65 Best Holiday Movies of All Time
There's nothing better than curling up on the couch with some popcorn, hot chocolate, and a holiday flick.
Abby is so in love with her girlfriend, Harper. She's even looking forward to proposing when she visits Harper's family for their annual Christmas dinner. But there's one huge issue: Harper's family has no idea about their relationship or that she's gay. Now, Abby has to decide if she and Harper even have a future together.
Ellen wants nothing more than to inherit her dad's business, but there's one thing standing in her way: a Christmas card. Her dad wants her to deliver a special card to her dad's former partner, but she ends up getting snowed in before she can make the trip and has to figure out what she's going to do to make her dream come through.
Jeronicus Jangle used to invent toys that everyone loved, but after his apprentice stole one of his most prized creations, he loses his creative spark. Years later, his granddaughter, Journey, is spending the holidays with him when she learns about what happened. She teams up with one of his older inventions to get her granddad back on track and save her family's business.
Based on the song of the same name, Last Christmas follows the story of a woman named Kate in London. She works as an elf all year round and isn't too happy with where he life is going. But when she meets a name Tom, everything may change for the better.
In the middle of the Smokey Mountains lies a historic berry farm that belongs to Shelby Haygood's family. The farm has come come on some hard times and Shelby decides to throw a Christmas concert to save her family's livelihood. She goes so far as to reach out to her ex boyfriend turned country music star, Mason Wyatt, to make it happen. But the two of them coming together might cause more drama than they realize.
Sloane is tired of her family always asking about her love life and Jackson is tired of casually dating during the holidays. So the two of them decide to team up and be each others' "holidates." That way, he doesn't have to worry about dating and her family. But the longer the two of them keep up this arrangement, the more they might actually like each other.
Office parties can get a little crazy and this one is no exception. This movie is all about the CEO named Carol who's trying to close down the branch of her company that her brother, Clay, oversees and get rid of a huge chunk of the staff in the process. But when a huge client comes in, Clay sees this as a way to save the company money while keeping the staff and throws a huge Christmas party he invites this client to. Carol isn't happy about it to say the least.
Brad and Kate have been in love for years, but Christmas has always been a struggle. They always make big plans to avoid going home, but this year, they've got no such luck. Now, they're forced to spend it with their dysfunctional families and each of their divorced parents.
Santa wants to pass down his duties to his daughter, Cassie, and have her marry Jack Frost's son. But before she's committed to the North Pole forever, Cassie wants to experience the "real world." She goes off to college and tries to keep her famous dad a secret, but she soon feels pressure to choose between her new life and her home life.
Two sisters, Miranda and Lyla bring their families to their childhood home for Christmas. Both sisters are leaving behind fast-paced lives to connect back to their roots, but sibling rivalries flare up again when they're stuck in the same house.
Kat is an aspiring singer/songwriter but her life is getting in the way of her dreams. Her stepmother and stepsisters treat her like a servant while she tries to get her career off the ground as a year-round elf. But when she meets a new Santa at work and gets invited to a wintertime gala, her life may make a turn for the better.
Based on the book by the same name by Susan Coyne, the movie takes place in 1843 and follows author Charles Dickens as he writes the famous book A Christmas Carol. He's struggling after his last three books were unsuccessful. Since his publishes no longer want to work with him, Dickens decides to self-publish his next book and fix his financial problems.
Erica is a congressional aide who skips out on Christmas with her family to instead work in Guam at a US Air Force base. Her boss suspects taxpayer dollars are being wrongly used to fund a project called Operation Christmas Drop and Erica has to figure out what's up. But when she meets Andrew, he tries his best to help her realize what the operation is really about.
Tasha is a doctor who works with children. She loves her job and the kids she works with, but her happy work life is interrupted when Prince Alexander Cavalieri breaks his leg. To keep his privacy, the her job sneaks him into the children's ward and Tasha is forced to put up with his entitled attitude. But she later learns that the Christmas spirit and some kindness may be what she needs to give him for things to change. The movie even has a sequel.
This classic Christmas movie follows Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol through some of your fave Disney characters. Uncle Scrooge McDuck is visited by the three spirits of Christmas to remember the true meaning of the holiday.
During Christmastime, Detective Mackenzie Bennett is tracking down a suspected diamond thief named Carson. She goes undercover to catch up, but ends up catching feelings for him. On top of that, she starts to suspect that he's been framed. She has to figure out if her feelings are clouding her judgement or if he's the guy she's looking for.
