt look at the adventures of childhood starring Neil Patrick Harris, Winslow Fegley, June Diane Raphael, with David Cross and Steve Zahn.
This movie brings back fond memories of my childhood, indeed! Love it!
30. A Boy Called Christmas (2021)
Description: In this origin story of Father Christmas, an ordinary boy–with a loyal pet mouse and a reindeer at his side–sets out on an extraordinary adventure to find his father, who is on a quest to discover the fabled village of Elfhelm.
31. A Christmas Story (2022)
Description: From Warner Bros. Pictures and HBO Max comes the family comedy “A Christmas Story Christmas,” the long-awaited follow-up to the annual holiday favorite, “A Christmas Story,” starring Peter Billingsley.
32. Spirited (2022)
Description: A musical version of Charles Dickens’s story of a miserly misanthrope who is taken on a magical journey.
Is there anything that Ryan Reynolds is in, that doesn’t get you laughing? Yeah…Deadpool in another Christmas movie but a different story line that doesn’t involve Wham.
33. The Noel Diary (2022)
Description: Cleaning out his childhood home at Christmas, a novelist meets a woman searching for her birth mother. Will an old diary unlock their pasts — and hearts?
34. Christmas With You (2022)
Description: Seeking inspiration for a hit holiday song, a pop star grants a young fan’s Christmas wish to meet her — and finds a shot at true love along the way.
I love Aimee Garcia. Anything I’ve seen her in, she’s always portrayed a really wonderful and sweet person. I have not seen this movie, but I guarantee it will be as heart warming as the trailer leads us to believe it will be 🙂
35. The Holdovers (2023)
Description: A cranky history teacher at a remote prep school is forced to remain on campus over the holidays with a troubled student who has no place to go.
I am soo watching this one soon! Everything about it, says fun!
American Christmas Horror Movies
1. Gremlins (1984)
Description: A young man inadvertently breaks three important rules concerning his new pet and unleashes a horde of malevolently mischievous monsters on a small town.
Every year. This movie is a tradition. That’s all I have to say about that 🙂
2. Krampus (2015)
Description: When young Max turns his back on Christmas, his lack of festive spirit unleashes the wrath of Krampus, a demonic force of ancient evil intent on punishing non-believers.
3. A Christmas Horror Story (2015)
Description: Interwoven stories that take place on Christmas Eve, as told by one festive radio host: A family brings home more than a Christmas tree, a student documentary becomes a living nightmare, a Christmas spirit terrorizes, Santa slays evil.
Hey…not everyone wants the warm and fuzzy Hallmark moments every day of the season. Some of us need a bit of help through the stress. Take a break and enjoy this one!
4. Better Watch Out (2016)
Description: This holiday season, you may be home, but you’re not alone…
In this fresh and gleefully twisted spin on home-invasion horror, babysitter Ashley must defend her young charges when intruders break into the house one snowy night – or so she thinks.
5. Violent Night (2022)
Description: A team of mercenaries breaks into a mansion on Christmas Eve, but they are not ready for a surprise combatant: Santa Claus (David Harbour).
From the producers of John Wick. David Harbour is pretty kick a**. Yeah…this one makes it to the top of the Christmas Movie Bucket List, this year.
Christmas Laughs For Mature Audiences
1. Bad Santa (2003)
Description: Criminals Willie (Tony Cox) and Marcus (Billy Bob Thornton) disguise themselves as Santa Claus and his elf and travel across the country to major malls, using the good will people have toward Santa to rob the stores blind.
We laugh our tails off every time we watch this movie. It never gets old!
2. Office Christmas Party (2016)
Description: You’re invited to the most outrageous holiday party of the season. When the CEO decides to close her hard-partying brother’s branch, he and his fired up co-workers decide to throw an epic office party to land a VIP client and save everyone’s jobs.
3. A Bad Moms Christmas (2017)
Description: A Bad Moms Christmas follows three under-appreciated and over-burdened women as they rebel against the challenges and expectations of the Super Bowl for moms: Christmas.
And if creating a more perfect holiday for their families wasn’t hard enough, they have to do all of that while hosting and entertaining their own mothers.
I really love this movie and have seen it on more than one occasion. Mila Kunis, Kathryn Hahn, Kristen Bell, and Susan Sarandon are just a few of the actresses that have you laughing your tail off. Why? Because you can relate!
Final thoughts
Whether you are in the mood for that fuzzy family warmth, or you really want to see Santa kick some ass in a Christmas Horror flick, you will definitely find your own little fix somewhere in the list above!
Until Next Time, Friends…Enjoy!
