As we all are lounging in our recliners sufficiently comatose from turkey, mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie, it's time to let the holiday movie season begin! Every year I eagerly await Thanksgiving night so that my holiday film fest can commence. There's a cornucopia (like how I used some Thanksgiving-
ish lingo?!) of holiday films to choose from, and believe me, typically even the crappiest of Christmas movies make me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. But, for the purposes of this entry, I have decided to give you my top ten list of holiday/Christmas films! So, here it goes!
10.
Miracle on 34th Street (1947)
Forget the 1990s version of this film, the original is the must-see! Starring a young Natalie Wood, this film is a little piece of Christmas nostalgia! If only we all could live in the 1940s and experience Christmastime at Macy's in New York City! What makes this film so great is that the story is timeless--at what point do we get so drudged down by life that the important things like hope and love fall by the wayside? It's wonderful to see Kris Kringle and Susan's (Natalie Wood) relationship blossom and see this child finally embrace childhood. This film reminds us what it means to be a kid again and the beauty of belief!
9.
Love Actually (2003)
The original ensemble cast movie,
Love Actually makes me want to be in London for Christmas every year without fail! Whether you laugh at the funny-looking British guy who comes stateside in hopes of finally landing a girl, are swooned by Hugh Grant's dance moves, want to be a Nativity lobster, or cry when Sam finally calls his step-dad "Dad," it's hard not to love this movie! Certainly, this movie can be an anytime movie, but the Christmastime theme is what drives the many vignettes of this film. I can't choose my favorite storyline!
8.
A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965)
Arguably the best dance scene in cinematic history,
A Charlie Brown Christmas tugs at the heartstrings. In an era driven by consumerism, this animated film reminds us all why we really should be celebrating Christmas. I think Linus says it best when he explains to Charlie Brown what the real meaning of Christmas is. In the end, Charlie Brown is the hero and everyone comes together. After all, isn't love and compassion what Christmas is really all about?
7.
The Shop Around the Corner (1940)
The first of two Jimmy Stewart films on this list,
The Shop Around the Corner is the original
You've Got Mail (Meg Ryan's book shop is called "The Shop Around the Corner"). Stewart plays Alfred
Kralik, a sales clerk at a small department store in Budapest, Hungary. Stewart unknowingly is pen-pals with newly hired sales clerk, Klara
Novak (played by Margaret
Sullavan). Problems ensue between Stewart and the management, Stewart and
Sullavan. However, once Stewart realizes that
Sullavan is the woman he has been pen-palling, he chooses to leave her in the dark, playing with her emotions along the way. If you've seen
You've Got Mail, you can figure out what happens in the end. And although this may not specifically be a "Christmas" movie (I watch it at any time of year), because its plot is in many ways driven by the Christmastime theme, I decided to put it on my list!
6.
National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989)
Without a doubt probably the most crude of all holiday films on my list,
Christmas Vacation is a classic! Per usual, Clark Griswold has high expectations that ultimately are unmet due to numerous
snafus. Thirty seconds into the film, the
Griswolds have numerous near-death experiences, the least of which is getting ran over by a semi! This film never fails to make me laugh. Despite the fact that the
Griswolds' luck might be worse than most, what I think makes this film so endearing is that things don't go as planned! I have never had a perfect Christmas, but my Christmases seem pretty darn close to perfect compared to the
Griswolds'!
ALSO, best Christmas speech ever...so inspiring!:
"Where do you think you're going?
Nobody's leaving.
Nobody's walking out on this fun, old-fashioned family Christmas. No, no. We're all in this together. This is a full-blown, four-alarm holiday emergency here. We're gonna press on, and we're gonna have the hap, hap, happiest Christmas since Bing Crosby tap-danced with Danny f***
ing Kaye. And when Santa squeezes his fat white ass down that chimney tonight, he's gonna find the jolliest bunch of assholes this side of the nuthouse." Thanks, Clark.
5.
