The Top 100 Christmas movies of all-time
by Eric-Scissorhands | created - 12 Mar 2011 | updated - 3 months ago | PublicEvery Year around the holidays, i dust off my VHS Tapes & DVDs and watch some of these flicks to help get into the "Spirit of the Holiday Season."
I'm gonna go through a whole lot of crappy made for tv xmas flicks as well to bring you the ones actually worth watching. :D
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1. It's a Wonderful Life (1946)
PG | 130 min | Drama, Family, Fantasy
An angel is sent from Heaven to help a desperately frustrated businessman by showing him what life would have been like if he had never existed.
Director: Frank Capra | Stars: James Stewart, Donna Reed, Lionel Barrymore, Thomas Mitchell
Votes: 498,576
2. Die Hard (1988)
R | 132 min | Action, Thriller
A New York City police officer tries to save his estranged wife and several others taken hostage by terrorists during a Christmas party at the Nakatomi Plaza in Los Angeles.
Director: John McTiernan | Stars: Bruce Willis, Alan Rickman, Bonnie Bedelia, Reginald VelJohnson
Votes: 943,826 | Gross: $83.01M
yes, it IS a christmas movie
3. A Christmas Carol (1951)
TV-PG | 86 min | Drama, Family, Fantasy
Ebenezer Scrooge, a curmudgeonly, miserly businessman, has no time for sentimentality and largely views Christmas as a waste of time. However, this Christmas Eve, he will be visited by three spirits who will show him the error of his ways.
Director: Brian Desmond Hurst | Stars: Alastair Sim, Jack Warner, Kathleen Harrison, Mervyn Johns
Votes: 25,717
+ A Muppet Christmas Carol, A Christmas Carol (2009), A Christmas Carol (1999) (TV Movie)
4. Home Alone (1990)
PG | 103 min | Comedy, Family
An eight-year-old troublemaker, mistakenly left home alone, must defend his home against a pair of burglars on Christmas Eve.
Director: Chris Columbus | Stars: Macaulay Culkin, Joe Pesci, Daniel Stern, John Heard
Votes: 652,147 | Gross: $285.76M
+ Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992)
in my family we rewatch 1 & 2 evrery other year, last year was HA1, this year HA2, next year back to HA1. They've become staples for the holiday season.
5. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964 TV Movie)
TV-G | 47 min | Animation, Adventure, Comedy
A young reindeer Rudolph lives at the North Pole. His father is one of Santa's reindeer and it is expected that Rudolph will eventually be one too. However, he has a feature which is a setback and causes him to be ostracized: his red nose.
Director: Larry Roemer | Stars: Billie Mae Richards, Burl Ives, Larry D. Mann, Paul Soles
Votes: 37,452
6. Christmas Vacation (1989)
PG-13 | 97 min | Comedy
The Griswold family's plans for a big family Christmas predictably turn into a big disaster.
Director: Jeremiah S. Chechik | Stars: Chevy Chase, Beverly D'Angelo, Juliette Lewis, Johnny Galecki
Votes: 219,984 | Gross: $71.32M
7. A Christmas Story (1983)
PG | 93 min | Comedy, Family
In the 1940s, a young boy named Ralphie Parker attempts to convince his parents, teacher, and Santa Claus that a Red Ryder Range 200 Shot BB gun really is the perfect Christmas gift.
Director: Bob Clark | Stars: Peter Billingsley, Melinda Dillon, Darren McGavin, Scott Schwartz
Votes: 168,564 | Gross: $20.61M
8. Miracle on 34th Street (1947)
Not Rated | 96 min | Comedy, Drama, Family
After a divorced New York mother hires a nice old man to play Santa Claus at Macy's, she is startled by his claim to be the genuine article. When his sanity is questioned, a lawyer defends him in court by arguing that he's not mistaken.
Director: George Seaton | Stars: Edmund Gwenn, Maureen O'Hara, John Payne, Gene Lockhart
Votes: 54,886 | Gross: $2.65M
+ Miracle on 34th Street (1994)
9. Elf (2003)
PG | 97 min | Adventure, Comedy, Family
Raised as an oversized elf, Buddy travels from the North Pole to New York City to meet his biological father, Walter Hobbs, who doesn't know he exists and is in desperate need of some Christmas spirit.
