With Christmas being tomorrow I thought it would be fitting to bring you My Top 10 Favorite Christmas Films of All-Time. This was definitely one of the hardest lists I have ever had to do simply because there are so many great Christmas films. But before I begin the list I want to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and I want to thank you all for the support that you all have given me since June when I started the blog. But anyway enough of the sappiness and without further ado...
10. Home Alone 2: Lost in New York
After snarky youth Kevin McCallister (played by Macaulay Culkin) loses track of his father at the airport, he mistakenly gets on a plane headed for New York City (while the rest of the McCallisters fly to Florida). Now alone in the Big Apple, Kevin cons his way into a room at the Plaza Hotel and begins his usual antics. But when Kevin discovers that the Sticky Bandits Harry and Marv (played by Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern respectively) are on the loose, he struggles to stop them from robbing an elderly man's toy store just before Christmas. Home Alone 2: Lost in New York has a rating of 24% on rottentomatoes.com.
9. Miracle on 34th Street (1947)
An old man going by the name of Kris Kringle (played by Edmund Gwenn) fills in for an intoxicated Santa in Macy's annual Thanksgiving Day parade. Kringle proves to be such a hit that he is soon appearing regularly at the chain's main store in midtown Manhattan. When Kringle surprises customers and employees alike by claiming that he really is Santa Claus, it leads to a court case to determine his mental health and, more importantly, his authenticity. Miracle on 34th Street was nominated for 4 Academy Awards including Best Supporting Actor, Best Picture, Best Story and Best Original Screenplay while winning 3 (Best Supporting Actor, Best Story and Best Original Screenplay), and it has a rating of 94% on rottentomatoes.com.
8. Prancer
Refusing to give up her belief in Santa Claus, a child, Jessica Riggs (played by Rebecca Harrell), discovers a hurt reindeer in the woods, which she believes to be Prancer. With the help of a sympathetic veterinarian Dr. Orel Benton (played by Abe Vigoda), Jessica takes care of the wounded creature. It's supposed to be a secret, but eventually a store Santa Claus (played by Michael Constantine), the girl's dad John (played by Sam Elliott) and the entire town find out about Prancer, leading to big problems for Jessica and her family. Prancer has a rating of 69% on rottentomatoes.com.
7. The Nightmare Before Christmas
The film follows the misadventures of Jack Skellington (voiced by Chris Sarandon), Halloweentown's beloved pumpkin king, who has become bored with the same annual routine of frightening people in the "real world." When Jack accidentally stumbles on Christmastown, all bright colors and warm spirits, he gets a new lease on life - he plots to bring Christmas under his control by kidnapping Santa Claus and taking over the role. But Jack soon discovers even the best-laid plans of mice and skeleton men can go seriously awry. The Nightmare Before Christmas was nominated for 1 Academy Award (Best Visual Effects) and it has a rating of 96% on rottentomatoes.com.
6. Its a Wonderful Life
George Bailey (played by James Stewart), a man who has given up his dreams in order to help others and whose imminent suicide on Christmas Eve brings about the intervention of his guardian angel, Clarence Odbody (played by Henry Travers). Clarence shows George all the lives he has touched and how different life in his community of Bedford Falls would be had he never been born. It's a Wonderful Life was nominated for 5 Academy Awards including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Film Editing and Best Sound Recording and it has a rating of 93% on rottentomatoes.com.
5. Bad Santa
The crotchety Willie T. Stokes (played by Billy Bob Thornton) and his partner Marcus (played by Tony Cox) reunite once a year for a holiday con. Posing as a mall Santa and his elf, they rip off shopping outlets on Christmas Eve. This year, however, Willie is falling apart. He's depressed and alcoholic, and his erratic behavior draws the suspicion of mall security guard Gin Slagel (played by Bernie Mac). But when befriending a small boy named Thurman (played by Brent Kelly) brings out his kinder side, Willie begins to wonder if there is still some hope for him. Bad Santa has a rating of 77% on rottentomatoes.com.
