Best Christmas Movies
by lindumond | created - 27 Nov 2014 | updated - 27 Nov 2014 | Public- Instant Watch Options
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1. The Polar Express (2004)
G | 100 min | Animation, Adventure, Comedy
On Christmas Eve, a young boy embarks on a magical adventure to the North Pole on the Polar Express, while learning about friendship, bravery, and the spirit of Christmas.
Director: Robert Zemeckis | Stars: Tom Hanks, Chris Coppola, Michael Jeter, Leslie Zemeckis
Votes: 241,404 | Gross: $183.37M
2. It's a Wonderful Life (1946)
PG | 130 min | Drama, Family, Fantasy
An angel is sent from Heaven to help a desperately frustrated businessman by showing him what life would have been like if he had never existed.
Director: Frank Capra | Stars: James Stewart, Donna Reed, Lionel Barrymore, Thomas Mitchell
Votes: 499,345
3. Miracle on 34th Street (1947)
Not Rated | 96 min | Comedy, Drama, Family
After a divorced New York mother hires a nice old man to play Santa Claus at Macy's, she is startled by his claim to be the genuine article. When his sanity is questioned, a lawyer defends him in court by arguing that he's not mistaken.
Director: George Seaton | Stars: Edmund Gwenn, Maureen O'Hara, John Payne, Gene Lockhart
Votes: 54,929 | Gross: $2.65M
4. Arthur Christmas (2011)
PG | 97 min | Animation, Adventure, Comedy
Santa's clumsy son Arthur sets out on a mission with Grandsanta to give out a misplaced present to a young girl in less than two hours on Christmas Day.
Directors: Sarah Smith, Barry Cook | Stars: James McAvoy, Jim Broadbent, Bill Nighy, Hugh Laurie
Votes: 67,126 | Gross: $46.46M
5. Christmas Vacation (1989)
PG-13 | 97 min | Comedy
The Griswold family's plans for a big family Christmas predictably turn into a big disaster.
Director: Jeremiah S. Chechik | Stars: Chevy Chase, Beverly D'Angelo, Juliette Lewis, Johnny Galecki
Votes: 220,173 | Gross: $71.32M
6. Prancer (1989)
G | 103 min | Drama, Family, Fantasy
A farm girl nurses a wounded reindeer she believes is one of Santa's, hoping to bring it back to health in time for Christmas. Her holiday spirit inspires those around her, something her disheartened father is having trouble understanding.
Director: John D. Hancock | Stars: Sam Elliott, Cloris Leachman, Rutanya Alda, Abe Vigoda
Votes: 6,343 | Gross: $18.59M
7. Santa Claus: The Movie (1985)
PG | 107 min | Adventure, Family, Fantasy
The legend of Santa Claus is put in jeopardy when an unscrupulous toy manufacturer attempts to take over Christmas.
Director: Jeannot Szwarc | Stars: Dudley Moore, John Lithgow, David Huddleston, Burgess Meredith
Votes: 15,604 | Gross: $23.72M
8. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964 TV Movie)
TV-G | 47 min | Animation, Adventure, Comedy
A young reindeer Rudolph lives at the North Pole. His father is one of Santa's reindeer and it is expected that Rudolph will eventually be one too. However, he has a feature which is a setback and causes him to be ostracized: his red nose.
Director: Larry Roemer | Stars: Billie Mae Richards, Burl Ives, Larry D. Mann, Paul Soles
Votes: 37,484
9. Elf (2003)
PG | 97 min | Adventure, Comedy, Family
Raised as an oversized elf, Buddy travels from the North Pole to New York City to meet his biological father, Walter Hobbs, who doesn't know he exists and is in desperate need of some Christmas spirit.
Director: Jon Favreau | Stars: Will Ferrell, James Caan, Bob Newhart, Zooey Deschanel
Votes: 310,884 | Gross: $173.40M
10. A Christmas Carol (2009)
PG | 96 min | Animation, Adventure, Comedy
An animated retelling of Charles Dickens' classic novel about a Victorian-era miser taken on a journey of self-redemption, courtesy of several mysterious Christmas apparitions.
