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Xmas movies

Vic Sage Dec 13 2017 10:27 PM

What are your favorite Xmas movies? Here are mine, in the form of 2 "top dozen" lists... one for classics and one for contemporary favorites (in no particular order): [u:1yi6rg86]classics[/u:1yi6rg86] It's a Wonderful Life A Xmas Carol (51) Miracle on 34th St (47) March of the Wooden Soldiers (34) Holiday Inn Bishop's Wife White Xmas Shop Around the Corner Meet Me in St. Louis Meet John Doe 3 Godfathers We're No Angels [u:1yi6rg86]Contemporary[/u:1yi6rg86] Die Hard Gremlins A Xmas Story Bad Santa Muppet Xmas Carol The Ref Home Alone Elf Nat'l Lampoon's Xmas Vacation Scrooged Nightmare Before Xmas Edward Scissorhands

41Forever Dec 14 2017 12:53 AM Re: Xmas movies Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Dec 14 2017 01:14 AM

Good list! I love "Scrooged." Here's a couple I'd add: "The Gathering." It was technically a television movie. But an all-star cast headed by Ed Asner and Maureen Stapleton. It's very 1970s and every 1970s character actor you know is in there. A bit of a tear-jerker, but I love it. Even the music is beautiful. My family mocks me for liking it so much. You can watch it for free. Really free, through Warner Archives. Not "Ceetar free." ;) [youtube:1n3l1iqn]ubZLXv6pazk[/youtube:1n3l1iqn] On the other side of the spectrum: "Muppets Christmas Carol."

Edgy MD Dec 14 2017 01:08 AM Re: Xmas movies

Man, you're going to include TV movies, but not include The Homecoming? That's great stuff, even if Patricia Neal and Andrew Duggan retroactively seem like imposters. My A Christmas Carol is the 1970 Albert Finney Scrooge with Leslie Bricusse music. Bricusse would shortly after gravitate toward being primarily a lyricist, but he did all the songs and the scoring for this and there's not a bad bit to it. And as for Christmas Christmas films, I'm a fan of 2006's The Nativity Story, which somehow balances realism with tradition and doesn't end up with farce.

John Cougar Lunchbucket Dec 14 2017 01:14 AM Re: Xmas movies

I like movies where there's a Christmas in it but isn't necessarily *about* Christmas, like Die Hard. Most of the movies on the contemporary list are not so great and the "classics" seem so antiquated. I guess this means the ultimate Christmas movie is yet yo be made.

41Forever Dec 14 2017 01:16 AM Re: Xmas movies

Edgy MD wrote: Man, you're going to include TV movies, but not include The Homecoming? That's great stuff, even if Patricia Neal and Andrew Duggan retroactively seem like imposters. My A Christmas Carol is the 1970 Albert Finney Scrooge with Leslie Bricusse music. Bricusse would shortly after gravitate toward being primarily a lyricist, but he did all the songs and the scoring for this and there's not a bad bit to it. And as for Christmas Christmas films, I'm a fan of 2006's The Nativity Story, which somehow balances realism with tradition and doesn't end up with farce. I bet you I haven't seen "The Homecoming" since I was a kid, but I know a lot of the lines from it. I don't know why it resonated with me. Maybe because he's a writer. But it was excellent.

Ashie62 Dec 14 2017 03:58 AM Re: Xmas movies

I have to admit I am a sucker for National Lampoons Xmas with Chevy Chase and all. It very cheesy but the hanging of lights on the house and attempt to turn said lights on still amuses me. Chevy is 72 about 270 lbs and sitting in Hazelden Rehab in the Former SNL Alumni Al Franken's state of Minnesoda.

RealityChuck Dec 14 2017 04:58 PM Re: Xmas movies

Currently: 1. Arthur Christmas 2. Miracle on 34th Street 3. Scrooge (Alistair Sim version of A Christmas Carol) 4. A Christmas Story 5. It's a Wonderful Life -- the movie is problematic and given my unique background -- I not only read the original story, but I read it years before I saw the movie -- I saw things in it that bother me more than most people. Still, it's better than many options. I'm also going on record as wondering why anyone would consider Elf a good movie. Once they left the North Pole, it jumped the shark completely.

