10. The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992, dir. Brian Henson) Everyone loves The Muppets and Christmas so The Muppets Christmas Carol is so much fun to watch! I have it on VHS and use to watch it every year when I was little. It's got songs and the narration by the Charles Dickens (ok..it's Gonzo), but it's the traditional tale of A Christmas Carol. A more comedic tale, but with Michael Caine, Kermit, Miss Piggy and the gang, it's just so great!
9. Little Women (1994, dir. Gillian Armstrong)It's not strictly a Christmas film, but based on Lousia May Alcott's novel, the film begins at Christmas with the March family and another time throughout it's Christmas again. There are pretty scenes involving a young, handsome Christian Bale in the snow with the beautiful Winona Ryder as Jo March and the rest of the March girls. It's one of my most cherished films and I completely adore the story, characters, cast and setting. If it snows, it's my favourite film to curl up on the sofa with a hot chocolate and watch.
8. Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992, dir. Chris Columbus) The Home Alone films are a must for Christmas. Whether you prefer the first or the second (let's not talk about the rest), John Hughes story is hilarious to watch. It's not as good as the first and there are a million reasons why, but a little cute Macaulay Culkin reprising Kevin McCallister looking after himself in New York is one of them.
7. Mickey's Once Upon a Christmas (1999)
It's not the most popular, but when I was 5 I was given this to watch before Christmas and I've watched it every year in December ever since. It's three different stories of Christmas for Mickey and Minnie, Huey, Duey and Louie and Goofy and Max. It's short and sweet and it's a routine watch for me. It's narrated by Kelsey Grammer which fascinates me. Disney can definitely 'do' Christmas as I use to watch tons of Mickey Christmas specials as a youngster, but this one stood out for me.
6. Love Actually (2003, dir. Richard Curtis)Cheesy but oh, so good right?! The scene with Hugh Grant dancing to 'jump', Bill Nighy promoting drugs with Any and Dec and lots and lots of Christmas love. Some of the cast are true talents with Neeson, Nighy, Grant, Firth, Thompson and so on. Love Actually is such a heart warming film for Christmas and you can't help but adore it! Line up of pure British goodness.
5. The Santa Clause (1994, dir. John Pasquin)I hate to love the entire Santa Clause trilogy. If this was a top 15, the other two would probably have just made it because I adore them. They're children friendly
fun and I remember seeing the last two in the cinema, laughing at Tim Allen a lot. The first is the best though. Tim Allen plays Scott Calvin who becomes the next Santa Clause by accidentally killing the current one. Calvin is a humbug and he finds the role of Santa Clause very complicated and hard. There are many child actors in the film as the elves and Calvin's son, Charlie, so the film does feel quite young for me but it's still got magic to it! (as cheesy that that sounds)
4. It's a Wonderful Life (1946, dir. Frank Capra)No Christmas film list is complete until It's A Wonderful Life is featured! Mr Jimmy Stewart is George Bailey, a man who at first believes his life is no longer worth living. Then a guardian angel comes along and helps George realise the lives he has touched and the good things he brought to the community, his family and friends. It's absolutely fantastic and a must watch in any list, but for Christmas it's a definite. It's the type of Christmas film you watch with your family. For me, it's one of my favourite James Stewart films and the ending always brings a smile to my face.
3. Elf (2003, dir. Jon Favreau)My favourite Will Ferrell film of all time has got to be Elf where he is Buddy, a human who grew up at the north pole thinking he was an elf. It's a film that everyone watches at Christmas and there's a reason! To sound like a bad advertiser, Elf is fun for all the family because of the slick screenplay in using both jokes for children and lines for adults. Will Ferrel is hilarious as Buddy who's happiness and warmth is an enjoyment to watch on screen and as soon as it starts you instantly feel the Christmas mood. Elf features one of my favourite covers of Baby It's Cold Outside by the lovely Zooey Deschannel which could be half the reason I love it so much.
2. The Holiday (2006, dir. Nancy Meyers)I tried hard but could not, not put The Holiday as my second favourite Christmas film ever. I'm not even ashamed. It's not the greatest chick flick about but it's certainly one of the best Christmas chick flicks. I adore Kate Winslet as Iris in The Holiday and Jack Black is kind of cute in it which is odd! It's so sweet and I adore the references to classic Hollywood and can confidently admit cute little Eli Wallach makes my heart swell. It's completely adorable to how both Diaz and Winslet's story's pan out and it's a film I watch every year without question.
1. Home Alone (1990, dir. Chris Columbus)Finding my #1 film was hard but after much thought, I came to the conclusion that nothing, in my eye, beats Home Alone. Like I mentioned with Home Alone 2, it's John Hughes' story that makes me love it so much. Macaulay Culkin towers over everyone in the film as the best because he is so innocent and perfectly timed. 'I made my family disappear...I made my family dissapear' is just one of my favourite lines from young Mac but there are plenty more. I cry with laughter every time he's seen walking down the street with his shopping bags and they split and even more when 'Fuller' (young Kieran Culkin) gets squashed behind a chair. It's so great that a family as big as the McCallister's can forget a member at home! Though the film is mostly a lot of laughs, the ending is still sweet and shows the true meaning of Christmas. The sad thing with Home Alone is that I can watch it any time of the year, but when it's played in December, Christmas has officially begun for me.
I have to include a 'Honourable mentions' because this list was torture to finalise!
The Chronicle Of Narnia: The Lion The Witch And The Wardrobe, The Grinch and Nightmare Before Christmas are other great Christmas films I like to watch. Narnia isn't exactly Christmassy, but the first film is mostly set in snow and Father Christmas features! The Grinch is self explanatory, it's great, funny and I love a good Dr Seuss film! Jim Carrey as The Grinch is fabulous and it's wickedly hilarious. Nightmare Before Christmas is the best mid November film because Halloween has just ended and everyone is getting ready for Christmas. One of my favourite Burton films, The Nightmare Before Christmas is another film I watch every year but it doesn't quite make it into my top 10.
This year I have National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation, Bad Santa on DVD and Arthur Christmas in cinema to watch for the first time so who knows...maybe they'll make their way into my favourites!
This isn't about me though, I want to know what yours are! Maybe The Snowman makes it way into your top list. Do you prefer Tim Burton's Edward Scissorhands over Nightmare Before Christmas? Maybe your ultimate favourite is simply It's A Wonderful Life. Or maybe, your favourite Christmas film isn't a traditional Christmassy film but it's still a tradition for you to watch it near Christmas?
Leave a comment below or on my facebook of your favourite Christmas films!
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