Paramount PicturesIn less than a week we will all be gathered around the Christmas tree sipping on eggnog and toasting to our favorite holiday, but until then we have a lot to do.
For starters, we need to finish up our holiday shopping, start baking cookies—they're a festive must-have—and of course watch all of our favorite Christmas movies.
While there is technically no expiration date on Christmas movies it does make more sense to watch them all from now until the end of December, so there really isn't that much time left.
With holiday hits like White Christmas, Elf, The Santa Clause, It's a Wonderful Life and so many more on our favorites list we really have no idea how we're going to see them all. Add in all the epic Hallmark holiday movies and we're pretty much going to be watching Christmas films all day, every day for the rest of the month, but we're not complaining.
In fact, we love Christmas movies so much that we rounded up all the top ones for a magical holiday gallery.
If we're being honest, there are almost too many good Christmas films for one person to watch, so we thought we'd get your input on our list. Which holiday movie is on your must-watch list every year?
Are you into the jolliness of old St. Nick in Miracle on 34th Street? Or, are you more into laughing, courtesy of A Christmas Story or National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation? What about the classics like White Christmas and Holiday Inn which you can sing and dance along to. Do those make your list?
Perhaps you love romance holiday films like The Holiday and Love Actually. Or, we bet you are a major childhood classics person watching Elf, Home Alone, or How the Grinch Stole Christmas on repeat all month long.
No matter which holiday flick is your jam we want to hear from you. Vote for your favorite Christmas movie below—after seeing which films we love and can't stop watching—and then get to watching.
There are only a few days left until Santa comes and you want to be all caught up on those Christmas movies before he does!
If you've ever dreamed of a white Christmas then you might have this iconic 1954 film to thank for it. White Christmas is one of the greatest holiday films ever made and 60 plus years after it came out fans are still singing along to songs like "Sisters," "White Christmas" and "Snow" as they decorate their tree and watch two song-and-dance team partners—Bob Wallace (Bing Crosby) and Phil Davis (Danny Kayne)—team up and fall in love with a sister act—Betty (Rosemary Clooney) and Judy Haynes (Vera Ellen)—while putting on the greatest show Vermont has ever seen.
After Santa falls off his roof and dies on Christmas Eve, Scott Calvin (Tim Allen) is recruited to take his place thanks to the Santa clause. Along the way his life changes in ways he never thought possible, his son becomes more and more obsessed with him and things get interesting as he prepares to take over as the big guy.
When it comes to the holidays we fully support watching Miracle on 34th Street no matter which actors you prefer. The story of a lawyer and a sweet little girl trying to prove that a man who claims to be Santa Claus is the real thing has been brought to life twice and both versions are wonderful. In 1947, the first film premiered with Maureen O'Hara as Doris Walker, Natalie Wood as Susan Walker (the little girl), John Payne as Fred Gailey (the lawyer), and Edmund Gwenn as Kris Kringle. Then in 1994, the tale was brought back to life—this time in color—with Elizabeth Perkins as Dorey Walker, Mara Wilson as Susan Walker (the little girl), Dylan McDermott as Bryan Bedford (the lawyer) and Richard Attenborough as Kris Kringle.
Home Alone brought Macaulay Culkin to super stardom at the hands of John Hughes and the memorable story of an eight-year-old kid named Kevin McCallister who gets left home by accident when his family travels to Paris for the holidays. When his house falls victim to two burglars, he must do everything he can to protect his home, including set booby traps of flying paint cans, sharp ornaments on the floor and a blow torch. It's iconic and we can't help but love this movie. PS: Home Alone 2 is also worth a watch at Christmas.
Who says you can't have a Halloween and a Christmas movie all rolled into one? The Nightmare Before Christmas marries both holidays as the Pumpkin King Jack Skellington discovers that there are other towns, including Christmas Town, which he wants to incorporate into Halloween Town. The Tim Burton film of course gets a little dark and twisted as Jack tries to navigate changing his town and bringing Christmas to life where it doesn't belong.
Did someone call for some romance this season? The Holiday gives us lots of romance and heartbreak as two women dealing with love fails switch houses—one lives in Los Angeles and the other in England—and in turn discover that maybe a change of scenery is what you need to be happy...and to find a hot guy.
