The 50 Best Christmas Movies of All Time
For my entire childhood, Christmas was solely a holiday about the movies. Whether it was watching a Christmas Day blockbuster in cinemas (A Complete Unknown, anyone?), or simply enjoying the annual How the Grinch Stole Christmas on cable, I had to gather the family together for a film—or else I'd turn into a real Scrooge. Thankfully, they obliged. As the great Macaulay Culkin said in Home Alone 2, "You can mess with a lot of things. But you can’t mess with kids on Christmas."
But my annual Christmas movie marathon is both a gift and a curse. I can sing every lyric from the claymation A Year Without a Santa Claus by heart. Same goes for the songs in Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. At the same time, I've seen so many Christmas movies that I don't have too many more on my watchlist. All that's left is whatever silly idea Netflix drops around this time of year. Don't worry, I won't subject you to Hot Frosty.
Instead, I've taken the liberty of compiling the best Christmas movies of all time—just for you. From classics like Miracle on 34th Street to modern day comedies like Elf—and an action film that just so happens to take place on Christmas!—this list has everything you could ask for this holiday season. Happy holidays, folks.
50. Christmas in Connecticut
Starring Barbara Stanwyck as a food critic who lies about having a farm in New England, Christmas in Connecticut sees the ’40s star scramble to put together a fake farm and family to protect her reputation.
49. A Christmas Carol (1984)
George C. Scott leads this made-for-television adaptation of A Christmas Carol, in which he gives his very all to the role of Ebenezer Scrooge. (It was also directed by Clive Donner, who was an editor on the original 1951 Scrooge film.)
48. The Year Without a Santa Claus
Rankin/Bass Productions, the home of Rudolph, absolutely popped off when they made The Year Without a Santa Claus. Full of songs such as the rockin’ “The Snow Miser” and “The Heat Miser,” as well as “I Believe in Santa Claus,” this stop-motion classic also boasts Shirley Booth in her final acting credit as the narrator.
47. The Lion in Winter
Set around the Christmas of 1183, The Lion in Winter tells the story of King Henry II (Peter O'Toole), and his wife Eleanor of Aquitaine (Katharine Hepburn). Presented with a King Lear scenario between his three sons, Henry must decide who will be his successor to the throne one Christmas, even though he isn't too fond of any of them.
46. Batman Returns
Sure, it's the kind of action movie that isn't really about Christmas, despite being set during the holiday season. Tim Burton's second chance at a Batman film has all of the trimmings of his similarly gothy Christmas tale, The Nightmare Before Christmas, but this one is undeniably more violent, dangerous, and sexy. (We dare you to name a more memorable mistletoe moment on screen.)
45. Just Friends
Ryan Reynolds and Amy Smart play Jamie and Chris, old high school friends wrapped up in a similar plot: Chris is in love with Jamie, and Jamie just wants to be friends. Ten years later, Chris returns to his hometown at the holidays and tries to win Jamie’s love. It works!
44. The Holiday
Nancy Meyers is the Queen of Cozy, and this Christmastime-set romantic comedy might be her most warm and snuggly film ever. Two women—one in London (Kate Winslet), one in Los Angeles (Cameron Diaz)—face simultaneous romantic disappointments, which leads to them swapping homes over the holidays and, in turn, finding new men to swoon over.
43. Love Actually
Richard Curtis's star-studded ensemble romantic comedy is equally beloved as it is reviled. Even if you're a hater, you can't deny the multi-narrative film's influence on holiday-centered comedies over the last decade.
42. Jingle All the Way
Arnold Schwarzenegger plays a busy man who has continuously let his young son down. This Christmas, he promises that he will get him the Turbo-Man action figure, the most coveted toy of the holiday season—but he’s not the only dad who’s made such a claim, which leads to a real showdown with another father, played hilariously by Sinbad.
41. Mixed Nuts
This Steve Martin movie was woefully underappreciated at its time of release. Co-written by Nora Ephron just one year after Sleepless in Seattle, it’s got all the best qualities of an Ephron film: smart comedy, quippy lines, well-known leading man. At the time, this movie, about a man who manages a suicide-prevention hotline, might have been a little dark for the Rudolph-sweater-wearing set, but it conjures a lasting mental image.
39. A Very Murray Christmas
You have Rashida Jones, Miley Cyrus, and George Clooney all in one place. And that's not even mentioning that they've all come together to celebrate with the titular Bill Murray. The Christmas special is a reminder that the best of variety shows can be watched year after year and never lose that special charm.
38. Deck the Halls
Matthew Broderick plays a dad whose overly ordered world turns into disarray with the arrival of his kooky neighbour, Danny DeVito. There’s then a contest of who can have more elaborate Christmas decorations and things turn predictably out of hand.
37. The Family Stone
It’s an all-star cast: Sarah Jessica Parker, Claire Danes, Rachel McAdams, Luke Wilson, and Diane Keaton. (And that list is leaving some reasonable star power out.) If you’ve ever been a part of a family, or even known one, who was hostile to outsiders, you’ll understand where the Stone family is coming from. But what starts as a tense family comedy about kicking Sarah Jessica Parker out of the group takes a heartfelt twist by the end.
