With Thanksgiving finally behind us, we can now look forward to getting cozy by the fire, drinking hot cocoa and watching Christmas movies to get us in the holiday spirit.
Some of the best classic Christmas movies such as “Elf”, “Home Alone” and “Four Christmases” paired with newer films such as “The Grinch” and “Krampus” are a great way to kick off the holiday season.
The movie that I typically start off with first is “Elf,” a classic comedy led by actor Will Ferrell, (“Step Brothers”, “The Other Guys”) who plays the main character, Buddy.
“Elf” creates laughs and giggles throughout due to its goofy nature. Buddy, a human raised by Santa’s elves, leaves the North Pole in a pursuit to find his real dad in New York City. He struggles to adapt to the differences in lifestyles between elves and humans, doing many bizarre things like putting maple syrup on his spaghetti.
It truly is the best movie to start the holiday season because of its ability to get viewers into the Christmas spirit as the movie’s main theme is about spreading Christmas joy and the belief in Santa Claus.
Another classic to watch now that December has rolled around is “Home Alone,” one of the most beloved Christmas movies of all-time. It was first released back in 1990 and is still a must-watch every holiday season.
“Home Alone” is also a comedy, focused around 8-year-old Kevin McCallister (Macaulay Culkin, “Richie Rich”, “Home Alone 2”) who was mistakenly left behind when his family departed to Paris for a Christmas trip. Kevin had wished to have no family and when he woke up the next morning, that wish became a reality.
However, this wish backfired quickly when Kevin found himself trying to defend his house against two men, Harry and Marv, that were trying to rob his house. Kevin attempts to fend off the intruders by setting up all sorts of wacky booby traps such as a blowtorch to the head of Marv.
This film is nostalgic and has been played each Christmas over the last 30 years, bringing many laughs for those old and young.
Animation makes its way into some of the best Christmas movies with one of the most well-known holiday characters, the Grinch. The 2018 version of “The Grinch” is a bit different than its counterpart, “How the Grinch Stole Christmas,” made in 2000.
“The Grinch” brings a different view of Christmas, as the Grinch can’t stand the holiday and all that comes with it. Mr. Grinch, as they call him, despises the celebration and plans to ruin Whoville’s perfect Christmas in any way he can.
Mr. Grinch and his loyal dog, Max, plan to pose as Santa and sneak into each house to steal everyone’s presents, Christmas trees and decorations. Despite the Grinch taking all of the Who’s stuff, they are still able to come together as a community and celebrate each other. The Grinch sees that they aren’t upset about finding out their Christmas was stolen and becomes self-aware that his attitude is the problem and not Christmas itself.
For those who enjoy a good scare, “Krampus” is a horror movie centered around a German folktale told around Christmas to put fear into kids who are ungrateful for what they get.
In this film, Krampus, the half-goat, half-demon who punishes children that misbehave during the Christmas season, targets the Engel family whose children are spoiled and reluctant to spend Christmas with their loved ones. Their grandmother warns the children about their selfish actions, but the daughter Beth ignores her wishes and continues to be rebellious.
Krampus punishes the children by banishing them into a snow globe to relive Christmas Day every single day until they can appreciate what they have.
To bring Christmas back to a lighter note, “Four Christmases,” a classic romantic comedy that focuses on couple Brad and Kate, which starts off giving the audience laughs and eventually ends with heartwarming closure.
The couple tries to get out of going to their divorced parents’ Christmases by saying they’re doing charity work, but instead goes to Fiji. This plan falls through causing them to have to turn back and suffer a holiday with their families’.
Kate and Brad’s suffering actually turns into a blessing in disguise after visiting their families, revitalizing their relationship and finding out they are truly meant for each other.
The holiday season brings a variety of movies to the table and there’s an endless amount of options to choose from, but these movies are some of the best of the best when it comes to celebrating Christmas.