Benjamin Grimm Dec 14 2017 05:29 PM Re: Xmas movies

I'm realizing that there aren't a whole lot of Christmas movies that I really like. I used to watch It's a Wonderful Life (which would easily be my favorite in this category) every year, but now it's down to every three or four years. A Miracle on 34th Street (the original, of course) is nice, as is Meet Me in St. Louis and the musical Scrooge, which has Albert Finney, not Alistair Sim. I had never even heard of A Christmas Story when I was a kid, and seeing it for the first time as an adult it didn't really do much for me. I don't remember Meet John Doe as a Christmas movie; I mainly recall it as a disappointment compared to other Frank Capra films; it's not nearly as good as Mr. Deeds Goes to Town or Mr. Smith Goes to Washington or It's a Wonderful Life. Going My Way and The Bells of St. Mary's are also nice movies, but not so good that I'd want to watch them more often than once a decade or so.

dgwphotography Dec 15 2017 03:35 PM Re: Xmas movies

Die Hard and A Christmas Story are annual favorites. I love Christmas Vacation and Scrooged, as well. Since my kids were at the right age at the time, I have a soft spot for The Santa Clause. I watched It's A Wonderful Life so much as a kid with my parents, I'm sick of it.

Ceetar Dec 15 2017 03:44 PM Re: Xmas movies

No love for it's the only one we watch now.

DocTee Dec 15 2017 04:26 PM Re: Xmas movies

various girlfriends tried to sell me on "Love, Actually." They are now ex-girlfriends.

Edgy MD Dec 15 2017 04:27 PM Re: Xmas movies

That's some good litmus testing. "We should see Love, Actually." "We should see other people, actually."

Benjamin Grimm Dec 15 2017 04:35 PM Re: Xmas movies

I've never seen Love, Actually. In fact, I think I was totally unaware of it until John Oliver showed a video montage that demonstrated how frequently Chris Matthews mentions that it's his favorite movie.

metsmarathon Dec 15 2017 05:21 PM Re: Xmas movies

elf is delightful, if completely absurd. love actually is a mrs.mm fave, or at least holiday tradition. me, i like that it has ferb and vanessa doofenschmirtz, with a side order of implausibly running through an airport without getting arrested and triggering an evacuation. and, well, that's about it. die hard, though, is indeed the best christmas movie. and nestor the long eared donkey is in the running for second place.

Edgy MD Dec 15 2017 05:42 PM Re: Xmas movies

Nestor is pretty great as far as the Rankin/Bass oeuvre goes. It stands with The Little Drummer Boy as the only R/B features that are actually Christmas Christmas stories. As the standard special guest narrator, Roger Miller steps up to the plate nicely, but Brenda Vaccaro as the deus ex machina cherub is a pretty grating presence. Greer Garson is better as the female narrator in Drummer Boy. The big problem there, and it bugged me as a kid, is the animators couldn't get the kid's drumming to synch with the soundtrack. Worst Rankin/Bass special: tie between The Leprechauns' Christmas Gold and Rudolph and Frosty's Christmas in July, both thankfully infrequently broadcast.

Benjamin Grimm Dec 15 2017 06:23 PM Re: Xmas movies

I loved those Rankin/Bass Christmas specials when I was a kid, especially Santa Claus is Coming to Town, with Mickey Rooney and Keenan Wynn. But when I saw them again, as an adult watching with my own kids, I was surprised at how awful they were. Sometimes it's better not to revisit childhood memories.

metsmarathon Dec 15 2017 08:49 PM Re: Xmas movies

i like nestor because of the laughably tragic line "ears, nestor!", and the fact that my brother in law shares a name with the titular character. i'm not sure if he's ever seen the movie, though.