36. Metropolitan
Whit Stillman's debut feature follows a tony crowd of Upper East Siders (infiltrated by a young man from the opposite side of the park) as they banter and schmooze over the holiday debutante season in late-'80s Manhattan.
35. Silent Night, Deadly Night
Doing its best to sully everything good about Christmas, this notorious slasher—which, due to its subject matter, was pulled from American cinemas—involves a psycho who goes on a murder spree while wearing a Santa suit.
34. It Happened on Fifth Avenue
This post-World War II movie is about veterans who need shelter and find it in a beautiful Manhattan home—while its owner is wintering in the South. The film actually touches on some very real themes of homelessness in the veteran population and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Writing, Original Story.
33. Edward Scissorhands
Johnny Depp's pale, leather-suited, scissor-handed Edward stands out from the colorful suburban Christmastime landscape of Tim Burton's 1990 fantasy, although his story is one that ultimately proves perfectly in tune with the season's spirit of open-hearted inclusiveness.
32. The Santa Clause
In 1994, a very specific Christmas fear formed for some children: that Santa would fall off their roof and plummet to his death. (Way to make a lovely holiday into a complete nightmare, mid-1990s filmmakers.) When Tim Allen inadvertently causes Santa to die on his property, he has to assume the role of the next Santa Claus. There’s a lot of body-shaming stuff here that likely doesn’t fly as well these days, but this movie is featured in enough Christmas movie marathons that it belongs on the list.
31. Carol
No, Carol was never intended to be a Christmas movie. But neither was Love, Actually. And still, watching Rooney Mara as a retail worker in a Santa hat fall for a mink-wearing Cate Blanchette can bring as many feels as watching Keira Knightley open her door to the, “say it’s carol singers,” sign.
30. The Holdovers
Alexander Payne's New England Christmas tale—which stars Paul Giamatti as Paul Hunham, a curmudgeonly boarding school teacher—is pure feel-good holiday nostalgia. Hunham is tasked with an unenviable gig: watching over the students who must stay at school for the holidays. Eventually just one student remains, and their relationship grows increasingly tear-inducing over the course of the film. It's as if Scrooge adopted a son!
29. The Polar Express
This classic tale of a Christmas Eve trip to the North Pole is told in such hyper-realistic animation that you might just start to feel like you’re on the locomotive yourself.
28. How the Grinch Stole Christmas (1966)
I don’t think I could find a better song in the entire history of Christmas cinema than “You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch.” Voiced by Frankenstein’s Boris Karloff and animated by Looney Tunes’s Chuck Joss, the Grinch’s antics in Whoville are the backbone of the ultimate holiday classic.
27. A Very Harold and Kumar Christmas
John Cho and Kal Penn's stoner buddies find themselves at odds after the latter destroys their Christmas tree, leading to an all-night adventure of holiday madness in the best of the duo's big-screen outings.
26. Die Hard
Ho-ho-ho, he's got a machine gun—Bruce Willis's John McClane, that is, while battling terrorists in John McTiernan's peerless, one-against-many action classic.
25. While You Were Sleeping
If Die Hard gets to be a Christmas movie, so does While You Were Sleeping. After Sandra Bullock saves a man pushed in front of an L train on Christmas Day, she finds herself in quite a predicament. After admiring the man from afar from some time, she mutters, “I was going to marry him,” which a nurse mistakes as meaning that she’s his fiancée. Soon after, she befriends his family who welcomes her with open arms. The only problem? She ends up falling for the man’s brother.
24. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang
Writer-director Shane Black sets virtually all of his films around Christmas (see also: Lethal Weapon and Iron Man 3), although none embrace the season quite as whole-heartedly as the filmmaker's 2005 neo-noir comedy starring Robert Downey Jr. and Val Kilmer as a thief-turned-actor and a private eye, respectively, who wind up partnering on a case.
23. Gremlins
There's far more naughtiness than niceness on display in Joe Dante's terrific 1984 horror comedy in which a cute, mystical Chinese creature known as a "mogwai" named Gizmo gives bubbling birth to mischievous monsters.
22. The Shop Around the Corner
Jimmy Stewart and Margaret Sullavan are employees at a Budapest leather goods shop who can't stand each other—even as they're falling in love as anonymous pen pals. (Ever wonder where You've Got Mail got its inspo?)
21. A Christmas Tale
French auteur Arnaud Desplechin crafts a sprawling, spellbinding portrait of familial dysfunction—and, ultimately, reconciliation and togetherness—with this 2008 drama about a clan reuniting, uneasily, at Christmas only to learn that their matriarch (Catherine Deneuve) is dying of leukemia.
