What is your favorite Christmas film?

[IrishEyes]

Now that it is that time of year, I was wondering what everyone's favorite Christmas films are? I also include films that are set at Christmas but not considered traditional Christmas films.

I like Gremlins, Trading Places, The Shop Around the Corner, The Apartment and Miracle on 34th Street.

[Zoonart]

1. Love Actually.

Great cast .

[Guilded Lilly]

16. Mine, too. No contest!

[Callalily]

51. Miracle on 34th St. - the original.

[Hotler]

71. White Christmas with Bing Crosby and Danny Kay

A classic

[NRaleighLiberal]

2. Wonderful Life, Christmas Story, Waltons Homecoming, The Snowman, Capote's Christmas Memory

[MuseRider]

14. Patricia Neal,

so different as MaMa Walton on the TV show. I like that too.

[NRaleighLiberal]

18. it's corny, mushy, kind of goofy - but a perfect Christmas movie in its own way

[IcyPeas]

40. The Snowman

Why isn't this more popular? It is so well done, no dialogue, fantastic music, and all hand drawn. I tell everyone about it.

I've watched it over a dozen Christmases now and I always need tissues.

[MuseRider]

58. I have never seen this

but I sat under the screen it was shown on and played the music. It is truly beautiful music and the few illustrations I could see were nice. One day I hope to see it on TV, I never seem to see it shown.

[IcyPeas]

60. The Snowman here on YouTube:

it's magical.

[MuseRider]

61. OMG Thank You!

I have some down time this afternoon when I can get a nice coffee and sit and watch something. This is what it will be. I wanted to much to watch but the screen was directly behind me and over my head. That is probably a good thing, I spend too much time getting lost when doing Nutcracker because I can see some of it from the side! Thank you so much!

[IcyPeas]

62. I just figure I'd look and there it was!

and if you have any kids in your life turn them onto it as well. it really is for all ages and all nationalities (since there is no dialog).

enjoy!!

[yellowdogintexas]

72. The Snowman is a beautiful film

we have an old VHS of it around here somewhere. The music is captivating

[Zorro]

3. Die Hard

A perennial favorite for many every year.

[IrishEyes]

4. Absolutely.

I watched that last year on Christmas.

[NotASurfer]

7. Until Hans Gruber takes that fall from Nakatomi Tower

It doesn't feel completely like the season is really rolling

[Docreed2003]

21. +1

Ho ho ho...now I've got a machine gun

[DiverDave]

68. Yep

Best ever, well, George Bailey is second.

[happybird]

5. The Grinch (cartoon, not live action)

and Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.

ETA: I just found out last week that Mom has never seen any of the Harry Potter movies (!), so I set the DVR to record each of them as they’ve aired over this past week. We are going to do a marathon on my day off. I’m so excited because I know she’ll *love* them. She’s never seen Star Wars either (!?!!), so that will be next.

[Phoenix61]

19. Yes! The original Grinch is my fave. nt

[IrishEyes]

28. I recently found out that my mom has never seen Die Hard.

She likes Bruce Willis but she still thinks of him as the guy from Moonlighting which she liked a lot.

[applegrove]

30. As a kid, definitely "The Grinch Who Stole Christmas"

[Archae]

35. For the Star Wars ones...

Are you going to start with the Phantom Menace?

[happybird]

36. Gawd, no

We will do the original ones, and then maybe the last movie of the prequel so she can see how Vader was created. The prequel trilogy is pretty bad, imho (although I adore the internet theory of Jar Jar being a Sith Lord in the style of the Drunken Master. That would have been cool.) Plus, I would think watching the prequel first must ruin the big “Luke, I am your father,” and “You’ve got a sister, a twin sister” bombshells. Not good.

Then on to Spaceballs, Family Guy, and Robot Chicken.

[virgogal]

6. None. Sorry,I dislike holiday films.

[bif]

81. I'm with ya there!

In fact, lately my attitude is F*ck Christmas.

