Top 10 Christmas Movies to Watch This Season
By: Aiyanna Bailey Snuggled up by the fireplace and watching a Christmas movie with your family is one of the most heartwarming and comforting events of the Holiday season. But, though your family might have a series of Christmas movies that are a tradition in your household during this festive time of year, many of these thematic masterpieces have not hit the top 30 most popular Christmas movies of all time.
These are the ones that did:
#10 - The Polar Express (2004)
This iconic Christmas story tells the tale of a young boy who embarks on an incredible train journey to the North Pole and his adventures on the way. Though it has a lukewarm rating, with the film receiving a 56 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, many argue that the hyper-realistic animation led to this disdain of the film, claiming that the computer-generated imagery characters are a bit scary. However, this movie has a great message and is completely safe for very young children to watch.
#9 - Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992)
This sequel is still a firm favorite with movie-goers. This time around, we revisit Kevin McCallister (Macaulay Culkin) and his family during the holiday period, just like the record-breaking prequel of this movie. However, this time, it is set in New York City. His sworn enemies, bumbling burglars Marv and Harry, are back, and they're dead-set on revenge on the precocious kid. A fan favorite! If you are looking for a new Christmas movie to watch with a younger audience, this is a great pick! It has a 35 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes, but a 62 percent audience score.
#8 - Die Hard (1988)
For the critics who argue that this isn’t a festive movie, consider that it’s set during a holiday office party. “Die Hard” follows the story of police officer John McClane (Bruce Willis) who seeks to save his estranged wife and her colleagues who are taken hostage during their Christmas party at Nakatomi Plaza. According to Rotten Tomatoes, where it has both a critic and audience score of 94 percent, this movie is a Christmas favorite.
#7 - The Santa Clause (1994)
Tim Allen stars as everyday man, Scott Calvin, who takes the place of Kris Kringle after he falls off a roof. It has a certified fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with a critics score of 73 percent, but its audience rating is 66 percent. With some positive reviews, it's still not a completely rousing success, as one critic from the Seattle Times writes, “The Santa Clause is a perfectly watchable yet entirely unmemorable family-friendly movie.” Check this movie out if you are looking for a comedic twist on a family-friendly movie night!
#6- The Grinch (2018)
This is the animated movie we're talking about, not the Jim Carrey version. It's actually one of two Grinch films that make this list. Based on the popular Dr. Seuss' book, this interpretation has Benedict Cumberbatch, Rashida Jones, and Pharrell Williams lending their voices to the production. It follows the titular green-haired Grinch whose main mission is to ruin Christmas for the residents of Whoville. On Rotten Tomatoes, critics and audience viewers alike were left with an unfavorable impression of the film, despite its place on this list as a popular Christmas classic. Even though many families find this film a bit non-traditional to the original story of the Grinch, it has still become a hit with the demographic of comedy-lovers. Give this movie a try!
#5 - How The Grinch Stole Christmas (2000)
Coming in hot at number five is the live-action iteration of the Dr. Seuss classic. Like the one mentioned above, it's based on the children's book that has captured the imagination of generations. But, this time, it stars Jim Carrey as the Grinch and a young Taylor Momsen, of Gossip Girl fame, as Cindy Lou. Again, it wasn't critically beloved, according to Rotten Tomatoes, but people still gushed over it, as it is a loveable, timeless classic.
#4 - Elf (2003)
Another Christmas movie with a comedic genius - this time in the form of Will Ferrell as Buddy the elf. This true modern-day classic also stars an up-and-coming Zooey Deschanel as love interest Jovie. Buddy has been raised as an elf in the North Pole despite being human but finds out his biological father (James Caan) lives in New York City. He then embarks on a journey of self discovery to figure out who he really is while trying to learn the ropes and pitfalls of the real world. It has a certified fresh score of 86 percent on Rotten Tomatoes and a 79 percent audience rating. So, it's no surprise that viewers give it a spin every holiday season.
#3 - National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989)
Starring Chevy Chase and Beverly D'Angelo, “National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation” follows the ups and downs of the Griswold family's pursuit of a picture-perfect holiday season. But not everything goes as planned and soon their festive celebrations are thrown into complete chaos. It has a 70 percent critics score on Rotten Tomatoes and an 86 percent audience rating. For many families, it is considered a Christmas classic.
#2 - Love Actually (2003)
It might not have aged well, but “Love Actually” still remains a Christmas classic that people continue to return to. The ensemble cast alone is enough to keep bringing viewers back, with Hugh Grant, Colin Firth, Alan Rickman, Emma Thompson, Keira Knightley, Bill Nighy, and Rowan Atkinson starring in the film. It follows the story of eight different couples navigating their love lives in London during the festive season. Written and directed by Richard Curtis, the brainchild behind “Four Weddings and A Funeral”, “Notting Hill”, and “Mr. Bean”, the movie somehow weaves together these stories well enough for audiences to enjoy time and time again.
#1 - Home Alone (1990)
The ultimate Christmas movie that captures the magic of the festive season and that childhood nostalgia. A young Macaulay shines in this movie, a prequel to “Home Alone 2”, as Kevin McCallister who is accidentally left home alone by his family during the holidays. Soon two thieves catch on to his lonely status and decide to seize his house, but the clever kid has a few tricks up his sleeve to deter them from carrying out their crime. It made Macaulay a household name and starred Catherine O'Hara as his distressed mother, Kate, and John Heard as his father, Peter. Daniel Stern played one of the burglars, Marv, and Joe Pesci portrayed his partner-in-crime, Harry. It has a 65 percent critics score and an audience rating of 80 percent. “There is no Christmas movie like ‘Home Alone’. A great funny story, a classic. The wish of every kid, being alone at home doing what you want. But is all always that happy when being alone?”, one audience viewer wrote.
Source Credits: The Today Show