20. Black Christmas
Bob Clark's 1974 gem (starring Olivia Hussey, John Saxon, Margot Kidder, and Keir Dullea) is the granddaddy of modern slasher movies, recounting the gruesome tale of a group of sorority girls who are preyed upon by a mysterious, psychotic killer.
19. Eyes Wide Shut
It may be better known for its other elements–like, say, that unforgettable masked-participant orgy–but Stanley Kubrick's final feature is, at heart, a study of individual desires and marital tensions encased in a velvety Christmastime atmosphere.
18. Little Women
Just like sisters, the 1994 and 2019 adaptations of Louisa May Alcott’s novel were conceived from the same source and have transformed into their own unique interpretations. And, just like the March sisters, every Little Women fan usually has already picked their favorite version. Still, these two films both feature star-studded casts with a heart-warming tale of sisterhood at its core. And, as far as Christmas movies go, they both feature picturesque vignettes of white Christmases in New England filled with feasts, fires, frolicking, and family.
17. The Best Man Holiday
Director Malcolm D. Lee reassembles the cast from his 1999 feature, with his group of old friends reuniting for the first time after 15 years for Christmas, which serves as a backdrop for various interpersonal issues.
16. Meet Me in St. Louis
Vincente Minnelli's 1944 musical is comprised of vignettes set during a variety of seasons, but none are as famous as the one featuring star (and Minnelli's future wife) Judy Garland singing "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas."
15. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
Rudolph is a legend, and as an adult in these trying times, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer feels a bit like the underdog story we need. There’s clearly some social justice themes going on, but at the core of this story of Rudolph and his dental hygiene-enthused friend is a testament to the differences between us.
14. A Charlie Brown Christmas
Can you really say it’s the holiday season if the Peanuts theme hasn’t played in a Starbucks near you? After finding himself in a bout of seasonal depression (relatable), Charlie Brown re-learns the real meaning of the holiday thanks to his friend Linus.
13. Elf
Will Ferrell is a clownish orphan raised by Santa and his elves in the North Pole who journeys to New York City to locate his biological father–a cynical book publisher played by James Caan–in this absurd (and surprisingly sweet) fish-out-of-water fantasy.
12. The Apartment
A single man (Jack Lemmon) lets his co-workers use his residence for their affairs—but then falls in love with his boss's mistress (Shirley MacClaine). Billy Wilder's 1960 comedy won the Academy Award for Best Picture with good reason: It's one of American cinema's all-time greats. Of course, its tale of loneliness and love takes place on and around 25 December.
11. The Nightmare Before Christmas
It’s a debate for the ages: is The Nightmare Before Christmas a Halloween movie or a Christmas movie? You see which side of the fence we land on. The Tim Burton specialty is a masterful work of visual tricks and treats, all done in a creepy way that only the filmmaker can accomplish.
10. A Christmas Carol (1951)
Still the finest adaptation of Charles Dickens' legendary tale, this superb 1951 feature charts the familiar Christmas Eve ordeal of nasty miser Ebenezer Scrooge (Alastair Sim), who's visited by the ghosts of Christmas past, present, and future.
9. The Muppet Christmas Carol
Jim Henson died during pre-production of this 1992 film, but his spirit lives on in its seamless blend of zaniness and heart–both of which help make this musical Dickens adaptation an underrated triumph.
8. Bad Santa
Billy Bob Thornton's thieving department store Santa injects some nasty deviancy into the Yuletide season in this uproarious black comedy.
7. Miracle on 34th St.
You can't go wrong with this Christmas staple about the trial of a man claiming to be Santa Claus. (The original is great, but the 1994 remake starring Richard Attenborough and Mara Wilson is pretty good, too).
6. Scrooged
Riffing on Dickens, Bill Murray is an arrogant and thoughtless TV executive who, while planning to stage a live production of A Christmas Carol, winds up living out a crazed variation of that very story.
5. Home Alone
Kevin McCallister (Macaulay Culkin) is forgotten by his family and forced to battle a couple of dimwit thieves (Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern) around Christmas in this enduring children's adventure from director Chris Columbus and writer John Hughes.
4. White Christmas
Featuring a new version of the song from which the film gets its title, this 1954 musical features Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye as music-act partners who team up with two sisters (Rosemary Clooney and Vera-Ellen) to help their former military commander save his Vermont lodge.
3. A Christmas Story
Nine years after Black Christmas, director Bob Clark made another holiday classic—albeit of a very different sort—when he launched this still-beloved saga of nine-year-old Ralphie Parker (Peter Billingsley), who wants nothing more for Christmas than an air rifle.
2. National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation
Rarely has a series' third installment been the equal of its two predecessors, but such is the case with this threequel involving Clark (Chevy Chase), Ellen (Beverly D'Angelo), Audrey (Juliette Lewis), and Rusty Griswold's (Johnny Galecki) mishap-besieged family get-together.
1. It's a Wonderful Life
Few films define Christmas like Frank Capra's 1946 fantasy starring Jimmy Stewart as George Bailey, who, on the verge of committing suicide, is visited by an angel who shows him the importance of his life.
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