10 excellent Christmas films
With the year that was 2013 gradually grinding to a halt, offices winding down to skeleton staff and the home fires turned up as far as they will go in preparation for the annual family get together most of us are looking forward to some down time over the holidays. After all, we all deserve a break before the January’s onset.
The festive period is synonymous with many things- from turkey to board games and generous measures of stiff drinks. But this month also means a lot to film fans across the world, with broadcasters long having taken this opportunity to unveil big name network premieres and every cinematic industry in the Christian world getting involved by way of timeless seasonal classics and new takes on spreading a little cheer. We’ve scoured the archives to bring you ten of the most excellent offerings, all of which are available to buy now, and will guarantee to keep viewers entertained and more than in the mood for 25th December.
Miracle On 34th Street; George Seaton (1947)
The film that asked the question seven year olds, slowly wising up to their parents Christmas Eve antics, have queried for aeons- is Santa real? If the results of one young girl’s research are much to go by we can all rest assured that, so long as our name is on the ‘Nice List’, there will be something under the tree for us come the Big Day. Still as riveting as it was when audiences first laid eyes on it all those years ago.
It’s A Wonderful Life; Frank Capra (1946)
Capra’s archetypal Yuletide flick would be a cliché, if it wasn’t the reason many subsequent titles are considered clichés. Few movies have managed to hit the ‘what Christmas is really all about’ nail so squarely on the head as a family man struggles with increasing living costs, almost kills himself and finally realises that the community around him are only too happy to help. Heart-warming in extremis.
Gremlins; Joe Dante (1984) Tiny monsters taking down small town USA doesn’t sound festive on synopsis alone, that is until you watch Gremlins. From the opening scene in which Dad buys son a cute, cuddly but unknown pet for a present to the later moments wherein the animal’s devil spawn don Santa hats and celebrate the holidays in their own decidedly destructive way this has seasonality coursing through its veins.
Trading Places; John Landis (1983)
One of the gems from last year’s Christmas TV schedule here in the UK, this is feel good filmmaking as only the 1980s knew how to do it. Dan Ackroyd plays the successful New York broker who is framed for a crime he didn’t commit, only to be replaced in his job and professional circles by Eddie Murphy, a lowly conman from the Big Apple’s rotten side. Cue a struggle for redemption and some truly memorable lines.
Home Alone; Chris Columbus (1990) When eight-year-old Kevin McAllister is left behind by his parents and extended family, who are flying out to Paris for the holidays he thinks his prayers to be left alone by demanding parents and bullying siblings have been answered. Soon, though, the young lad begins to realise that whilst we can’t choose them, loved ones are the most important aspect of Christmas, with a little help from a scary-looking but gentile old man.
Christmas Vacation; Jeremiah Chechik (1989) Alongside Loaded Weapon 1, Christmas Vacation is the most enjoyable of the National Lampoon back catalogue. The Griswalds are preparing for the arrival of relatives, with the intention of hosting the perfect Christmas. But soon it becomes clear that this isn’t likely to happen, as chemical toilets leak, shady bosses hold back bonuses and decorations are ruined. Not that any of those superficialities really matter.
The Nightmare Before Christmas; Henry Selick (1993) Arguably the most untraditional festive film ever made, a ghoul named Jack Skellington, king of Halloweentown, finds himself in unfamiliar territory, namely Christmastown. Struggling to grasp the notion of goodwill to all men and so forth, slowly he’s convinced that gift-giving, rather than wit-scaring, can actually be rather fun too. A Tim Burton production landmark as visually stunning today as it was in 1993.
The Santa Clause; John Pasquin (1994) Tim Allen, once ‘The Toolman’ from TV comedy Home Improvement, proved himself more than capable of taking Father Christmas’ place in this story of a guy who accidentally kills the big red reindeer rider, and is forced to fill his boots. Or perhaps more appropriately suit, with pounds piled on and snow-white hair beginning to spring from his chin. Hardly clever, nevertheless we highly recommend.
Elf; Jon Favreau (2003) An abandoned child winds up living in the North Pole with Father Christmas, his wife and the Elves. Finding that he feels increasingly out of place and oversized, the revelation that he actually belongs in the real world spurs on a journey to New York in search of his father, a cynical publisher who has long forgotten what the holidays are designed for. Proof that modern Hollywood can still festive family fun.
Bad Santa; Terry Zwigoff (2003)
Bad Santa is foul mouthed, at times potentially offensive and not to be watched with elderly relatives, or young ones. An adult Christmas movie through and through, hark as a conman dressed as St. Nick plots to rob shopping malls after they close on 24th December, but is gradually turned into a sentimental so-and-so by an overweight kid he finds irritating and the lad’s senile grandmother.
