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The Christmas Movie Conundrum

Determining which Christmas movies are ~definitively~ the best of all time

Katie Breck
Dec 01, 2019
Marquette University
17
The Christmas Movie Conundrum
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFgMQ5IdRsw

It's finally December, and you know what that means – B96 is blasting Jingle Bells 24/7, everyone is freaking out about Secret Santas and what to get their preteen brother for Christmas, and Freeform's 25 Days of Christmas movie marathon is in full swing. In fact, this seemingly nonstop streaming of holiday movies all throughout the month of December is one of the things I look forward to the most. Some of my fondest childhood holiday memories involve my parents, brother, and I piling into the living room on a Friday night, coming together as a family to relax and unwind at the end of a long week with a Home Alone double feature or How the Grinch Stole Christmas.

There's no question about it – Christmas movies incite a different kind of peace and joy within all of us, creating a kind of nostalgic inner "warmth" that can best be described with images of a crackling fireplace and glowing Christmas tree. Yet, the definitive ranking of every cult classic is one that's been debated for decades, taking factors like its degree of comedy and quality of its cinematic effects into account.

This December, I want to settle this great "Christmas movie conundrum", and devise a list conclusively ranking all the season's most popular flicks. To begin, I'll ask ten of my friends what their favorite Christmas movie is (which I've listed below). I'll then precede to watch all of these over the winter break, scoring them with a number ranging from 1-10 (10 being the "worst" and 1 being the "best") based on how "Christmas-y" I find each film – or, how prevalent the nostalgic feeling I described earlier is throughout.

After this elaborate Christmas movie watch-a-thon, I'll be sure to write another article including my results. I'd love to hear what the rest of the Odyssey community thinks as well!

As mentioned earlier, here are the ten movies I'll be watching (listed in the order each of my friends responded)….

A Christmas Story, 1983

White Christmas, 1954

National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation, 1989

Home Alone, 1990

The Santa Clause, 1994

Office Christmas Party, 2016

Elf, 2003

How The Grinch Stole Christmas, 2000

Love Actually, 2000

It's A Wonderful Life, 1946

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This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
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