Kate and Teddy end up discovering the magic of Christmas together after they successfully catch Santa Claus delivering gifts on the rooftops of their neighborhood. After Santa discovers Kate and Teddy hiding in his sleigh, it crashes and Santa loses his hat and a bunch of presents in the process. The three have to team up to get Santa back on track to deliver the presents in time before Christmas spirit is lost once again.
The Whitfield is trying to enjoy their first Christmas together in four years, but it's not that simple. They've been living across the country from each other and have been so disconnected for so long, it's almost like they don't know how to be in the same room. Who knows how they're going to survive this holiday together.
Alison isn't too happy this holiday season since she just got fired from her job. She decides to fill her time teaching ice skating lessons on a friend's pond when her high school sweetheart shows up. Ivan, now a famous hockey player, wants his niece to learn to skate, but this could be the first step in a brand new romance between himself and Alison.
Kate is making the best out of her situation as she goes on a solo second honeymoon in Africa after her husband left her. After meeting a pilot named Derek, the two of them rescue an orphaned baby elephant and Kate extends her stay to spend the holidays overseas. But once she goes back home to New York, she realizes that the life she lived in Africa may be the life she really wants.
On a trip to Belgravia right before Christmas, Stacy discovers she looks just like Duchess Margaret Delacourt, a royal figure in the country. Wanting to live a "normal" life, Margaret and Stacy switch lives for two days and agree to switch back in time for Stacy's baking competition and Margaret's marriage to a handsome prince. But, of course, things aren't that simple when Margaret falls in love with Stacy's BFF Kevin and Stacy has eyes for the prince.
In The Princess Switch sequel, Duchess Margaret thought she avoided life as a royal. But she now finds herself about to become the queen of Montenaro. And she and Kevin are having problems. He begins to think he could never be good enough for her. Stacy now has royal duties of her own but she helps/ Margaret again so Margaret and Kevin can have alone time to work through their issues.
But now, a third look-alike has entered the picture. Margaret's cousin Fiona has spent her family's fortune and no one knows that she's decided to take over Margaret's life so she can have the funds of Montenaro's royal treasury all to herself.
This 1985 movie is all about a woodcutter who discovers elves living in the North Pole and gains immortality as Santa Claus. Over time, one of the elves named Patch dreams of a life that's more than just making toys and runs off to NYC. Now, Santa's on a mission to bring Patch back to his rightful place and rescue him from the trouble he's gotten himself into.
Connie is pretty busy around Christmastime because of her work as a secret shopper. While raising her son Timmy, she's dating a guy named Carl. She's not in love with him but wants the best for her son, Timmy. As Christmas gets closer, she meets a guy named Steve through her work and can't seem to stay away from him. Once the two fall in love, Connie has to decide whom she's going to be with and what decision is best for her son.
Although this isn't your typical holiday movie, Batman Returns takes place around the holidays of 1992. From the sewers of Gotham comes The Penguin, who wants to be accepted into Gotham society. He teams up with businessman Max Shreck to become the mayor of Gotham for all kinds of power and control over the city. After almost being killed by The Penguin, Selina Kyle becomes Catwoman and helps Batman take them down.
Howard is so busy at his job with a mattress company, his son Jamie feels neglected by his dad. After he misses another one of Jamie's events, Howard wants to make it up to him by getting him the best Christmas gift he can. The only problem is that all Jamie wants is a Turbo Man action figure. Since it's Christmas Eve, every store is sold out. Now, Howard has to do everything he can to show Jamie he does care and get him the gift he really wants.
Rush is a DJ that ends up getting fired right before the holidays. His kids want all kinds of expensive gifts for the holidays and he's not sure what he's going to do. To go into business for himself, his family wants to help him buy his own station. But his family needs to scale back from its high-priced lifestyle to make it happen.
Another version of the famous A Christmas Carol, but this time with The Muppets. This time, the Muppets take Scrooge on an adventure to learn what Christmas is really about. Plus, Kermit and Miss Piggy are married in this one so she's sure to be happy about that.
In this movie, Santa is on the run from the police. After crashing his sleigh in a family's garage, he hiding until the father and son of the house, Steve and Tom, find him. But after Santa gets locked up once again, this duo is determined to help him return home and save Christmas.
Izzy get stuck at school on the last day before Christmas break when her parents are running late and a blizzard hits the area. But when the school's janitor is kidnapped, it's up to her to save him.
