TUCK IN FROM THE COLD WITH THESE HOLIDAY MUST-SEE MOVIES

It’s that time of year when you snuggle up to a nice fire, or the ole yule log TV flame, and watch some classic holiday films. Check out our holiday-themed movie list.

To get you pumped for the season, we’ve compiled a few holiday-themed classics that you and the whole family will enjoy.

Christmas With The Kranks
Suffering from empty-nest syndrome, Luther and Nora Krank decide that they don’t want to celebrate Christmas without their daughter and decide to skip the holiday for a Caribbean holiday. Met with tons of backlash for their decision, the Kranks try their best not to let it get to them, but they find themselves having to eat their words when their daughter decides to surprise them with a visit. Slapstick comedy, clever dialogue and a cheery ending, this movie is a quirky alternative to the holiday norm.

A Christmas Story
Arguably the best Christmas movie of all time, this beloved film is hard to avoid during the holiday season. The heartwarming and hilarious tale of young Ralphie Parker’s unending quest to obtain a coveted Red Ryder BB Gun is a now a holiday staple. With a slew of memorable characters and scenes, not to mention the most ironic twist ending ever, it’s no surprise why this film tops almost every holiday movie list!

8 Crazy Nights
Taking a break from the regular Christmas-themed movies, Adam Sandler gives audiences a peek into the tradition of Hanukkah. The animated comedy is far from the squeaky clean Christmas specials that are in abundance this season and feature trademark Sandler humour.

The Nightmare Before Christmas
Tim Burton’s spooky, timeless classic is a fan favourite not only during the Halloween season, but also during Christmas as well for its seamless link of the opposite seasons. When Jack Skellington discovers a portal to Christmas Town he decides to bring the festive holiday to Halloween Town. His efforts are met with hilarious and macabre consequences. Featuring classic songs and the quintessential Tim Burton atmosphere, this is a quirky alternative to the same old festive films.

Elf
Will Ferrell delights as Buddy in this charming seasonal pleaser about a human who grows up thinking he’s one of Santa’s elves. Upon discovering that he is in fact human, Buddy sets out to find his biological father and attempts to develop a relationship with his new family. Hilarious and delightful, this flick is already a fan favourite during the holiday season and rightfully so!

Love, Actually
Richard Curtis’ holiday-themed romantic comedy is a staple of the holiday season. Focusing on the different types of love experienced by a group of seemingly random people, the movie takes place in the weeks leading up to Christmas. Featuring an ensemble cast of some of Britain’s finest actors playing some of the most heartwarming characters, this movie is one you’ll want to watch over and over with your loved ones.

The Holiday
This endearing Nancy Meyers classic romance drama will pull on your heart strings. When two lovelorn women, Cameron Diaz and Kate Winslet, exchange houses in order to get a new lease on life, they get more than they bargained for. While each suffers from a minor case of culture shock, one in LA and one in England, both women also end up becoming involved with a man (Jude Law and Jack Black) against their better judgments

 Home Alone

This holiday movie-themed hit never gets old. When young Kevin (Macaulay Culkin) is accidentally left behind when his family takes off for a vacation in France over the holiday season he finds himself having to protect his house against two bumbling burglars (Joe Pesci, Daniel Stern) who are planning to rob every house in Kevin’s suburban Chicago neighborhood.

Arthur Christmas
James McAvoy and Hugh Laurie lead the cast in this holiday charmer about the Clause family and their attempt to bring back the Christmas spirit into their lives when they discover that they have forgotten to deliver a present to a young girl. Though it wasn’t a box office hit, it was applauded by critics for its precious sentimentality and humour.

Black Christmas
If all that lovey-dovey Christmas cheer turns your stomach, then this 2006 remake of the Canadian cult horror film may be the perfect way to celebrate the holidays. Focusing on a deranged serial killer’s childhood and how that led to his murderous holiday rampage, this remake is gorier than the original and features an ending with numerous twists that will keep you jumping.

New Year’s Eve
King of the family film genre, Garry Marshall, came back with a bang with this 2011 New Year themed rom-com. Starring an ensemble cast which includes Ashton Kutcher, Sarah Jessica Parker, Robert DeNiro and many more, the movie is a collection of endearing and romantic vignettes revolving around the coming of the new year. If you want to start 2014 with a smile on your face, this is the movie to make that happen.

Scrooged
It’s just not Christmas without Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol and this modern adaptation starring Bill Murray is the clever reboot the classic tale needed. Starring Bill Murray as Frank Cross, a modern day Ebenezer Scrooge, who is cold and heartless enough to forget the true meaning of Christmas, he is visited by three spirits who hilariously and successfully show him the error of his ways.

—Compiled by Sarah Khan