Director: Jon Favreau | Stars: Will Ferrell, James Caan, Bob Newhart, Zooey Deschanel
Votes: 310,553 | Gross: $173.40M
10. Gremlins (1984)
PG | 106 min | Comedy, Fantasy, Horror
A young man inadvertently breaks three important rules concerning his new pet and unleashes a horde of malevolently mischievous monsters on a small town.
Director: Joe Dante | Stars: Zach Galligan, Phoebe Cates, Hoyt Axton, John Louie
Votes: 247,493 | Gross: $148.17M
11. Bad Santa (2003)
R | 92 min | Comedy, Crime, Drama
A miserable conman and his partner pose as Santa and his Little Helper to rob department stores on Christmas Eve. But they run into problems when the conman befriends a troubled kid.
Director: Terry Zwigoff | Stars: Billy Bob Thornton, Bernie Mac, Lauren Graham, John Ritter
Votes: 155,102 | Gross: $60.06M
+Bad Santa 2
12. Edward Scissorhands (1990)
PG-13 | 105 min | Drama, Fantasy, Romance
The solitary life of an artificial man - who was incompletely constructed and has scissors for hands - is upended when he is taken in by a suburban family.
Director: Tim Burton | Stars: Johnny Depp, Winona Ryder, Dianne Wiest, Anthony Michael Hall
Votes: 523,273 | Gross: $56.36M
13. Scrooged (1988)
PG-13 | 101 min | Comedy, Drama, Fantasy
A selfish, cynical television executive is haunted by three spirits bearing lessons on Christmas Eve.
Director: Richard Donner | Stars: Bill Murray, Karen Allen, John Forsythe, John Glover
Votes: 116,363 | Gross: $60.33M
14. The Santa Clause (1994)
PG | 97 min | Comedy, Drama, Family
When a man inadvertently makes Santa fall off his roof on Christmas Eve, he finds himself magically recruited to take his place.
Director: John Pasquin | Stars: Tim Allen, Judge Reinhold, Wendy Crewson, Eric Lloyd
Votes: 133,353 | Gross: $144.83M
+ The Santa Clause 2
15. Trading Places (1983)
R | 116 min | Comedy
A snobbish investor and a wily street con artist find their positions reversed as part of a bet by two callous millionaires.
Director: John Landis | Stars: Eddie Murphy, Dan Aykroyd, Ralph Bellamy, Don Ameche
Votes: 165,532 | Gross: $90.40M
16. A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965 TV Movie)
TV-G | 25 min | Animation, Comedy, Drama
Depressed at the commercialism he sees around him, Charlie Brown tries to find a deeper meaning to Christmas.
Director: Bill Melendez | Stars: Ann Altieri, Chris Doran, Sally Dryer, Bill Melendez
Votes: 44,062
17. Joyeux Noel (2005)
PG-13 | 116 min | Drama, History, Music
In December 1914, an unofficial Christmas truce on the Western Front allows soldiers from opposing sides of the First World War to gain insight into each other's way of life.
Director: Christian Carion | Stars: Diane Kruger, Benno Fürmann, Guillaume Canet, Natalie Dessay
Votes: 31,969 | Gross: $1.05M
18. The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)
PG | 76 min | Animation, Family, Fantasy
Jack Skellington, king of Halloween Town, discovers Christmas Town, but his attempts to bring Christmas to his home causes confusion.
Director: Henry Selick | Stars: Danny Elfman, Chris Sarandon, Catherine O'Hara, William Hickey
Votes: 374,743 | Gross: $75.08M
19. Happiest Season (2020)
PG-13 | 102 min | Comedy, Romance
A holiday romantic comedy that captures the range of emotions tied to wanting your family's acceptance, being true to yourself, and trying not to ruin Christmas.
Director: Clea DuVall | Stars: Kristen Stewart, Mackenzie Davis, Mary Steenburgen, Victor Garber
Votes: 47,338
20. The Family Man (2000)
PG-13 | 125 min | Comedy, Drama, Fantasy
A fast-lane investment broker, offered the opportunity to see how the other half lives, wakes up to find that his sports car and girlfriend have become a mini-van and wife.
Director: Brett Ratner | Stars: Nicolas Cage, Téa Leoni, Don Cheadle, Jeremy Piven
Votes: 119,281 | Gross: $75.79M
21. The Shop Around the Corner (1940)
Not Rated | 99 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
Two employees at a gift shop can barely stand each other, without realizing that they are falling in love through the post as each other's anonymous pen pal.