'90s lovers, this one's for you! Jonathan Taylor Thomas dressed as Santa, stuck in the desert without any way home is the holiday story we never knew we needed. After a practical jokes leaves him stranded before Christmas he makes his way home for the holidays and eventually embraces the whole Santa suit thing for the ultimate road trip adventure.
Who doesn't love A Charlie Brown Christmas? It's such a treat to watch this childhood favorite year after year. Seeing Charlie Brown try to find the true meaning of Christmas mixed with his sad tree and Snoopy dancing is just so much fun.
Nothing says Christmas like watching Holiday Inn. The iconic 1942 film brought fans "White Christmas." Yes, it was featured in this film before White Christmas in the final scene of the movie. After opening an inn that only takes guests on holidays AKA the Holiday Inn, Jim Hardy (Crosby) falls for his floor partner Linda Mason (Marjorie Reynolds) only to have her taken by his former performing partner Ted Hanover (Fred Astaire) who has aspirations of light on the big screen.
The 1966 animated version of How the Grinch Stole Christmas! still resonates with viewers of any age. Generation after generation watches this classic Dr. Seuss tale come to life as the Grinch tries to steal Christmas from the Whos living in Whoville. Sure, it's the same story as the live action movie that came after it, but there is something special about watching the original.
In 2000, Jim Carrey brought to life the famous Christmas villain in the live action version of How the Grinch Stole Christmas. He brilliantly makes the Grinch both lovable and easy to despise as the green creature hatches a plan to ruin Christmas for all those who live in Whoville. If we had it our way we'd watch both the 1966 animated version and this hilarious comedy back to back throughout December, because you can never have too much Whovillation!
All hail the Queen, or rather, the English for bringing us this wonderful Christmas movie. Throughout Love Actually, you see the lives of eight very different couples play out around the holidays. They fall in and out of love, experience first crushes and take part in cross-culture flings all before Christmas hits in London, England. It's saucy, fiery, romantic and full of Christmas magic.
Buddy the Elf, what's your favorite color? The lines in this movie are on point which is why fans of every age love watching Buddy's (Will Ferrell) journey from the North Pole to New York City in search of his father and his true identity. His affinity for elf culture is in high supply as he wanders NYC, falls in love and helps save Christmas.
A year after Jack Frost (Michael Keaton) dies in a car accident while on the road for work, he comes back to life as a snowman. Despite never keeping his promises and being present for his son's life while alive, as a snowman he tries to make amends and make memories with his son before melts away. The sweet family film also stars Kelly Preston as Jack's wife and Joseph Cross as their son, Charlie.
Holidays are about families reuniting and spending time together...even if your family is crazy like the Stones. The Family Stone shows what it's like to be an outsider at Christmas when an uptight Meredith Morton (Sarah Jessica Parker) arrives in town to celebrate Christmas with her boyfriend's free-spirited family. She calls in her sister for backup, but that only complicates things as the Stone family is dealing with their own issues that they take out on the Morton sisters.
For some people holiday movies mean Kevin McCallister, but for others it's all about Ralphie (Peter Billingsley). Set in the 1940s, A Christmas Story tells the tale of a young boy named Ralphie who does everything he can to convince all the adults in his life that a Red Ryder BB gun is the perfect Christmas gift. Despite being told, "you'll shoot your eye out!" on multiple occasions Ralphie stays true to his mission, even when he ends up dressed as a giant pink bunny!
The Griswolds really should quit these big events, but then we wouldn't have hilarious movies to watch and cringe about all the time. In National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation the ridiculous Griswold clan has big Christmas plans, but as you'd expect they don't turn out the way they want and instead disaster ensues. Chevy Chase reprises his role as the patriarch of the family, Clark, so you know it's going to be one wild Christmas.
Arnold Schwarzenegger in a Christmas movie...why not? In this 1996 comedy, Schwarzenegger's character Howard Langston tries to become the cool dad by getting his son a Turbo Man action figure for Christmas even though he's late to the game and they're sold out everywhere. He travels all over town, ends up competing with a mail man and then winds up as Turbo Man (in a parade no less) all while trying to get this pesky doll.
Oh what a wonderful life it is! This 1946 classic shines a spotlight on George Bailey (James Stewart), a frustrated and seemingly failing businessman, after an angel is sent to help him see what life would be like without him. Spoiler alert: he matters and makes a difference!