December is the month we all want to snuggle up on the sofa with some hot chocolate and watch something festive.
But this year there are so many options it can be hard to choose what to watch. So here are our top ten festive favourite picks to watch this December…
Home Alone
Who can believe that Macaulay Culkin first starred on our screen as Kevin 30 years ago? The McCallister family is preparing for a vacation, but in the morning rush to get to the airport, Kevin is forgotten about as a relative counted a neighbour as one of the ten kids whilst counting hats. Whilst alone Kevin has the time of his life, until he discovers two burglars planning to rob his house. To protect himself and the family home he wires the house with traps and tricks. Plus if you enjoy this film, it’s just the first of four!
Holidate
This 2020 release is a great way to shake up your Christmas watchlist with a modern take on the holiday season. Emma Roberts and Luke Bracey star in this film. They are two people fed up of casually dating on the holidays. So, they partner up as “Holidates” and spend each holiday together for a year – from Valentines to Easter – and St Patricks Day to Halloween, until they eventually fall in love in time for Christmas.
The Holiday Calendar
Kat Graham stars in this holiday film as a struggling photographer, stuck taking photos of children sitting on Santa’s knee. However, everything changes when she inherits an antique advent calendar from her grandma. However this advent calendar is anything but normal and helps her transform her life this holiday season.
Elf
Watch as Buddy – an unusual person – raised by Santa’s elves discovers he is not actually an elf. He travels to New York where he hopes to find his family, where he teaches them about the four food groups candy, candy canes, candy corn, and syrup. He even gets a job in a toy shop, where he finds love. However he has to leave after an altercation with a Santa imposter. Although there are some bumps in the road, they eventually work together to save Christmas.
Christmas Inheritance
Christmas is a time for giving, not just receiving. Ellen Langford is spoilt and wild, and before she can inherit her family’s business, she must first deliver a Christmas card to her dads’ former partner in Snow Falls. She does this to prove she is trustworthy and take care of herself. However she then gets stranded at the town inn. When a snowstorm arrives, they discovers the true gift of Christmas.
Noelle
Everyone loves a good Disney film, whether your six, 16 or 60. The holiday comedy Noelle stars Anna Kendrick as Noelle Kringle, the daughter of Santa. But now her brother Nick is taking over the family business as the new “Santa”. However Nick goes missing and it is up to Noelle to find her brother and bring him back, before the standby Santa launches his online delivery system.
How the Grinch stole Christmas
This family favourite first blessed our screens 20 years ago and remains a Christmas classic. Jim Carrey stars as the Grinch, a green creature that despises Christmas yet lives on the edge of a village, where everyone loves the holiday. He plans to steal Christmas, but is surprisingly befriended by one of the villagers, Cindy Lou.
Last Christmas
This 2019 romantic comedy stars the clumsy Emilia Clarke as an aspiring singer stuck as a Christmas store worker where she is nicknamed ‘Lazy’ the elf. When a bird poops in her eye, she meets Henry – a mysterious man. She soon bumps into him again, and slowly falls in love with him, and eventually he helps her turn her life around.
A Christmas Carol
We all know the story of Scrooge, and how he changes his outlook towards Christmas and life after being visited by the ghosts of Christmas past, present and future. But there are so many different versions today. Whether you prefer the 1992 Muppets version, the classic 2000 version, or the animated 2009 version, it is definitely worth a watch this Christmas. As 2020 has been a year like no other, it is important for us all to remember to be grateful for what we have and help others when we can.
Let it Snow
This modern romantic comedy film follows a group of teenagers and is based on the book Let it Snow. These teenagers find themselves thrown together when a snowstorm rolls into their small town. Which leads to friendships and relationships being formed and broken to make this a Christmas like no other.
Most of these films are available to watch on streaming services, such as Netflix and Amazon Prime. But there are plenty of great Christmas films, including some of these, that have been scheduled across the tv channels for everyone to enjoy.
By Laycie Beck
Feature image: Town and Country Magazine