[virgogal]

88. My favorite day of the year,December 26.

[mnhtnbb]

8. An old classic, White Christmas.

Netflix has it. Watched it the other night.

[tymorial]

53. Sisters... Sisters... There never were such devoted sisters.

My wife and daughter watch that all the time. It drives me crazy lol

[mnhtnbb]

63. But the Bing Crosby Danny Kaye send up

of that number is hilarious.

[50 Shades Of Blue]

9. A Christmas Carol (1938), The Holly and the Ivy, Remember the Night,

Christmas in Connecticut, The Bishop's Wife (1947), The Curse of the Cat People, Lady & The Tramp, Never Say Goodbye... those are the first ones off the top of my head.

[QED]

10. Elf and A Christmas Story

Poor Ralphie.

[Va Lefty]

11. The Ref

[CBHagman]

27. One of my favorites, too.

It deserves a double bill with The Lion in Winter.

[applegrove]

31. Loved it when it first came out.

[demosincebirth]

12. Christmas Story

[lastlib]

13. A Charlie Brown Christmas.

I don't even think about Christmas until I see that one.

[Me.]

15. Remember The Night

[Glorfindel]

17. Pocketful of Miracles; Love, Actually; the George C. Scott version of "A Chirstmas Carol"

The Holiday (wonderful cast!)...and lots of others. I love Christmas movies.

[SalmonChantedEvening]

20. A Christmas Carol (1951)

We've watched it on Christmas Eve for decades.

[aka-chmeee]

22. Roger that!

As a Santa helper, before my first engagement every year I watch The Polar Express, A Christmas Story and the Alistair Sim Christmas Carol, just to help get in the mood. Don't know if it will stick, but really liked "The Man Who Invented Christmas" which I saw for the first time this year.

[GP6971]

24. A must see

in our family.

[MFM008]

49. Us as well

Since the 60s.

[MissMillie]

74. The Homecoming

I fully confess that The Waltons is a guilty pleasure of mine, and I believe this movie was the precursor to the tv series.

I also enjoy the Alistair Sim version of Scrooge, and I like The Holiday.

[stopbush]

23. Scrooge (A Christmas Carol) with Alastair Sim, A Christmas Story, Holiday Affair.

Also a sucker for National Lampoon Xmas and It’s A Wonderful Life (just got the new 4k transfer on BluRay).

So many good ones: Holiday Inn, White Xmas, Polar Express, McGoo’s Xmas Carol, Miracle on 34th Street, etc.

[ProfessorGAC]

45. Your List Is Really Close To Our List

I would add, Scrooged & Fred Claus.

[bluestarone]

57. My list as well

Alastair Sim is definitely The best Christmas Carol!! Like your WHOLE list!!

[Karadeniz]

25. Shop around the corner...remember the night...bishops wife

[RandySF]

26. Bad Santa

[mr_lebowski]

38. +1

[Brother Buzz]

64. Terry Zwigoff was attacked mercilessly, and the initial reviews were horrible, BUT...

the film soon became a cult classic. I liked it, but at the end of the day, I have no desire to watch it over and over again.

[Skittles]

29. Bad Santa

LOVE it

[Nay]

80. I gotta confess, Die Hard and Bad Santa are my fave Christmas movies. nt

[Skittles]

89. HA!

I knew there had to be another DUer in agreement.

[TDale313]

32. Die Hard 🙂

More traditionally- It’s A Wonderful Life, Love Actually, and A Christmas Carol (Many versions, but have a soft spot for A Muppet Christmas Carol)

[Floyd R. Turbo]

69. Yippe ki ya motherfucker!

[SonofDonald]

33. Don't the Saw movies come out this time of year?

Sorry, I just had to

[Wolf Frankula]

34. A Christmas Story

A Wish for Wings that Work.

