Break out the brandy and rum, as we’re now officially in eggnog season! You don’t need a reason to enjoy a yuletide drink, but 2016 has been rough. We’re talking cutthroat bad. From the passing of talented artists, to the everlasting heatwave known as global warming and the craziest presidential election ever, 2016 has been no joke. Having gone through all that, we now brace ourselves for the holidays. As fun as decorations and presents can be, there’s no escaping long shopping lines, parking nightmares and family members we intentionally avoid seeing the rest of the year.
But there’s no need for “Bah! Humbug!” or locking yourself in your room for the remainder of the year. Let Myspace be your holiday safety blanket. We’re that never-ending candy cane that reenergizes your holiday spirit. And what better way to feel the magic of the season than to have an evening of classic movies and TV specials to spread the holiday cheer! From the heart-warming to the weird to the just plain “Ho, Ho, Ho!”, here are 8 holiday favorites guaranteed to go well with any eggnog drink!
Home Alone
Growing up, no movie better captured Christmas during the ‘90s than Home Alone. From the humor, fashion styles and blatant product placements (Pepsi, American Airlines, etc.), this film screams that decade, while perfectly delivering the essence of being a kid during the holidays. Considering the film is on basic cable heavy rotation starting around Thanksgiving, it won’t be hard to find.
Even though Kevin McCallister (Macaulay Culkin) relishes having a house of his own with no rules, the story ends up being a love letter to the best present one can receive during the season: family. John Hughes’ holiday classic also gives us the crazy antics of the “Wet Bandits” (or “Sticky Bandits”), a pair of bumbling robbers played by Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern. Watching them get pummeled by Macaulay every year never gets old.
Bonus tip: if you’re looking for a DIY ugly sweater design this year, you can’t go wrong with Buzz’s girlfriend…Woof!
Lethal Weapon
Now this may come as a shock, but not everyone loves holiday movies. You might have a family member like your dad, who immediately changes the channel whenever a Christmas themed movie appears onscreen. For those people, we have the right amount of macho and violence delivered with a side of Christmas music. Shane Black’s 1987 Lethal Weapon was the first action film that embraced the festivities of December. From the opening moments when we hear “Jingle Bell Rock” by Bobby Helms, the audience knows what season it is, promptly followed by a woman jumping off a high-rise to her death. If that doesn’t say “Merry Christmas,” we don’t know what does!
The film’s huge success created a path for other action films to deliver holiday violence. We could have easily gone with Die Hard or Die Hard 2, considering the festive jollies you’ll find amongst those explosions.
National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation
You really can’t have Christmas without Chevy Chase and the Griswold clan. At this point, the Griswolds are like America’s first family of comedy. As much as we liked their adventures going to Wally World or traveling through Europe, their Christmas celebration is regarded as one of the funniest films of all time.
Everyone can relate to Clark Griswold (Chase) and the stress of trying to pull off the perfect family Christmas. As things go haywire and he buckles under the holiday pressure of money, work and family, the laughs keep mounting for the audience. The Griswolds' dysfunction drives the story and the wonderful collection of supporting characters is what makes it an instant classic. From that maniac Cousin Eddie (Randy Quaid), to Julia Louis-Dreyfuss as the snotty neighbor — and the senile Uncle Lewis (William Hickey) and Aunt Bethany (Mae Questel) — a normal Christmas is unthinkable.
Bonus tip: always remember to check your Christmas tree for squirrels!
Scrooged
Even though Billy Murray had his own holiday Netflix special last year — A Very Murray Christmas — skip that and just watch this movie.
He may be a literary legend, but the character of Ebenezer Scrooge is rather “blah” in today’s world. Only a talent like Bill Murray could make you care about a boring character like Scrooge, giving him edge and humor. Murray makes being a Class-A jerk, cool. The 1988 comedy Scrooged is a modern retelling of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, with Bill playing a greedy TV executive who is paid a visit by the three ghosts of Christmas.
From watching Bill bully Bobcat Goldthwait, to him getting into a fist-fight with the Ghost of Christmas Present (Carol Kane), this movie offers nonstop laughs having no qualms with stepping over the line. Instead of Ghostbusters, people should have been asking for a sequel to this comedy masterpiece!
Christmas at Pee Wee’s Playhouse
From Dr. Seuss’ How The Grinch Stole Christmas to the Rankin/Bass productions like Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, watching Christmas specials has become a family tradition for most. As fun and nostalgic as those classics are, they pale in comparison to what you will find inside the festive happenings of the Playhouse. Just imagine a fruitcake dipped in LSD, exploding in your living room and turning everything into a twisted winter wonderland. That’s what this is.
The master of ceremonies is that fun-loving adult child, Pee Wee Herman (Paul Reubens), as he takes the world of his children’s show and sprays it with garland and ornaments. As that genie-in-a-box, Jambi would say: Guest stars? Did somebody say guest stars? This show is crammed with famous faces like Oprah, Little Richard, Magic Johnson and Whoopi Goldberg. Not random enough for you? How about Grace Jones, Charo and KD Lang. The wackiness of this special is tailored made to be a drinking game at your next holiday party!
A Charlie Brown Christmas
The word timeless and A Charlie Brown Christmas go hand in hand. They’re one in the same. Whichever way you wish to describe it, you can’t have a holiday list and not include this universal classic. From the soundtrack, to the themes of friendship, tiny tree and Linus’ “true meaning of Christmas” speech, this half-hour animated special has been a staple in our lives for over 50 years.
The magic of the cartoon is the holiday cheer and spirit found in the animation. Viewers either reinforce their love of the season or rediscover the meaning of why family and friends come together. Over the years, the cartoon’s impact has steadily grown, so much so that countless pieces of merchandise have been produced, including the tree replica with Linus’ blanket, a personal favorite. Regardless of where we are in life, a nice constant is that every year we’ll be able to unwrap and enjoy this treasure.
One Magic Christmas
A lesser known holiday gem is this 1985 film that is the perfect embodiment of trying to find the holiday spirit during difficult times. Mary Steenburgen plays Ginny, a working class mother to a small family that is facing hardships during Christmas. From the loss of a job and having no money, to experiencing a tragic death in the family, Ginny has lost her Christmas spirit. That’s when the supernatural intervenes in the form of the angel Gideon (played by Harry Dean Stanton), who, with the assistance of Ginny’s young daughter, helps her rediscover the true meaning of Christmas.
Packed with emotion, charm and some Christmas magic, you’ll be sure to get the feels. A bonus treat for viewers is quite possibly the best incarnation of Santa Claus in cinema. Even though we’ve seen Santa and his elves countless times before, this version feels textured and authentic.
Love Actually
As much as I wanted to stick Batman Returns on the list, I have to go with this modern holiday favorite. You’ve all seen this film by now. It’s the rom-com with The Walking Dead’s Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln) declaring his love for Keira Knightley at her doorway with cue cards. The film has an all-star team of British actors featuring Hugh Grant, Emma Thompson, Colin Firth and the late Alan Rickman. Basically any actor living in the UK at the time was included in the film.
Since the holidays are a good time to infuse love into your life, this is a must-see if you’re trying to set the mood with that special someone, or looking to seal the deal under the mistletoe. Packed with entertaining characters that each have their own love story, fans have taken to claiming allegiance to favorite storylines that have them smiling every December.
See what else made it into our Top 8 by visiting its official page.
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