The holiday season doesn't begin until you start listening to Christmas carols and find a festive movie every time you turn the TV on. But let's be honest, who doesn't love a good old movie marathon to get us into the Christmas spirits? So, this month, our Life Lovers' writers put together their best picks for you to start binge-watching the best Christmas movies 2021 now. Merry Christmas!
How the Grinch Stole Christmas
Everyone's favourite green villain had to be on this list. The Grinch has been captivating our hearts since it was presented by Dr Seuss' book in 1957. The story shares the plans of the revenge-seeking Grinch to ruin Christmas for all of the citizens of Whoville.
An animated short film, followed by a live version played by Jim Carrey (2000), ensured the character would become a part of the lives of children from every generation.
Later on, the green and sarcastic villain came back in The Grinch (2018), which sees Benedict Cumberbatch voicing the green meanie in an animated movie.
"My Dad and I have this tradition of watching The Grinch since I was a little girl. We don't live together anymore because he remarried, but we always find the time to watch it every year. I like the movie so much, but I love it because it's something I share with my only parent left and brings me so much joy!" - Claudia Herrera, Life Lover Writer from Guatemala.
The Santa Claus
As if the name wasn't enough to place him within our must-watch Christmas movies, The Santa Claus has been a favourite since the movie came out in 1994.
Starring Tim Allen as the man who makes Santa fall off his roof on Christmas Eve. This festive film shows you what can happen if the big guy is suddenly unavailable whilst getting high doses of Christmas spirit constantly sprinkling out of the screen.
"I find it refreshingly funny. It may look at the outset as a sad story with Santa disappearing, but its spirit lies in how Tim Allen's character grows and learns to love his new responsibilities. It gives a certain warm and fuzzy feeling." - Rituparna Roy - Life Lovers' Writer from India.
Nightmare Before Christmas
The Nightmare Before Christmas) is a 1993 American stop-motion animated musical dark fantasy holiday film directed by Henry Selick and produced and conceived by Tim Burton. You may think it's a more Halloween themed movie, but the truth is that this masterpiece is filled with love and discovering the unknown and, of course, music.
The film that originated from a Poem that Burton wrote in 1982 actually, tells the story of Jack Skellington, the King of "Halloween Town". It follows this fascinating character as he stumbles upon "Christmas Town" and becomes obsessed with celebrating the holiday.
Love actually
This movie reminds you that the holiday season is the perfect time to put love in the front seat and leave all fears and differences to the side.
Love actually follows the lives of eight very different couples in dealing with their love lives in various sort of interrelated tales, all set during in Londoner December.
“I love ‘Love actually’. In fact, I watch it every single year during Christmas, as it reminds me how beautiful love can be. The movie shows all of it, from the first love that we have as children, to the grief of losing your soulmate or finding your perfect match in the other side of the world. The whole movie is about how love is all around us, and for me that’s exactly what we should always remember and keep with ourselves, because it’s right there: everywhere! And even more during Christmas ♥️" - Nicky Goslow - Life Lovers' Writer from Chile.
Home Alone
Any Christmas movies list must include our favourite mischievous kid, Kevin McCallister, played by Macaulay Culkin. Home Alone is the first of these popular films released in 1990. In it, he finds himself in Chicago defending his home from burglars after his family accidentally leaves him behind on their vacation to Paris.
Elf
This festive comedy gives us Will Ferrel, a human raised as an oversized elf. In Elf, he decides to travel from the North Pole to NYC to meet his biological father, who doesn't know he exists but is in desperate need of some Christmas spirit.
"Elf is delightfully silly. It makes me laugh and gets me into the Christmas spirit. It also has many quotable lines like "Santa? I know him!!". As well as the hilarious Will Ferrell look out for amazing Zoey Deschanel and her beautiful voice" - Ellie, The Recruitment Coach - Life Lovers' Writer from the UK.
The Holiday
If you're a writer, a travel lover or simply a hopeless romantic, you'll love this movie. In The Holiday, two girls from different countries swap homes for Christmas to get away from their relationship issues.
However (of course!), their lives change unexpectedly when they meet and fall in love with two local guys. Enjoy following the adventures of our beloved Kate Winslet and Cameron Diaz, with the always delightful appearances of Jude Law and Jack Black.
Home Alone 2
Part 2 is an unmissable Christmas movie, of course. In this sequel, Kevin accidentally boards a flight to New York City and gets separated from his family, who are on their way to Miami. They forget him twice? Yeah, we know!
But the fun (and almost impossible) part is that in Home Alone 2, he ends up bumping into his old enemies, just out of jail, who now plan to rob a toy store.
"I love the setting of the movie! NYC during Christmas time is just magical. It really gets you into the spirit. Also, I am all in for the pigeon lady at Central Park. She is so wise and kind yet so misunderstood as a person." - Myrto - Life Lovers' writer from Cyprus.
The Polar express
If I tell you that Tom Hanks narrates it, it is enough to watch it. But being honest, it's also a beautiful Christmas story.
In The Polar Express, a young boy boards a train and embarks on an extraordinary journey to the North Pole to meet Santa Claus. His life will then take a turn after he encounters special people who make his trip memorable. And we're all about unforgettable journeys!
Fun fact: The film was later listed in the 2006 Guinness World Records as the first all-digital capture film.
"I love so many Christmas movies, but The Polar Express is definitely one of my favourites because it's one that my whole family usually watches together around the holidays" - Natalia LaBarbera, Life Lovers' Writer.
Holidate
On the newer side, we got this Netflix rom-com starring Emma Roberts and Luke Bracey, two strangers fed up with being single on holidays. So, they agree to be each other's platonic plus-ones during the festive season (because that always work out so well!).
Holidate is recommended by our Foodgasms expert and Life Lovers' Writer, Pat Aguilar.
Bonus: The Lord of the Rings
Ok, we know, The Lord of the Rings may not be a Christmas movie, but it's popularly watched around this time of year by many fans around the world. Among them, our Life Lovers' Writer, Veerle Beelen from The Netherlands, who loves to marathon it around Christmas time.
The series of three epic fantasy adventure films directed by Peter Jackson is based on the novel written by J. R. R. Tolkien. This Journey begins with "The Fellowship of the Ring", followed by "The Two Towers", and "The Return of the King".
On another note, if you're also a fan, you may want to know that a TV series is in the works to premiere on Amazon Prime next September 2022.
The show will be set during the Second Age of Middle-earth's history in J.R.R. Tolkien's books. This means it'll take place thousands of years before the events of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, but it's also the era when the Power ring was forged. We know, geek alert!
That's all for now. Let us know if you also love one of these films or what we missed in this year's list. Merry Christmas, amazing souls!
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