Wolf

[dewsgirl]

37. The Family Stone, Elf, Love Actually, Bridget Jones Diary,

A Christmas Story, Fred Claus, Christmas Vacation and the Ref. I could go on and on..🎄

[NBachers]

39. The 1947 Bishop's Wife; the vintage Scrooge-Christmas Carol movies; and, off topic, I like Elvis'

Santa's Back in Town

[KY_EnviroGuy]

41. Glad Press 'n Seal.

Handy for leftovers.......

[betsuni]

42. My list:

Nutcracker ballet movies: Nutcracker: The Motion Picture (1986 Pacific Northwest Ballet); The Nutcracker (1993 New York City Ballet); Baryshnikov's The Nutcracker (1977 American Ballet Theatre)
The Shop Around the Corner
The Apartment
Heidi
Miracle on 34th Street
White Christmas
Christmas in Connecticut
1951 A Christmas Carol
The Bishop's Wife
It Happened on 5th Avenue
It's a Wonderful Life
National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation
Mixed Nuts
Trading Places
Scrooged
Metropolitan
While You Were Sleeping
The Ref
The Family Man
In the Bleak Midwinter
Winter scenes of "Little Women" and "Doctor Zhivago"

[Cartoonist]

43. I don't get the Grinch

I see many people have a high regard for this show. I consider it among the worst. What am I missing?

[brewens]

44. I like the MASH episode where Winchester gives the fancy candy to the orphanage kids and finds

out the guy running it sold it on the black market. He goes off on him and then is told how much food the guy could get for the kids that way. He then of course realizes how wrong he was.

[ProfessorGAC]

46. +

On board with that choice!

[ms liberty]

47. Another vote for The Ref

Far and away my favorite Christmas movie.

[Coventina]

48. Mitchell! (1975) Which takes place at Christmastime, for some reason.

For maximum fun and holiday cheer, watch the MST3K version....

[Wounded Bear]

50. Mixed Nuts...one of Steve Martin's best...nt

[Bluethroughu]

52. It's a wonderful life

This garlic eater watches every year with the family.

[IrishEyes]

66. That was my grandmother's favorite film

I've seen it so many times but I still like it.

[tymorial]

54. Emmett Otter

Twas the Night Before Christmas by rankin and bass is also great.

I love the tv specials from the 70s and 80s

[targetpractice]

55. The Polar Express....

I'm KIDDING! That was the worst.

[Alpeduez21]

93. +1

They keep trotting that thing out every and I keep watching something(anything) else

[Upthevibe]

56. It's a Wonderful Life, Love Actually,

and A Christmas Story first come to mind.

[Niagara]

59. Christmas with the Kranks

A Christmas Story

The Holiday

The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus (the 2000 remake)

[kacekwl]

65. Christmas Story, Prancer,

Christmas Vacation, Home for the holidays.

[not_the_one]

67. I don't really like the classics, maybe I have seen them too many times....

But as a man who doesn't mind sniffling a bit while watching a movie, I do enjoy:

(two weepy chic-flicks, and I use "chic-flicks" as a POSITIVE definition of touching, sentimental movies with heart...)
This Is Where I Leave You
The Family Stone

(and the ever popular kick-ass chick flick, moderately touching, yet depicting a POWERFUL woman - sort of a Bourne type, before the Bourne movies)
A Long Kiss Good Night

They all take place during Xmas, but aren't really Xmas stories, but are family stories...

(as an atheist I am fully endorsing the war on Xmas by removing X... )

[ProudLib72]

70. Eight Crazy Nights

I got anxious and already watched it around Halloween, though...

[yellowdogintexas]

73. A couple of our favorites:

the Laurel and Hardy version of "Babes in Toyland" . from 1934. Our local station used to run it during the holidays and we must have watched it 50 times growing up. It is very campy and funny.

One of our other favorites is "Christmas In The Clouds" which is worth hunting down if you have never seen it.

from a review: A romantic comedy with Christmas Cheer, "Christmas in the Clouds" is set at a tribally owned and operated ski resort in the Southwest. Memorably quirky characters make their way through plot lines full of mistaken identities and frustrated bingo dreams.