Home Alone (1990)
Macaulay
Culkin gets the award for cutest child actor EVER! Every year I watch this movie, I find myself sighing at how cute little Kevin
McAllister is!...I mean, his knit-sweaters and khakis?! This film succeeds on so many levels. It's funny: Kevin is a funny kid. It's witty: Kevin outsmarts criminals who might be dumb, but Kevin is 10. Example: "Keep the change you filthy animal." It's heartbreaking: Kevin's mom does whatever she can to make it home to her son; the scary
next door neighbor is not scary at all, but a kind and gentle man; Kevin realizes that life without his family is not much of an existence after all. The fact that
Culkin essentially carries this film all by himself (with the help of a few tricks, traps and the supporting cast from time to time), makes this film that much more extraordinary! By the end of this movie, I always want to go hug my mom and dad!
4.
Holiday Inn (1942)
Probably the less notable of his two films in which he sings "White Christmas,"
Holiday Inn is my favorite Bing Crosby film. "White Christmas" is original to
Holiday Inn, not the film for which the song is its namesake! Also starring Fred Astaire and Marjorie Reynolds, this film is a wonderful spectacle of song and dance.
Holiday Inn is the story of a hoofer (Astaire) and a crooner (Crosby) who are continually vying for the affections of some talented girl. But when Crosby steps away from the spotlight to open an inn only open on holidays, the simple life seems to hold a lot of promise for Crosby and his up-and-coming performer (Reynolds)...that's until Astaire drops in. A good
ole fashion musical about the holidays? Not a lot could be better than that.
3.
The Santa Clause (1994)
The Santa Clause will always hold a special place in my heart because it is the first Christmas movie I ever saw in theaters! For those of you who know me pretty well, I have a weird love for Tim Allen...well, more of a love for his voice, so that also plays into my affection for this film! This film is much like
Miracle on 34th Street in one way: it takes seeing to believe! What is great about
The Santa Clause is its originality: a disgruntled, middle-aged divorcee goes up on the roof Christmas Eve only to find that Santa Clause has died! As a consequence of Santa Clause's death, Scott Calvin (S.C...Santa Clause?!) inherits the job of Santa and quickly is transformed (not only physically, but emotionally, too). Scott goes from being an unhappy guy to one whose life has a higher calling. And what's really best about this movie is that as a result of his new job title, Scott and his son, Charlie, grow closer and Scott becomes a better guy. Bravo, Disney! Bravo!
2.
It's a Wonderful Life (1946)
Did you know that when this film came out, it was not a critical or box office success? It's hard to believe. There are so many reasons why I love this film! 1) I love Jimmy Stewart--he is the perfect man: he's real, he's quirky, and he's kind. 2) The story--don't we all wish we knew a George Bailey? Don't we all aspire to be better people like George Bailey? 3) The happy ending. But, I digress. It might be cliche to say, but this film is truly what Christmas is all about: giving to others. Yes, we often think what we do and who we are goes unnoticed, but this film is a testament to the fact that we don't know whose lives we touch. Also, this film teaches us to be thankful for our blessings, which I know I often take for granted. I do not think anyone but Jimmy Stewart could have played George Bailey. George Bailey will always set the bar for the ideal man in my book--he's good through and through.
1.
A Christmas Story (1983)
Much like
It's a Wonderful Life,
A Christmas Story was not a box-office success. But, now?! Most films cannot boast an annual 24-hour marathon on cable television! This film is a nostalgic look back in time and what it's like to be a kid. What's so great about this movie is that even as an adult, Ralphie still is able to recall, if not maintain, his childhood outlook on his world. I can identify with Ralphie. Although I never wanted a BB gun, I did desperately want a cell phone in middle school (before it was common to have them in middle school) and was told I couldn't have it! Admittedly, I did not get the cell phone in high school, but maybe had I written an essay about how I wanted one, my parents would have been convinced! There are so many great one-liners to be had in this movie: "Don't shoot your eye out!"; "My little brother had not eaten voluntarily in over three years."; "You used up all the glue on purpose!"; and perhaps my favorite, "Aunt Clara had for years labored under the delusion that I was not only perpetually 4 years old, but also a girl." This film is a quotable classic! And because this is the Christmas movie I grew up on, I have chosen it as my favorite. Despite the ups and downs that ensue in the Parker family, in the end, it all turns out okay: duck at a Chinese restaurant while serenaded by the Chinese workers not so fluent in English! This film is not about Ralphie getting the BB gun he so desperately wanted, but the wonderment that is Christmas!
Well, that's my Christmas list! Comment and tell me what's yours!
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!
~Erin
