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Top 10 Christmas Movies


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#1 Mike in STL

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Posted 14 December 2017 - 12:53 PM

I didn't see a thread for this. Which is surprising. Maybe some lists are buried in the random thread.

 

Anyway....there is always a debate about what is, or isn't a Christmas movie (Die Hard). Well guess what? After a quick google search, every list from IMDB, Rotten Tomatoes, magazine articles, all lump in Die Hard, and other movies that take place around Christmas, even if Christmas isn't the driving force of the plot. 

 

I think considering Rotten Tomatoes didn't even put Home Alone in their list disqualifies them from being movie critics of any kind, period, in my book now. But Esquire had a decent list: http://www.esquire.c...es-of-all-time/

 

(Disclaimer: I haven't seen It's a Wonderful Life. So maybe that disqualifies me. But whatever).

 

My top 10 Christmas movies:

 

10. Home Alone 2

9. Miracle on 34th St. (either one)

8. Scrooged

7. Elf

6. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang

5. A Christmas Story

4. The Santa Clause

3. Christmas Vacation

2. Die Hard

1. Home Alone

 

If you want to kick Kiss Kiss Bang Bang and Die Hard off the list, then add The Muppet Christmas Carol and Bad Santa to the back end of the list and shift everything else up one notch. 

 


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#2 bnickle

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Posted 14 December 2017 - 01:14 PM

I don't get The Christmas Story love. I mean there is nothing wrong with it but so many people rank it at the top of their Xmas movie list. Also Im firmly in the camp that Die Hard is not a Christmas movie

#3 Mike in STL

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Posted 14 December 2017 - 01:26 PM

I don't get The Christmas Story love. I mean there is nothing wrong with it but so many people rank it at the top of their Xmas movie list. Also Im firmly in the camp that Die Hard is not a Christmas movie

Probably because it's Christmas through and through. Like you could probably make Home Alone take place any time of year. A Christmas Story only works as a Christmas movie. 

 

I see both sides of the Die Hard argument. But it along with Lethal Weapon, Batman Returns, are on a lot of lists. Die Hard takes place on Christmas Eve. There is a Christmas party, ugly sweaters, Christmas puns. Plenty of Christmas music in the soundtrack. It's more of a Christmas movie than Batman Returns or Gremlins.


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#4 Pedro Cerrano

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Posted 14 December 2017 - 01:26 PM

Die Hard is a Christmas movie.


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#5 Pedro Cerrano

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Posted 14 December 2017 - 01:29 PM

Nothing will top Christmas Vacation for me.  

 

Die Hard is a better "movie" (it's maybe the best action movie ever) but it's XMas tones are more subtle.

 

Lots of good picks, some I have never seen.


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There is baseball, and occasionally there are other things of note

"Now OPS sucks.  Got it."

"Making his own olive brine is peak Mackus."

"I'm too hungover to watch a loss." - McNulty

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#6 DuffMan

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Posted 14 December 2017 - 01:47 PM

I don't consider Die Hard a Christmas movie either.

 

For me there's Christmas Vacation and then everything else. 

 

In no particular order I would also include:  Scrooged, A Christmas Story, The Grinch (Original Animated version), Home Alone, It's A Wonderful Life and A Christmas Carol



#7 NewMarketSean

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Posted 14 December 2017 - 01:47 PM

This is hard, and it really depends on mood for me. But here goes:

 

7. Gremlins

6. Lethal Weapon

5. Elf

4. Christmas Vacation

3. A Christmas Story

2. Just Friends (Let me explain. I rented this on a whim at Blockbuster in 2005 and expected it to suck, but it was Christmas time so I thought what the hell. Anyway, my wife and I were both cracking up and afterward we were like, "That was really funny!" So I bought the DVD and now we tie one on and watch this every year, it's underrated and freaking hilarious. Pretty much every line gets us.)

1. Die Hard

 

Anything after those 7 movies I don't really have strong feelings for.


I never had friends later on like the ones I had when I was twelve. Jesus, does anyone?

#8 Mackus

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Posted 14 December 2017 - 02:21 PM

Muppet Christmas Carol

Bad Santa

Elf

Die Hard

Christmas Vacation

Home Alone

Christmas Story

 

Those are probably the only Christmas movies that I think I get around to watching at least part of every December.