Director: Ernst Lubitsch | Stars: Margaret Sullavan, James Stewart, Frank Morgan, Joseph Schildkraut
Votes: 38,406 | Gross: $0.20M
22. Love Actually (2003)
R | 135 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
Follows the lives of eight very different couples in dealing with their love lives in various loosely interrelated tales all set during a frantic month before Christmas in London, England.
Director: Richard Curtis | Stars: Hugh Grant, Martine McCutcheon, Liam Neeson, Laura Linney
Votes: 531,090 | Gross: $59.70M
23. 8-Bit Christmas (2021)
PG | 97 min | Comedy, Family
In 1980s Chicago, a 10-year-old sets out on a quest to get the Christmas gift of his generation: the latest and greatest video-game system.
Director: Michael Dowse | Stars: Winslow Fegley, Neil Patrick Harris, Steve Zahn, June Diane Raphael
Votes: 21,611
24. Silent Night (2002 TV Movie)
TV-PG | 100 min | Biography, Drama, War
In a cabin on a World War II front, a German mom with a young son mediates a truce between three German and three American soldiers so they can all celebrate Christmas Eve 1944 together.
Director: Rodney Gibbons | Stars: Linda Hamilton, Matthew Harbour, Romano Orzari, Alain Goulem
Votes: 1,879
25. Violent Night (2022)
R | 112 min | Action, Comedy, Thriller
An elite team of mercenaries breaks into a family compound on Christmas Eve, taking everyone hostage. However, they aren't prepared for a surprise combatant: Santa Claus is on the grounds, and he's about to show why this Nick is no saint.
Director: Tommy Wirkola | Stars: David Harbour, John Leguizamo, Beverly D'Angelo, Alex Hassell
Votes: 98,826 | Gross: $50.06M
26. The Polar Express (2004)
G | 100 min | Animation, Adventure, Comedy
On Christmas Eve, a young boy embarks on a magical adventure to the North Pole on the Polar Express, while learning about friendship, bravery, and the spirit of Christmas.
Director: Robert Zemeckis | Stars: Tom Hanks, Chris Coppola, Michael Jeter, Leslie Zemeckis
Votes: 241,049 | Gross: $183.37M
27. The Holdovers (2023)
R | 133 min | Comedy, Drama
A cranky history teacher at a prep school is forced to remain on campus over the holidays with a grieving cook and a troubled student who has no place to go.
Director: Alexander Payne | Stars: Paul Giamatti, Da'Vine Joy Randolph, Dominic Sessa, Carrie Preston
Votes: 134,686
28. A Christmas Story Christmas (2022)
PG | 98 min | Comedy, Family
Follows the now-adult Ralphie as he returns to the house on Cleveland Street to give his kids a magical Christmas like the one he had as a child, reconnecting with childhood friends, and reconciling the passing of his Old Man.
Director: Clay Kaytis | Stars: Peter Billingsley, Erinn Hayes, River Drosche, Julianna Layne
Votes: 18,625
29. The Christmas Chronicles (2018)
PG | 104 min | Adventure, Comedy, Family
The story of sister and brother, Kate and Teddy Pierce, whose Christmas Eve plan to catch Santa Claus on camera turns into an unexpected journey that most kids could only dream about.
Director: Clay Kaytis | Stars: Kurt Russell, Darby Camp, Judah Lewis, Oliver Hudson
Votes: 83,419
+ The Christmas Chronicles 2
30. Better Watch Out (II) (2016)
R | 89 min | Comedy, Horror, Thriller
On a quiet suburban street, a babysitter must defend a twelve-year-old boy from intruders, only to discover it's far from a normal home invasion.
Director: Chris Peckover | Stars: Olivia DeJonge, Levi Miller, Ed Oxenbould, Aleks Mikic
Votes: 46,185 | Gross: $0.02M
31. The Night Before (II) (2015)
R | 101 min | Comedy, Fantasy
On Christmas Eve, three lifelong friends spend the night in New York City looking for the Holy Grail of Christmas parties.
Director: Jonathan Levine | Stars: Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Seth Rogen, Jillian Bell, Lizzy Caplan
Votes: 82,582 | Gross: $43.04M
32. Remember the Night (1939)
Passed | 94 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
Love blooms between a sympathetic attorney and the comely shoplifter he has taken home for the Christmas holiday.
