The Best Christmas Movies Of All Time
The Best Christmas Movies Of All Time
A Charlie Brown Christmas
Few Christmas movies genuinely appeal to me since I don't enjoy Christmas and I don't really like anything else either. We didn't celebrate much since we just moved gifts from Diwali to Christmas Day because I was raised by cranky, pessimistic Hindus, but what's tougher is that the holiday movies' cheerful evangelizing has never resonated with me. Even today, despite the fact that I'm always surrounded by people who celebrate Christmas and want me to, oh, pretend I adore mulled wine (ooh, yeah, warm cough syrup, 'tis the season), Christmas still feels like a lonely time.
Naturally, the holiday film that best resonates with me is A Charlie Brown Christmas. It's somber and strangely grim for children's television, and at the end it's only mildly treacly. Maybe there's something comforting about seeing Charlie's pitiful little tree (an analogy for me) or seeing Lucy become enraged with Schroeder because Christmas makes me miserable — this year, especially, for reasons I don't believe I have to go into in full detail (also me, somehow). Christmas is difficult! Why do we even attempt to pretend otherwise? I don't have to pretend to be having fun or be the happiest person in the room while I'm among the Peanuts gang, at least.
Home Alone 2: Lost in New York
Rewatching childhood favorites has been one of my favorite pandemic activities. I just watched both Home Alone films again. Despite having a narrative that is largely the same, the sequel is so sincere and full of the precise type of joy that I had been seeking during our year of never-ending grief that there were times when I really started crying. Has there ever been a better child actor?! It's billed as a comedy, and it's led by the gifted Macaulay Culkin, who expertly nails the precocity of Kevin McCallister, the young boy whose sense of alienation in his own family manifests when they coincidentally board two different flights for Christmas vacation, one headed to Miami and the other to New York City.
Kevin, who is now forced to enjoy the holiday alone in the large metropolis, makes the best of it. He deceitfully checks into the Plaza Hotel using his father's credit card, gets room service, and watches movies that are unquestionably inappropriate for his age. Kevin enjoys the breathtaking view from the top of the South Tower of the World Trade Center in New York City. Fantastic performances by Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern as the two thieves who aren't quite adept at outwitting a 10-year-old youngster. Is the scene in Stern where Marv unintentionally electrocutes himself dangerous? Probably! HILARIOUS? ABSOLUTELY! The John Williams score is also exquisite.
The Family Stone
Dermot Mulroney portrays Everett, the stereotypically cold-hearted city resident who is spending the holidays at his suburban house. This year, he's bringing Meredith (Sarah Jessica Parker, always memorable), who's upmarket bohemian siblings are put off by her neat bun and workaholic tendencies. Meredith becomes increasingly awkward the more she attempts to become friends with them. She makes anti-gay remarks against Everett's homosexual brother Thad (Tyrone Giordano) at a famous dinner scene, and only their other brother Ben (Luke Wilson, charming as the Cali stoner) shows compassion for her.
For me, the moment is far more about how upset their mother Sybil (Diane Keaton) is at Meredith for suggesting there's anything wrong with her son. I know that a lot of people are turned off by the redemption narrative for this anti-gay loser of a woman. (And keep in mind that this movie debuted 15 years ago.) I'm here more for Diane Keaton as the matriarch of the Stone family than for the ridiculous romances and outrageous conflicts. Can you blame me for having mommy issues as a lesbian? Every every time, I weep at the conclusion. Shelly Keating
The Holiday
This masterpiece by Nancy Meyers is ostensibly about two women who swap houses for the holidays — Cameron Diaz's Amanda, a disgruntled movie trailer producer in LA, and Kate Winslet's Iris, a columnist in England — but it's really about what happens when you surround yourself with people who reflect you back to yourself and who see and celebrate you for who you've always been. Iris' transformation from a pushover in love to someone who embraces their helping nature gives you a feeling of connection. The type of wholesomeness she experiences with Eli Wallach's Arthur, an old-school movie star who gets lost in a modernized neighborhood and business, is just what the year 2020 needs.
Elf
This 2003 holiday film featuring Will Ferrell as a human who grew up with elves in the North Pole and who must travel to New York to find his father contains many memorable quotes. Like when Ferrell's Buddy the Elf discovers that his father (James Caan) is on the bad list and that he is not, in reality, a gigantic elf. He yells, "Not now, Arctic Puffin!" as he frantically runs across the snow with a group of stop-motion figurines who are his companions. Or later, when asked why he grins so much, he replies, "I adore smiling, smiling's my favorite."
The film, which was directed by Jon Favreau, follows Buddy as he searches for his father while simultaneously attempting to spread holiday happiness. Buddy's path of self-discovery matches that of any Greek hero. Watching Ferrell portray a quirky adult dressed as an elf who causes chaos everywhere he goes is simply amazing.
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