In this movie, Arthur Claus, son of Santa, discovers his dad's technology designed to deliver gifts to every good child has mistakenly forgotten to send off one little girl's gift. Now, along with his grandfather, an elf and a team of reindeer, Arthur ventures off to deliver this girl's gift and save her Christmas.
Husband and wife Lance and Mia want to get a group of all their friends together for the holidays for the first time in over 10 years. But one friend, Harper, has his own secret reason for showing up. He wants to use Lance's life story to sell as a biography behind his back, keep the money all to himself, and getting himself out of some serious money problems.
The movie takes place during the holidays while Georgia is a department store employee. She has big dreams to become a professional chef, but never acts on them. But when she discovers she has a terminal illness, she decides to live her best life.
Jesper is enrolled in the postal academy by his father in hopes that the experience will make him more responsible. But Jesper isn't having it and wants to do his own thing. But when he sees Klaus in the woods and discovers his home is filled with handmade toys, Jesper eventually convinces Klaus to deliver toys to all the kids of the town Smeerensburg. That way, Jesper has more letters to send and claim his family's fortune.
In this sequel to the 2000 Life-Size movie, Eve is back to help another one of her very best friends. Grace is the CEO of the toy company most famous for manufacturing the Eve doll, but now Grace realizes her position may be too much for her to handle. She reaches out to a neighbor for help and when her old Eve doll comes back to life, she helps Grace through the ups and downs of life and the holiday season.
On Christmas Eve, while his children are still small, Santa chooses his son Nick as his successor. His sister Noelle is a little jealous, but she accepts it for what it is. The movie then jumps years later when the two are adults and their dad has died.
Now, Nick is taking over the family business but he isn't doing a great job. All the stress leaves him needing a vacation. Noelle suggests he take the weekend off, he disappears. She goes off to find him before Christmas is Santa-less.
Walter lost his wife, Grace, a year previously. For the holidays this year, he wants to get his family back together again. He invites his kids and their families only to realize how much they all fight. Now they have to see if they can all spend five days together under the same roof and actually get along.
A sorceress transports medieval knight Sir Cole to present day Ohio right before the holidays so that he can claim his destiny. He meets a high school science teacher named Brooke who hasn't had the best luck with love. She tries to get him accustomed to the modern world while helping him fulfill the quest that will get him home.
During a game of hide and seek, a young girl named Lucy discovers a mysterious wardrobe that transports her to Narnia. After discovering that the White Witch has cursed Narnia, she attempts to help the creatures of Narnia with the help of her siblings.
In hopes of scoring an interview with Prince Richard, who will soon be taking over the throne, Amber decides to disguise herself as his little sister’s tutor. As she learns more about his family and their secrets, Amber finds herself falling for him and must decide between her relationship with Richard or her career.
Jack Frost has been the Spirit of Winter for over 300 years. After many years of frustration, he tries to uncover how he died and became who he is, while also trying to protect himself and the rest of the holiday guardians from Pitch Black, the Nightmare King.
Year after year, the jokes just don't get old (just check out this hilarious reminder why Elf is the best holiday movie ever!). Watch this one with your friends — you'll be quoting it to each other all through winter break.
Thanks to TBS airing A Christmas Story for 24 hours straight every year, practically everyone with a TV has seen this oldie but goodie. So many people love the story of Ralphie wanting a B.B. gun for Christmas that the movie was even turned into a Broadway musical.
Nine intersecting love stories make Love Actually the best holiday rom-com ever! You'll laugh, you'll cry, and you'll feel all warm and fuzzy inside when you're done watching. When pushy holiday shoppers and bah-humbug scrooges start getting to you, it's good to remember that "love, actually, is all around us."
Reading The Polar Express as a kid, the illustrations nearly jumped off the pages — but the graphics in the movie version are a whole other level of awesomeness. Cuddle up with your little cousins, nieces, or siblings for the story of a boy riding a magical train to the North Pole on Christmas Eve.
There are a slew of holiday movies about believing in Santa Claus, but Miracle On 34th Street is one of the few that isn't totally cheesy and that gets better every time you watch it. If you've never seen this remake of the 1940s classic about a young girl convincing her mom (who runs the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade) that Santa is real, make it a yearly tradition — starting now.
A hot British guy to swoon over should be a prerequisite for every holiday movie. Plus, Jude Law, Cameron Diaz, Kate Winslet, and Jack Black give The Holiday the perfect mix of funny and sentimental.
