The festive films the Good Housekeeping team watch every Christmas
What are the must-have ingredients in any half-decent Christmas film? It's an unexpectedly complicated question with a million different answers. Does it need to be heartwarming? Not really, no; aside from its final few minutes, It’s A Wonderful Life is about a man attempting suicide on Christmas Eve. Does it need to be set at Christmas? Again, not entirely; Holiday Inn is literally set during every part of the year. Does it need to be nostalgic? Not if you think Die Hard qualifies as a Christmas movie. Does it need to be about a go-getting city girl who leaves her high-powered job, returns to her hometown and falls for the simple charms of a wholesome local man? Not unless you exclusively watch Hallmark movies.
The truth is, Christmas films can come in any genre or mood – Trading Places is a Christmas movie, even Iron Man 3 is a Christmas movie for crying out loud – so long as they contain something ineffable that captures the spirit of the season.
My own personal mark of what makes a Christmas movie is how weird it would feel to watch it outside of the festive season. Could I watch Die Hard in July? Probably, yes, which is why I have trouble calling it a true Christmas film. But could I do the same with Scrooged, Elf or Miracle On 34th Street? Absolutely not. Those films require a chill in the air, an undercurrent of excitement about Santa and a glass of mulled wine.
The best Christmas films are communal affairs, and the very best have the ability to hit different generations in different ways. When I was a child, for example, I loved Home Alone because it was a film about a little boy maiming adults with paint cans and blowtorches. Show it to me now, though, and I’ll tell you that it’s really about the lonely neighbour Old Man Marley’s estrangement from his family and the unbearable grief it brings him.
The same goes for The Muppet Christmas Carol. The kids like it for the muppets themselves, but the grown-ups will hear Michael Caine sing Thankful Heart and be reminded that we’ve also probably grown a little calcified from the relentless march of our daily obligations – and prompt us to stop and open our eyes to the wonders of life.
Of course, this isn’t to say that all Christmas films are good. Far from it. The less said about the 1996 Santa With Muscles the better! But the good ones endure. Meet Me In St Louis is
80 years old now, and would be a must-watch even if it wasn’t for the bittersweet gut punch of Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas. Gremlins, which has an unbreakable core of festive sweetness despite its anarchic monster puppetry, is now 40. Even Elf is 21 this year, and still seems to improve with repeated viewing.
And more films are being added to the list with every passing year. Klaus, an animated Netflix movie about the origins of Santa, has been made with so much care that it deserves to be in rotation for generations to come. And while it doesn’t quite pass my ‘watch with kids’ test, last year’s The Holdovers is a thing of absolute beauty, combining sweetness with deep melancholy.
Maybe that’s what makes a Christmas film. This is a time of heightened emotions across the spectrum: joy, comfort, sadness, grief. If you can make a film that can communicate even just one facet of that feeling with total sincerity, then congratulations. You have a classic on your hands.
Best Christmas films to watch now
If you're in need of some Christmas movie inspiration, here the Good Housekeeping team share their top picks for the best Christmas films to watch now...
The Snowman
‘The Snowman coincides with the moment of peak Christmas magic – just as it gets dark on Christmas Eve. The second David Bowie steps into that loft with his scarf, I’m melting. I watched it every year with my mum and now I make my own kids snuggle up and watch it with me. Light The Night, the theme from The Snowman And The Snowdog, is my favourite Christmas song.’
Lis Moseley, Good Housekeeping managing director
The Holiday
‘Every year, I look forward to wrapping Christmas presents while watching The Holiday, one of my favourite traditions of the season. The film perfectly blends romance and humour, following two single women (Kate Winslet and Cameron Diaz) who swap homes over the holidays to escape their troubles and find unexpected love. The snowy, quaint English village in Surrey where the story is partly set captures the festive spirit beautifully.’
Laura Beckwith, picture director
The Polar Express
‘When the festive prep starts causing more chaos than joy, The Polar Express chugs its way on to my TV. Based on a children’s book, it follows a young boy on a magical adventure to the North Pole. It has everything I want in a feelgood festive film: snow-filled adventure, friendship, a friendly Santa – and don’t forget the all-singing, all-dancing set of waiters who serve hot chocolate to the travelling children. But what has me returning to The Polar Express every year is the way it captures what it feels like to believe, and the carefree, childlike spirit of Christmas.’
Abby Allen, sub-editor
It's A Wonderful Life
‘With a baby boomer father, classic films were thrust upon my sister and me whether we liked it or not, including It’s A Wonderful Life. As I grew up in a tiny village
in Devon, the way the small-town community rallies behind George really resonates with me. No matter how homesick I get in London, this film puts everything into perspective. Curled up on the sofa in my family home is where I feel like George: “the richest (wo)man in town”.’
Corin Ripley, fashion assistant
Little Women
‘It’s not Christmas for me without a watch of Little Women. I love the feisty feminist 2019 remake by Greta Gerwig, but my true love is the 1994 version starring Winona Ryder as Jo and Susan Sarandon as Marmee. From the snow-flecked opening scenes, this is the cosiest, most generous-spirited of films. And if you don’t shed a tear when Father comes home at Christmas, you have a heart of stone!’
Joanne Finney, books editor
Love Actually
‘Love Actually is as cosy and sentimental as a hand-knitted Christmas jumper, so please don’t pull its threads apart. Some bits haven’t worn as well as others, but I can’t think of any other film that I’ll always watch “for five minutes” when channel surfing and the next thing I know, the credits are rolling and I’m in bits. I know it’s dated in places, but if you can’t surrender to this sort of feelgood feast at Christmas, when can you?’
Lynne Hyland, senior beauty editor
Klaus
‘The build-up to Christmas wouldn’t be the same without a Sunday afternoon spent cosied up on the sofa with my family watching Klaus. This charming, quirky animation tells the story of how Father Christmas became Father Christmas. A heartwarming tale of the power of small acts of kindness to bring people together with a good dose of offbeat humour, this beautiful film makes me laugh and cry in equal measure every December.’
Emilie Martin, consumer affairs director
Home Alone
‘I was about nine years old when I watched Home Alone for the first time and, almost three decades on, watching eight-year-old Kevin McCallister fight off two bungling burglars, having mistakenly been left behind by his Paris-bound family, brings me as much joy as it did back then. From the lethal booby-traps and that aftershave scene to the infamous line: ‘Keep the change, ya filthy animal’, it’s the perfect blend of humour and heart. And when I feel like I’ve had enough of my family over the festive period, it serves as a gentle reminder to be grateful that they’re there.’
Natalie Whittle, deputy editor
A Charlie Brown Christmas
‘For me, Christmas wouldn’t be complete without at least one showing of Charles M Schulz’s 1965 A Charlie Brown Christmas, the first animated Peanuts special. My partner puts the tinkling jazz soundtrack by Vince Guaraldi on repeat the moment December rolls around, and I love the way poor Charlie Brown tries to find the true meaning of Christmas, despairing at its commercialism (not something many kids wonder about these days!). But it’s Snoopy giving his best penguin impression and the transformation of Charlie’s scrawny tree by his friends that really melts my heart.’
Emma Justice, acting editor-in-chief
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