41Forever Dec 15 2017 09:24 PM Re: Xmas movies Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Dec 15 2017 09:49 PM

Benjamin Grimm wrote: I loved those Rankin/Bass Christmas specials when I was a kid, especially Santa Claus is Coming to Town, with Mickey Rooney and Keenan Wynn. But when I saw them again, as an adult watching with my own kids, I was surprised at how awful they were. Sometimes it's better not to revisit childhood memories. Right there with you. I've grown to openly dislike Rudolph. When the most sympathetic character is the Bumble, it's bad. Seriously, everyone in there is a jerk! The Bumble is just doing what Bumbles do! And yet they rip out all his teeth! Then there's the whole thing about Rudolph's disability being a hindrance until they find is useful. True confession, when my Mom injured her knee and needed a wheelchair to around, we were bummed -- until we learned that it got us to the head of many of the lines. We called her the "Rolling Fast Pass." But I felt like the people in Rudolph. The Charlie Brown special has held up well.

Edgy MD Dec 15 2017 09:27 PM Re: Xmas movies

My dog is named after Bumble. True story!

smg58 Dec 15 2017 11:34 PM Re: Xmas movies

41Forever wrote: Then there's the whole thing about Rudolph's disability being a hindrance until they find is useful. True confession, when my Mom injured her knee and needed a wheelchair to around, we were bummed -- until we learned that it got us to the head of many of the lines. We called her the "Rolling Fast Pass." But I felt like the people in Rudolph. Rudolph is a story about a misfit written by and for people who don't know what being a misfit is like. 41Forever wrote: The Charlie Brown special has held up well. This. It was spot on about all the commercialization and fluff that surrounds Christmas, and that was half a century ago. The Grinch still works, for the same reasons. I was a big fan of the TV show My So-Called Life, and the best episode of the series was the Christmas episode.

RealityChuck Dec 16 2017 01:30 AM Re: Xmas movies

I should have added Love, Actually. Those who dislike it have Scrooge in their hearts and coal in their souls. For an obscure movie, I'd recommend The Great Rupert about a squirrel who saves Christmas and starring Jimmy Durante. It's on Youtube. Elf loses all charm the moment Buddy leaves the North Pole, and the story is just lame and predictable as a Hallmark Christmas movie. And it gave up all absurdity just after Leon Redbone showed up. Since we're talking about TV specials, I'll add some: 1. Olive the Other Reindeer. Saw it again tonight. Certainly the wittiest Christmas story every. 2. How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Though I'm getting tired of it. 3. A Charlie Brown Christmas, though I'm watching it out of habit than any genuine joy. 4. Rudoph the Red Nosed Reindeer. For some reason, it seems to get better each time I watch. Rankin/Bass did nothing else that was any good, other than the "Snow Miser/Heat Miser" song.

Lefty Specialist Dec 16 2017 01:46 AM Re: Xmas movies

There's only one. Mr. Magoo's Christmas Carol. Magoo as Scrooge, played straight with no blindness jokes. Must have seen that a million times as a kid.

metsmarathon Dec 16 2017 03:34 AM Re: Xmas movies

it's a short 30-minute affair, but prep and landing is way better than it has any right to be.

John Cougar Lunchbucket Dec 16 2017 11:25 AM Re: Xmas movies

Lefty Specialist wrote: There's only one. Mr. Magoo's Christmas Carol. Magoo as Scrooge, played straight with no blindness jokes. Must have seen that a million times as a kid. Yes on Magoo. Agree on the Rankin-Bass problems. We watched Christmas Vacation last night. Yeah, not a classic

dgwphotography Dec 16 2017 12:16 PM Re: Xmas movies

If we're going to start including TV shows, I have to include the Christmas episode of Studio 60 On The Sunset Strip. Troy Andrews' version of O Holy Night from that episode is my favorite: [youtube]_rayDO-gS4Q[/youtube]

MFS62 Dec 16 2017 03:34 PM Re: Xmas movies

My favorite when I was a kid was a made for TV movie called Silent Night. IIRC, it was shown on the Rheingold Theater (sorry, Ben) and was about a choirmaster writing the song because the carols of the day were so difficult to sing. (I'm probably missing a lot of the other details). A side note. Someone walked into our Customer Service department, looked around and said it looked like the Island of Broken Toys. Later