Director: Mitchell Leisen | Stars: Barbara Stanwyck, Fred MacMurray, Beulah Bondi, Elizabeth Patterson
Votes: 7,183 | Gross: $0.17M
33. Batman Returns (1992)
PG-13 | 126 min | Action, Crime, Fantasy
While Batman deals with a deformed man calling himself the Penguin wreaking havoc across Gotham with the help of a cruel businessman, a female employee of the latter becomes the Catwoman with her own vendetta.
Director: Tim Burton | Stars: Michael Keaton, Danny DeVito, Michelle Pfeiffer, Christopher Walken
Votes: 327,081 | Gross: $162.83M
34. The Shepherd (I) (2023)
PG | 38 min | Short, Drama, Fantasy
On Christmas Eve, a fighter pilot on his way home gets lost mid-flight over water and needs a miracle to land safely.
Director: Iain Softley | Stars: Ben Radcliffe, Claire Price, Scarlet Grace, Millie Kent
Votes: 4,240
35. Black Christmas (1974)
R | 98 min | Horror, Mystery, Thriller
During their Christmas break, a group of sorority girls are stalked by a stranger.
Director: Bob Clark | Stars: Olivia Hussey, Keir Dullea, Margot Kidder, John Saxon
Votes: 48,283 | Gross: $4.05M
36. How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (1966 TV Movie)
Not Rated | 26 min | Animation, Comedy, Family
A grumpy hermit hatches a plan to steal Christmas from the Whos of Whoville.
Directors: Chuck Jones, Ben Washam | Stars: Boris Karloff, June Foray, Dal McKennon
Votes: 58,983
+ How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000)
37. The Ref (1994)
R | 97 min | Comedy, Crime, Drama
A cat burglar is forced to take a bickering, dysfunctional family hostage on Christmas Eve.
Director: Ted Demme | Stars: Denis Leary, Judy Davis, Kevin Spacey, Robert J. Steinmiller Jr.
Votes: 26,534 | Gross: $11.44M
38. Last Christmas (2019)
PG-13 | 103 min | Comedy, Drama, Fantasy
Kate is a young woman subscribed to bad decisions. Working as an elf in a year-round Christmas store is not good for the wannabe singer. However, she meets Tom there. Her life takes a new turn--that seems too good to be true.
Director: Paul Feig | Stars: Madison Ingoldsby, Emma Thompson, Boris Isakovic, Lucy Miller
Votes: 90,400 | Gross: $35.15M
39. Krampus (I) (2015)
PG-13 | 98 min | Comedy, Fantasy, Horror
A boy who has a bad Christmas accidentally summons a festive demon to his family home.
Director: Michael Dougherty | Stars: Adam Scott, Toni Collette, David Koechner, Allison Tolman
Votes: 84,018 | Gross: $42.59M
40. A Boy Called Christmas (2021)
PG | 106 min | Adventure, Drama, Family
In this origin story of Father Christmas, an ordinary boy--with a loyal pet mouse and a reindeer at his side--sets out on an extraordinary adventure to find his father, who is on a quest to discover the fabled village of Elfhelm.
Director: Gil Kenan | Stars: Maggie Smith, Isabella O'Sullivan, Joel Fry, Eden Lawrence
Votes: 27,235
41. Prancer (1989)
G | 103 min | Drama, Family, Fantasy
A farm girl nurses a wounded reindeer she believes is one of Santa's, hoping to bring it back to health in time for Christmas. Her holiday spirit inspires those around her, something her disheartened father is having trouble understanding.
Director: John D. Hancock | Stars: Sam Elliott, Cloris Leachman, Rutanya Alda, Abe Vigoda
Votes: 6,340 | Gross: $18.59M
42. Candy Cane Lane (I) (2023)
PG | 117 min | Comedy, Family, Fantasy
A man is determined to win the neighborhood's annual Christmas decorating contest. He makes a pact with an elf to help him win--and the elf casts a spell that brings the 12 days of Christmas to life, which brings unexpected chaos to town.
Director: Reginald Hudlin | Stars: Eddie Murphy, Tracee Ellis Ross, Jillian Bell, Genneya Walton
Votes: 20,051
43. Surviving Christmas (2004)
PG-13 | 91 min | Comedy, Romance
A lonely, obnoxious young millionaire pays a family to spend Christmas with him.
Director: Mike Mitchell | Stars: Ben Affleck, Christina Applegate, James Gandolfini, Catherine O'Hara
Votes: 27,740 | Gross: $11.66M
44. Jingle All the Way (1996)
PG | 89 min | Adventure, Comedy, Family