WAMG Top 10 Christmas Movies

Ho, ho, ho! On this Christmas Eve, the Movie Geeks want to make sure we steer you towards the right festive movies this holiday season and came up with these ten. Several honorable mentions didn’t make the cut such as Life and Adventures of Santa Claus, Santa’s Slay, How the Grinch Stole Christmas (1966), Emmit Otter’s Jug Band Christmas, Jingle All the Way, The Family Stone, The Nightmare Before Christmas, The Polar Express, A Christmas Carol (1984), A Muppet Christmas Carol, Babes in Toyland (1961), Holiday Inn, It’s a Wonderful Life, Scrooge (1971), or Home Alone. Not to worry – they were considered but didn’t pass muster with the cinema elves. Come back on Christmas for our not-so traditional holiday movies lineup.

Now, for the list:

10. Love, Actually (2003)

“So if you believe in Father Christmas, children, like your Uncle Billy does, buy my festering turd of a record. And particularly enjoy the incredible crassness of the moment when we try to squeeze an extra syllable into the fourth line.” – Billy Mack (Bill Nighy)

9. A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965)

“Look, Charlie, let’s face it. We all know that Christmas is a big commercial racket. It’s run by a big eastern syndicate, you know.” – Lucy Van Pelt (voiced by Tracy Stratford)

8. Miracle on 34th Street (1947)

“Oh, Christmas isn’t just a day, it’s a frame of mind… and that’s what’s been changing. That’s why I’m glad I’m here, maybe I can do something about it.” – Kris Kringle (Edmund Gwenn)

7. White Christmas (1954)

As the final line in the movie goes, “…And may all your Christmases be white. MERRY CHRISTMAS!”

6. Gremlins (1984)

“The worst thing that ever happened to me was on Christmas. Oh, God. It was so horrible. It was Christmas Eve. I was 9 years old. Me and Mom were decorating the tree, waiting for Dad to come home from work. A couple hours went by. Dad wasn’t home. So Mom called the office. No answer. Christmas Day came and went, and still nothing. So the police began a search. Four or five days went by. Neither one of us could eat or sleep. Everything was falling apart. It was snowing outside. The house was freezing, so I went to try to light up the fire. That’s when I noticed the smell. The firemen came and broke through the chimney top. And me and Mom were expecting them to pull out a dead cat or a bird. And instead they pulled out my father. He was dressed in a Santa Claus suit. He’d been climbing down the chimney… his arms loaded with presents. He was gonna surprise us. He slipped and broke his neck. He died instantly. And that’s how I found out there was no Santa Claus.” – Kate (Phoebe Cates)

5. Scrooged (1988)

“It’s Christmas Eve. It’s the one night of the year when we all act a little nicer, we smile a little easier, we cheer a little more. For a couple of hours out of the whole year we are the people that we always hoped we would be.” – Frank Cross (Bill Murray)

4. The Santa Clause (1994)

“Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night! When I get home, I’m getting a CAT scan!” – Tim Allen (Scott Calvin/Santa Claus)

3. Elf (2003)

“First we’ll make snow angels for a two hours, then we’ll go ice skating, then we’ll eat a whole roll of Tollhouse Cookiedough as fast as we can, and then we’ll snuggle.” – Buddy (Will Ferrell)

2. A Christmas Story (1983)

“Next to me in the blackness lay my oiled blue steel beauty. The greatest Christmas gift I had ever received, or would ever receive. Gradually, I drifted off to sleep, pringing ducks on the wing and getting off spectacular hip shots.” – Ralphie as Adult (Jean Shepherd)

1. National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989)

“This is a full-blown, four-alarm holiday emergency here. We’re gonna press on, and we’re gonna have the hap, hap, happiest Christmas since Bing Crosby tap-danced with Danny f’ing Kaye. And when Santa squeezes his fat white a’ down that chimney tonight, he’s gonna find the jolliest bunch of a’holes this side of the nuthouse.” – Clark W. Griswold (Chevy Chase)