The epic tale of three ghosts who make the most grumpy, bah humbug Scrooge discover the true meaning of Christmas is the perfect holiday classic to remind you about what's most important in life. Disney's reimagining of the Charles Dickens' classic is a beautifully animated 3-D flick, starring Jim Carrey as Ebenezer Scrooge — the must-watch movie to get you into the holiday spirit.
The live-action reimagining of the Dr. Seuss classic Christmas story became an instant holiday staple, not only because Jim Carey, the king of roles where a bad guy learns to love Chirstmas, starred in it, but because it put the song "Where Are You Christmas" on your radar of best Christmas carols right behind "All I Want for Christmas is You."
Sure, the 2000 live-action version of How the Grinch Stole Christmas has all the special effects and bells and whistles, but the old-school cartoon version is still a must-watch every year. The classic cartoon is such a fun reminder of reading the Dr. Suess book as a kid.
Stream Home Alone when being cooped up in the house with the fam over winter break starts to drive you nuts. Eight-year-old Kevin McAllister has to defend his house against a pair of goofy burglars, and the antics he pulls will crack you up. If the movie leaves you wanting more, there's Home Alone 2 and Home Alone 3, too.
Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer is another old-school holiday classic. Some of the best Christmas songs came from this 1964 film, like "Holly Jolly Christmas." It's so much fun to sing along to, and somehow, it never gets old.
Before Elf came along, this Christmas classic was pretty much known as the best holiday movie of all time. The hilarious misadventures of the Griswolds, which turn their happy Christmas plans into one big disaster, will have you literally laughing until you cry, the entire time.
It's just not Christmas without The Santa Clause. After Santa falls off the roof, Scott Calvin (Tim Allen) becomes the new Santa Claus, and he and his son get to experience the magic of the North Pole. The only problem is, nobody believes he is Santa, not even Scott himself. This fun and feel-good flick is so loved that there have been two sequels.
The endearing and true message of how everyone's life is meaningful makes It's A Wonderful Life the ultimate holiday classic. It's almost impossible not to cry (happy) tears at the end.
Even though A Charlie Brown Christmas first aired on TV in 1965, the animated movie's message is still totally relevant. It's easy to get caught up in the materialism of the holidays, but Charlie, Lucy, Linus, and a little fir tree remind us of the true meaning of the season.
Leave it to Disney and Tim Burton to bring us a movie that covers not one, but two holidays. The Nightmare Before Christmas tells the story of Jack Skellington, the pumpkin king from Halloween Town, who discovers Christmas Town and decides he wants to take over Christmas. Rent this one when you're on "Holly Jolly Christmas" overload.
The original Frosty the Snowman cartoon was made in 1969 and it still airs every year at Christmastime. The black-and-white cartoon still makes you anxious that Frosty will melt each time you watch it, but you know how the song goes.
Even though none of the brilliant movies in the Harry Potter series are strictly holiday movies, they're still holiday classics regardless. Not only are all the HP movies played non-stop on TV networks' holiday rotations, but the holiday scenes and decorations at Hogwarts are some of the best you'll ever see on your TV screen.
What do you get when you take the iconic story of The Christmas Carol, replace Scrooge with a Scrooge-ish PR executive Christina Milian, the ghosts of Christmas with her late socialite client played by Ashley Benson, and add a bit of Chad Michael Murray? You get this flawless TV Movie Christmas classic.
This classic DCOM is all about two thirteen year old Los Angeles-based girls who desperately want one thing for Christmas: snow. So when they find a weather machine at a shack in the woods by chance, they use it to give L.A. a white Christmas. Only problem is, the weather machine turns out to be Santa's and it's totally broken. What started as some harmless snow turns into a full blown blizzard and the girls have to rush to help Santa fix the machine to before Christmas is ruined.
This movie is basically Frosty the Snowman... if Frosty were an unreliable father named Jack Frost who dies in a car crash and gets reincarnated as a snowman to set things right with the son he left behind.
A Chicago Transit Authority token collector named Lucy has a hopeless crush on a commuter named Peter that passes through her turnstyle on the regular. Even though her life is consumed with loneliness, that all changes when she saves Peter's life after a nasty fall in front of an oncoming train and is mistaken for his fiancée by Peter's family. Since Peter is in a coma, she goes along with it and spends Christmas with Peter's family (and finds herself falling for his brother, Bill). The only problem is, what if Peter wakes up? Things could get AWK-WARD.
65 Best Holiday Movies of All Time
There's nothing better than curling up on the couch with some popcorn, hot chocolate, and a holiday flick.
Get into the festive spirit with the best holiday movies ever.
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