Director: Robert Zemeckis | Stars: Jim Carrey, Gary Oldman, Colin Firth, Steve Valentine
Votes: 129,569 | Gross: $137.86M
11. The Nutcracker (1993)
G | 92 min | Family, Fantasy, Music
On Christmas Eve, a little girl named Marie falls asleep after a party at her house and dreams of a fantastic world where toys become larger than life.
Director: Emile Ardolino | Stars: Darci Kistler, Damian Woetzel, Kyra Nichols, Wendy Whelan
Votes: 2,447 | Gross: $2.12M
12. Little Women (1994)
PG | 115 min | Drama, Family, Romance
The March sisters live and grow in post-Civil War America.
Director: Gillian Armstrong | Stars: Susan Sarandon, Winona Ryder, Kirsten Dunst, Claire Danes
Votes: 63,618 | Gross: $50.08M
13. Home Alone (1990)
PG | 103 min | Comedy, Family
An eight-year-old troublemaker, mistakenly left home alone, must defend his home against a pair of burglars on Christmas Eve.
Director: Chris Columbus | Stars: Macaulay Culkin, Joe Pesci, Daniel Stern, John Heard
Votes: 653,057 | Gross: $285.76M
14. Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992)
PG | 120 min | Adventure, Comedy, Crime
One year after Kevin McCallister was left home alone and had to defeat a pair of bumbling burglars, he accidentally finds himself stranded in New York City - and the same criminals are not far behind.
Director: Chris Columbus | Stars: Macaulay Culkin, Joe Pesci, Daniel Stern, Catherine O'Hara
Votes: 402,697 | Gross: $173.59M
15. Samantha: An American Girl Holiday (2004 TV Movie)
Not Rated | 86 min | Drama, Family
Set in 1904, "American Girls" revolves around Samantha as she moves in with her grandmother and learns how to become a proper Victorian young lady.
Director: Nadia Tass | Stars: AnnaSophia Robb, Jordan Bridges, Rebecca Mader, Kelsey Lewis
Votes: 2,204
16. The House Without a Christmas Tree (1972 TV Movie)
Unrated | 75 min | Drama, Family
In 1946 Nebraska, a young girl named Addie desperately craves a Christmas tree, but her bitter widower father refuses because of events from the family's past.
Director: Paul Bogart | Stars: Jason Robards, Mildred Natwick, Lisa Lucas, Kathryn Walker
Votes: 913
17. Miracle on 34th Street (1994)
PG | 114 min | Drama, Family, Fantasy
A lawyer and a little girl must prove that a man claiming to be Santa Claus is the real thing.
Director: Les Mayfield | Stars: Richard Attenborough, Elizabeth Perkins, Dylan McDermott, J.T. Walsh
Votes: 43,888 | Gross: $17.19M
18. Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town (1970 TV Movie)
TV-G | 48 min | Animation, Adventure, Comedy
A mailman reveals the origin of Santa Claus.
Directors: Jules Bass, Arthur Rankin Jr. | Stars: Fred Astaire, Mickey Rooney, Keenan Wynn, Paul Frees
Votes: 17,509
19. The Year Without a Santa Claus (1974 TV Movie)
TV-G | 51 min | Animation, Comedy, Family
When a weary and discouraged Santa Claus considers skipping his Christmas Eve run one year, Mrs. Claus and his elves set out to change his mind.
Directors: Jules Bass, Arthur Rankin Jr. | Stars: Shirley Booth, Mickey Rooney, Dick Shawn, George S. Irving
Votes: 11,642
20. The Shop Around the Corner (1940)
Not Rated | 99 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
Two employees at a gift shop can barely stand each other, without realizing that they are falling in love through the post as each other's anonymous pen pal.