This review is definitely correct about the quirky characters. Like the vegetarian head chef (played to perfection by Graham Greene) who tries to convince the diners to pass up the meat dishes!

It's a great film! this is the first contemporary romantic comedy to feature an almost entirely American Indian cast. The film was featured at the 2001 Sundance Film Festival.

[Marthe48]

75. Rupert the Great

Jimmy Durante starred in this odd movie about poor circus entertainers in NY, who get a lift because of a squirrel. There's a lot more to the plot. Sweet and funny. I bought this b/w movie on dvd years and years ago.

[jberryhill]

76. Euro-Swinger Orgies Vol. 7

Actually, it's a good film for most holidays.

[underpants]

79. I thought #5 was better

[jberryhill]

84. #5 is good, but some critics feel it doesn't have enough anal to be a Christmas classic

If the OP was asking for an all-round family classic, then, sure, I might go with #5.

[underpants]

87. Yeah, #7 will go down in the anals of history

🎅

[Ohiogal]

77. I wish I could

make it through ANY movie without falling asleep.....

[secondwind]

78. White Christmas. Hands down. Maybe it's my age lol

[rsdsharp]

82. White Christmas is my favorite.

I'd watch it even if it wasn't a Christmas movie, just for Vera Ellen's legs.

Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. i saw the very first showing at 5:45 CST on December 6, 1964. I was 10. It's the longest running animated Christmas special. Mr. Magoo's Christmas Carol is older, debuting in 1962, but it rarely airs.

Alistair Sim's A Christmas Carol from 1951. I used to watch it as a kid, and the Ghost of Christmas Future scared the hell out of me. The 1984 mad-for-TV version with George C. Scott was also excellent, but Scott was too heavy to play the parsimonious Scrooge.

The Christmas Card from 2006. Virtually the only Hallmark movie I'll watch. Ed Asner is great in it.

Christmas Story. Jean Shepard is wonderful narrating his own story. Just saw it last weekend.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

83. None of them.

They're all sentimental and gooey and I can't stand them.

[IrishEyes]

85. I like Rambo and Die Hard which are both set at Christmas time.

I count them as Christmas films.

[tblue37]

86. "Elf." nt

[iamateacher]

90. Meet Me in St. Louis

White Christmas, Mr. Magoo's Christmas Carol (music written by the composers of Gypsy.) And of course "A Christmas Story."

[yellowdogintexas]

91. Almost forgot two other wonderful ones

"Pocketful of Miracles" with Bette Davis, Glenn Ford, Hope Lange and a very Young Ann-Margaret. A wonderful film with some extraordinary acting. (it's a Frank Capra film, which is pretty much all you need to know)

A New York gangster and his girlfriend attempt to turn street beggar Apple Annie into a society lady when the peddler learns her daughter is marrying royalty.

"We're No Angels" (original version with Humphrey Bogart, Leo G Carroll, Basil Rathbone, Peter Ustinov, Aldo Ray and Adolf.

At Christmas, three prisoners, Joseph (Humphrey Bogart), Albert (Aldo Ray), and Jules (Sir Peter Ustinov) escape from Devil Island to a French small coastal town. They decide to rob a store, to get some money and clothes and travel by ship to another place. They pretend to be there to fix the roof, but pretty soon they realize that the financial condition of the family Ducotel is not good. André Trochard (Basil Rathbone), the selfish and mean owner of the establishment, exploits the Ducotel family. The three convicts spend Christmas night with the Ducotels and are so well treated by the family, that they decide to help them. Their pet will help them to fix the situation.

[IrishEyes]

92. I love We're no Angels.

I had forgotten about that film. I need to watch it again. I have never seen Pocketful of Miracles but I've been meaning to see it.

[Alpeduez21]

94. Home Alone

Has a ton of laugh out loud moments for me.

Same with Home Alone II

The wife loves Christmas Vacation

[Kashkakat v.2.0]

96. Christmas Story, Its a Wonderful LIfe, and new fav is It Happened On 5th Avenue nt