4. A Christmas Story
The film centers on Ralphie Parker (played by Peter Billingsley), a young boy living in 1940s Indiana, desperately yearning for a Red Rider BB gun for Christmas. Despite protests from his mother (played by Melinda Dillon) that he'll shoot his eye out, Ralphie persists, unsuccessfully trying to enlist the assistance of both his teacher and Santa Claus. All the while, Ralphie finds himself dealing with the constant taunts of a pair of bullies and trying to not get in the middle of a feud between his mother and father (played by Darren McGavin) regarding a sexy lamp. A Christmas Story has a rating of 89% on rottentomatoes.com.
3. National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation
As the holidays approach, Clark Griswold (played by Chevy Chase) wants to have a perfect family Christmas, so he pesters his wife, Ellen (played by Beverly D'Angelo), and children, as he tries to make sure everything is in line, including the tree and house decorations. However, things go awry quickly. His hick cousin, Eddie (played by Randy Quaid), and his family show up unplanned and start living in their camper on the Griswold property. Even worse, Clark's employers renege on the holiday bonus he needs. National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation has a rating of 63% on rottentomatoes.com.
2. The Santa Clause
Divorced dad Scott (played by Tim Allen) has custody of his son Charlie (Eric Lloyd) on Christmas Eve. After he accidentally kills a man in a Santa suit, they are magically transported to the North Pole, where an elf named Bernard (played by David Krumholtz) explains that Scott must take Santa's place before the next Christmas arrives. Scott thinks he's dreaming, but over the next several months he gains weight and grows an inexplicably white beard. Maybe that night at the North Pole wasn't a dream after all (and maybe Scott has a lot of work to do). The Santa Clause has a rating of 75% on rottentomatoes.com.
1. Home Alone
When bratty 8-year-old Kevin McCallister (played by Macaulay Culkin) acts out the night before a family trip to Paris, his mother (played by Catherine O'Hara) makes him sleep in the attic. After the McCallisters mistakenly leave for the airport without Kevin, he awakens to an empty house and assumes his wish to have no family has come true. But his excitement sours when he realizes that two con men Harry and Marv (played by Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern respectively) plan to rob the McCallister residence, and that he alone must protect the family home. Home Alone has a rating of 54% on rottentomatoes.com.
So ladies and gentlemen what do you think of my list and what are some of your favorite Christmas movies of all-time? Let me know in the comments section and let your voice be heard.
Merry Christmas,
Jonah Sparks
10. Home Alone 2: Lost in New York
After snarky youth Kevin McCallister (played by Macaulay Culkin) loses track of his father at the airport, he mistakenly gets on a plane headed for New York City (while the rest of the McCallisters fly to Florida). Now alone in the Big Apple, Kevin cons his way into a room at the Plaza Hotel and begins his usual antics. But when Kevin discovers that the Sticky Bandits Harry and Marv (played by Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern respectively) are on the loose, he struggles to stop them from robbing an elderly man's toy store just before Christmas. Home Alone 2: Lost in New York has a rating of 24% on rottentomatoes.com.
9. Miracle on 34th Street (1947)
An old man going by the name of Kris Kringle (played by Edmund Gwenn) fills in for an intoxicated Santa in Macy's annual Thanksgiving Day parade. Kringle proves to be such a hit that he is soon appearing regularly at the chain's main store in midtown Manhattan. When Kringle surprises customers and employees alike by claiming that he really is Santa Claus, it leads to a court case to determine his mental health and, more importantly, his authenticity. Miracle on 34th Street was nominated for 4 Academy Awards including Best Supporting Actor, Best Picture, Best Story and Best Original Screenplay while winning 3 (Best Supporting Actor, Best Story and Best Original Screenplay), and it has a rating of 94% on rottentomatoes.com.
8. Prancer
Refusing to give up her belief in Santa Claus, a child, Jessica Riggs (played by Rebecca Harrell), discovers a hurt reindeer in the woods, which she believes to be Prancer. With the help of a sympathetic veterinarian Dr. Orel Benton (played by Abe Vigoda), Jessica takes care of the wounded creature. It's supposed to be a secret, but eventually a store Santa Claus (played by Michael Constantine), the girl's dad John (played by Sam Elliott) and the entire town find out about Prancer, leading to big problems for Jessica and her family. Prancer has a rating of 69% on rottentomatoes.com.