 

I've never thought of Kiss Kiss Bang Bang as a Christmas movie, but that's probably my favorite movie that anybody has listed here.



#9 BSLChrisStoner

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Posted 14 December 2017 - 02:28 PM

Scrooged.
Christmas Vacaction.
Bad Santa.
The Grinch.
A Christmas Carol. ('84)

Die Hard if including.   (Why no Lethal Weapon if including? lol)

If I can go 15-20 years without seeing A Christmas Story, maybe it goes back on the list.

See they are doing a live version on FOX this weekend.


 



#10 SportsGuy

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Posted 14 December 2017 - 04:08 PM

Tough to come up with an order beyond Xmas Vacation being #1.

4 Christmases, Home Alone, Die Hard, Scrooged, Elf, It’s a Wonderful life, Grinch, Christmas Story, The Santa Clause



#11 NewMarketSean

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Posted 14 December 2017 - 04:12 PM

I love Christmas Vacation but once it gets near the end it kind of loses momentum for me.


I never had friends later on like the ones I had when I was twelve. Jesus, does anyone?

#12 Stringer Bell

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Posted 14 December 2017 - 04:21 PM

I think a movie should be about or actually involve Christmas, in order to be considered a Christmas movie. Not just take place around the time of year. Lethal Weapon as a Christmas movie is ludicrous to me. Christmas Story Christmas Vacation Elf Are the three I make sure to watch every year. I like several of the others listed too.
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#13 NewMarketSean

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Posted 14 December 2017 - 04:25 PM

I think a movie should be about or actually involve Christmas, in order to be considered a Christmas movie. Not just take place around the time of year. Lethal Weapon as a Christmas movie is ludicrous to me. Christmas Story Christmas Vacation Elf Are the three I make sure to watch every year. I like several of the others listed too.

Erroneous! Erroneous on both counts!


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I never had friends later on like the ones I had when I was twelve. Jesus, does anyone?

#14 SportsGuy

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Posted 14 December 2017 - 04:48 PM

Tough to come up with an order beyond Xmas Vacation being #1.

4 Christmases, Home Alone, Die Hard, Scrooged, Elf, It’s a Wonderful life, Grinch, Christmas Story, The Santa Clause


Some honorable mentions are Fred Claus, Disney Xmas carol, Deck the Halls, HA2

#15 You Play to Win the Game

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Posted 14 December 2017 - 05:49 PM


I think a movie should be about or actually involve Christmas, in order to be considered a Christmas movie. Not just take place around the time of year. Lethal Weapon as a Christmas movie is ludicrous to me. Christmas StoryChristmas VacationElfAre the three I make sure to watch every year. I like several of the others listed too.

I feel the same way. The Bourne Supremacy had a lot of snow, that a Christmas movie too? I don't associate Die Hard with Christmas either.

#16 SportsGuy

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Posted 14 December 2017 - 05:59 PM

Die Hard is more of an Xmas movie than LW.

#17 Pedro Cerrano

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Posted 14 December 2017 - 07:26 PM

"Now I have a machine gun...Ho...Ho...Ho"

 

Christmas movie


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There is baseball, and occasionally there are other things of note

"Now OPS sucks.  Got it."

"Making his own olive brine is peak Mackus."

"I'm too hungover to watch a loss." - McNulty

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#18 bnickle

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Posted 14 December 2017 - 07:29 PM


I love Christmas Vacation but once it gets near the end it kind of loses momentum for me.

This is true. Still right up there for me. It's a Wonderful Life is probably my #1

#19 Mike in STL

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Posted 14 December 2017 - 08:33 PM

Nerdist: Does Die Hard Really Qualify as a Christmas Movie?

https://nerdist.com/...hristmas-movie/

 

Even though Die Hard is not really a Christmas movie on its own and would still be phenomenal if transplanted to another time of year, it does embrace the holiday and makes it a relevant part of its story, and that story touches upon some major Christmas movie themes.
 
But the real deciding factor is that after nearly 30 years, the film has become a December tradition, and that pushes it over the hump.
 
In 2017, in this society, yes: Die Hard qualifies as an official Christmas movie. Yippee ki yay and happy holidays!

 

Sorry haters.


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#20 bnickle

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Posted 14 December 2017 - 08:49 PM

It's just not but whatever




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