Director: Ernst Lubitsch | Stars: Margaret Sullavan, James Stewart, Frank Morgan, Joseph Schildkraut
Votes: 38,511 | Gross: $0.20M
21. Holiday Inn (1942)
Passed | 100 min | Comedy, Drama, Music
At an inn which is open only on holidays, a crooner and a hoofer vie for the affections of a beautiful up-and-coming performer.
Directors: Mark Sandrich, Robert Allen | Stars: Bing Crosby, Fred Astaire, Marjorie Reynolds, Virginia Dale
Votes: 17,630 | Gross: $8.18M
22. White Christmas (1954)
Not Rated | 120 min | Comedy, Musical, Romance
A successful song-and-dance team become romantically involved with a sister act and team up to save the failing Vermont inn of their former commanding general.
Director: Michael Curtiz | Stars: Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, Rosemary Clooney, Vera-Ellen
Votes: 51,142 | Gross: $30.00M
23. It Happened on Fifth Avenue (1947)
Passed | 116 min | Comedy, Music, Romance
Two homeless men move into a mansion while its owners are wintering in the South.
Director: Roy Del Ruth | Stars: Don DeFore, Ann Harding, Charles Ruggles, Victor Moore
Votes: 6,299
24. Christmas in Connecticut (1945)
Approved | 101 min | Comedy, Romance
A food writer who has lied about being the perfect housewife must try to cover her deception when her boss and a returning war hero invite themselves to her home for a traditional family Christmas.
Director: Peter Godfrey | Stars: Barbara Stanwyck, Dennis Morgan, Sydney Greenstreet, Reginald Gardiner
Votes: 12,030
25. A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965 TV Movie)
TV-G | 25 min | Animation, Comedy, Drama
Depressed at the commercialism he sees around him, Charlie Brown tries to find a deeper meaning to Christmas.
Director: Bill Melendez | Stars: Ann Altieri, Chris Doran, Sally Dryer, Bill Melendez
Votes: 44,104
26. Christmas in South Park (2007 Video)
TV-MA | 100 min | Animation, Comedy, Musical
A collection of South Park Christmas tales, featuring classic episodes and memorable characters.
Stars: Trey Parker, Matt Stone, Mary Kay Bergman
Votes: 4,453
27. The Little Drummer Boy (1968 TV Movie)
Not Rated | 25 min | Animation, Drama, Family
An orphan drummer boy who hates humanity finds his life changed forever when he meets three wise men en route to Bethlehem.
Directors: Jules Bass, Arthur Rankin Jr., Takeo Nakamura | Stars: José Ferrer, Paul Frees, June Foray, Ted Eccles
Votes: 6,396
28. Frosty the Snowman (1969 TV Short)
TV-G | 25 min | Animation, Short, Comedy
A living snowman and a little girl struggle to elude a greedy magician who is after the snowman's magic hat.
Directors: Jules Bass, Arthur Rankin Jr. | Stars: Jackie Vernon, Billy De Wolfe, Jimmy Durante, Paul Frees
Votes: 21,466
29. How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (1966 TV Movie)
Not Rated | 26 min | Animation, Comedy, Family
A grumpy hermit hatches a plan to steal Christmas from the Whos of Whoville.
Directors: Chuck Jones, Ben Washam | Stars: Boris Karloff, June Foray, Dal McKennon
Votes: 59,040
30. Cricket on the Hearth (1967 TV Movie)
TV-G | 60 min | Animation, Adventure, Comedy
A cricket seeks to rescue a poor toymaker and his blind daughter from an exploitative miser.
Directors: Jules Bass, Arthur Rankin Jr. | Stars: Danny Thomas, Marlo Thomas, Ed Ames, Hans Conried
Votes: 828
31. The Leprechauns' Christmas Gold (1981 TV Movie)
TV-G | 25 min | Animation, Comedy, Family
An Irish sailor is stranded on an island full of Leprechauns and soon finds himself aiding them in protecting their gold from a greedy Hag.
Directors: Jules Bass, Arthur Rankin Jr. | Stars: Art Carney, Peggy Cass, Bob McFadden, Ken Jennings
Votes: 766
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