7. The Nightmare Before Christmas
The film follows the misadventures of Jack Skellington (voiced by Chris Sarandon), Halloweentown's beloved pumpkin king, who has become bored with the same annual routine of frightening people in the "real world." When Jack accidentally stumbles on Christmastown, all bright colors and warm spirits, he gets a new lease on life - he plots to bring Christmas under his control by kidnapping Santa Claus and taking over the role. But Jack soon discovers even the best-laid plans of mice and skeleton men can go seriously awry. The Nightmare Before Christmas was nominated for 1 Academy Award (Best Visual Effects) and it has a rating of 96% on rottentomatoes.com.
6. Its a Wonderful Life
George Bailey (played by James Stewart), a man who has given up his dreams in order to help others and whose imminent suicide on Christmas Eve brings about the intervention of his guardian angel, Clarence Odbody (played by Henry Travers). Clarence shows George all the lives he has touched and how different life in his community of Bedford Falls would be had he never been born. It's a Wonderful Life was nominated for 5 Academy Awards including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Film Editing and Best Sound Recording and it has a rating of 93% on rottentomatoes.com.
5. Bad Santa
The crotchety Willie T. Stokes (played by Billy Bob Thornton) and his partner Marcus (played by Tony Cox) reunite once a year for a holiday con. Posing as a mall Santa and his elf, they rip off shopping outlets on Christmas Eve. This year, however, Willie is falling apart. He's depressed and alcoholic, and his erratic behavior draws the suspicion of mall security guard Gin Slagel (played by Bernie Mac). But when befriending a small boy named Thurman (played by Brent Kelly) brings out his kinder side, Willie begins to wonder if there is still some hope for him. Bad Santa has a rating of 77% on rottentomatoes.com.
4. A Christmas Story
The film centers on Ralphie Parker (played by Peter Billingsley), a young boy living in 1940s Indiana, desperately yearning for a Red Rider BB gun for Christmas. Despite protests from his mother (played by Melinda Dillon) that he'll shoot his eye out, Ralphie persists, unsuccessfully trying to enlist the assistance of both his teacher and Santa Claus. All the while, Ralphie finds himself dealing with the constant taunts of a pair of bullies and trying to not get in the middle of a feud between his mother and father (played by Darren McGavin) regarding a sexy lamp. A Christmas Story has a rating of 89% on rottentomatoes.com.
3. National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation
As the holidays approach, Clark Griswold (played by Chevy Chase) wants to have a perfect family Christmas, so he pesters his wife, Ellen (played by Beverly D'Angelo), and children, as he tries to make sure everything is in line, including the tree and house decorations. However, things go awry quickly. His hick cousin, Eddie (played by Randy Quaid), and his family show up unplanned and start living in their camper on the Griswold property. Even worse, Clark's employers renege on the holiday bonus he needs. National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation has a rating of 63% on rottentomatoes.com.
2. The Santa Clause
Divorced dad Scott (played by Tim Allen) has custody of his son Charlie (Eric Lloyd) on Christmas Eve. After he accidentally kills a man in a Santa suit, they are magically transported to the North Pole, where an elf named Bernard (played by David Krumholtz) explains that Scott must take Santa's place before the next Christmas arrives. Scott thinks he's dreaming, but over the next several months he gains weight and grows an inexplicably white beard. Maybe that night at the North Pole wasn't a dream after all (and maybe Scott has a lot of work to do). The Santa Clause has a rating of 75% on rottentomatoes.com.
1. Home Alone
When bratty 8-year-old Kevin McCallister (played by Macaulay Culkin) acts out the night before a family trip to Paris, his mother (played by Catherine O'Hara) makes him sleep in the attic. After the McCallisters mistakenly leave for the airport without Kevin, he awakens to an empty house and assumes his wish to have no family has come true. But his excitement sours when he realizes that two con men Harry and Marv (played by Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern respectively) plan to rob the McCallister residence, and that he alone must protect the family home. Home Alone has a rating of 54% on rottentomatoes.com.
So ladies and gentlemen what do you think of my list and what are some of your favorite Christmas movies of all-time? Let me know in the comments section and let your voice be heard.
Merry Christmas,
Jonah Sparks
No comments:
Post a Comment