Sure there's the standards; "White Christmas", "Miracle on 34th Street" and "It's A Wonderful Life." All wonderful, heartfelt classics. I do enjoy them. But my favorites are wide ranging and usually comical. I humbly offer my list of all-time favorite Christmas movies.
THE CLASSIC - "Holiday Inn"
While I am a gigantic classic movie fan, there is only one vintage holiday movie that I cherish. I started watching it on Christmas Eve years ago when I moved out on my own, and my husband and I still watch it until the wee hours of the night on Christmas Eve. It's the ORIGINAL place "White Christmas" was played. And it's waaaayyyy better than it's remake, "White Christmas". I give to you, "Holiday Inn"; Bing and Fred in their glorious best. The musical numbers are magnificent and the dancing is flawless.
Runner-Up: "Christmas In Connecticut"
THE FAMILY CLASSIC - "A Christmas Story"
This movie is my hometown. Filmed in Cleveland in the early1980s, it has it's glory every year for 24 hours straight on TBS starting Christmas Eve. It began with a cult following and grew into a national Christmastime treasure. It gave us a wicked Santa warning "You'll shoot your eye out, Kid", THE leg lamp, triple dog dares, "Oh FFFFUUUUDDDDGGGEEE", smiling Chinese duck dinners and pink bunny footie pajamas. It was also the foundation for the TV series "The Wonder Years".
If you are a fan and you ever find yourself in my wonderful hometown of Cleveland, Ohio, you simply have to take a tour of "The Christmas Story" house too.
Runner-Up: the original "Miracle on 34th Street"
THE BELLY-LAUGHER - (it's a tie) "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation" and "Elf"
Will Ferrell at his delightful, over-the-top, family-appropriate best. There really is something for everyone in this movie. My daughter watched it for the first time last year and asked, soon after Thanksgiving was over, "When are we gonna watch that silly Elf movie?". The plot is holiday heartwarming perfection with just the right dose of irreverence and slapstick humor. It's a must stop while channel surfing and we own in on DVD for "on-demand" viewing too.
Without this movie, there would be no "Home Alone", "Elf", "The Santa Clause"...etc. The original "take everything that you love/hate/cherish/drives-you-crazy/makes-you-cry/can't-wait-for moments" of Christmas and wrap it in one hilarious box with a big bow of Christmas lights.
Runner-Up: "Dr. Suess' How The Grinch Stole Christmas" full-length movie
Now I'm in the mood for an all night movie marathon! What about your family...what are "must-see"s in your holiday house?
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