By Sophia Gabriele, Y11
- It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)
Perhaps one of the greatest Christmas movies of all time – It’s a Wonderful Life tells the story of George Bailey (James Stewart), a man on the verge of committing suicide when he is rescued by a guardian angel who then proceeds to show him what life would look like for the people of his town had he never existed. This movie is deeply moving, and although has a rather dark story, highlights the importance of love, family, and being a good person.
- Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964)
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is the cartoon classic tale of how Rudolph and his bright red nose guide Santa’s sleigh through the stormy night on Christmas to deliver presents to all of the world’s children.
- A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965)
Tis’ the season in this heartwarming cartoon as Charlie Brown and his friends engage in holiday festivities.
- A Christmas Story (1983)
A Christmas Story revolves around Ralphie Parker (Peter Billingsley), as he recalls his childhood memories and strong longing for the ultimate Christmas gift, the Red Ryder Carbine Action 200-shot Range Model air rifle, while he spends his days avoiding the neighborhood bully.
- National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989)
Despite Clark Griswold’s best efforts to provide his family with the perfect Christmas, a series of unexpected and disastrous events unfold in this hilarious seasonal comedy.
- Home Alone (1990)
In this holiday comedy classic Kevin (Macaulay Culkin) is accidentally left home alone when his family departs on holiday and forgets to bring him along. Left to his own devices, Kevin must protect his home from a pair of burglars, the “Wet Bandits”.
- Miracle on 34th Street (1994)
This remake of the original 1947 holiday classic stays true to the original themes of love and belief in the magic of Christmas as a Macy’s mall Santa strives to prove that he is in fact the real Santa Claus.
- Elf (2003)
In this heartwarming comedic fantasy, one of Santa’s elves, Buddy (Will Ferrell), makes his way from the North Pole to New York on a journey of self-discovery after finding out he is actually a Human and was mistakenly taken to the North Pole as an infant.
- Love Actually (2003)
This romantic Christmas movie depicts nine connected stories all sharing the movie’s prominent theme of love. The movie features a huge ensemble cast with actors such as Hugh Grant, Emma Thompson, and Alan Rickman to name a few.
- The Polar Express (2004)
This popular children’s movie embraces a common theme amongst Christmas movies, restoring faith in Santa Claus and the Christmas spirit. The Polar Express depicts a young boy’s journey aboard the Polar Express, a train which transports children who believe in the magic of Christmas to the North Pole.
- The Christmas Chronicles (2018)
This modern Christmas story promotes the importance of holiday spirit as two children work to help Santa (Kurt Russell) save Christmas and restore the world’s faith in Santa.
- The Grinch (2018)
This most recent adaptation of the family-favorite Christmas classic How the Grinch Stole Christmas (1966) depicts the miserable, anti-Christmas Grinch’s (voiced by Bennedict Cumberbach) attempts to ruin the holiday festivities by stealing Christmas from the citizens of Whoville.
Honorable mention:
Die Hard (1988)
Die Hard, whilst not officially a Christmas movie, definitely has some holiday spirit to it as detective John McClaine (Bruce Willis) must fight for his life in order to rescue hostages in an office building under attack by a terrorist group, ultimately “saving” Christmas.
