SUNDAY FUNDAY, DECEMBER 15, 2024 - CHRISTMAS MOVIES

 SUNDAY FUNDAY

DECEMBER 15, 2024

CHRISTMAS MOVIES

With Christmas two weeks away, I was thinking of Christmas Movies.  I asked a couple of friends last week about their favorite Christmas movie.  (Neither one gave me their favorite)

One of my friends said he hated “Elf”.  He thought it was over the top - (and it is!!!).  So, a baby crawls into Santa’s bag ends up at the North Pole, and is raised as an elf.  Somehow, he gets to New York City and finds his real parents.  (Now, that plot is creative - and inane!!!)

The other said she didn’t like Christmas or Christmas movies, so maybe Scrooge would be a good picture for her.

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So, here I go.  I’m using ‘Rotten Tomatoes guide to the best Christmas movies.”

https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/guide/best-christmas-movies/

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Miracle on 34th Street

In this Christmas classic, an old man named Kris Kringle (Edmund Gwenn) fills in for an intoxicated Santa in Macy's annual Thanksgiving Day parade. Kringle is such a hit that he soon appears regularly at the chain's main store in midtown Manhattan. When Kringle surprises customers and employees alike by claiming that he really is Santa Claus, it leads to a court case to determine his mental health and, more importantly, his authenticity.

(Karen adds, I like this movie - the older version - with the post office delivering all the mail addressed to Santa Claus to the courtroom)

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The Nightmare Before Christmas

The film follows the misadventures of Jack Skellington, Halloweentown's beloved pumpkin king, who has become bored with the same annual routine of frightening people in the "real world." When Jack accidentally stumbles on Christmastown, all bright colors and warm spirits, he gets a new lease on life. He plots to bring Christmas under his control by kidnapping Santa Claus and taking over the role. But Jack soon discovers that even the best-laid plans of mice and skeleton men can go seriously awry.

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It’s a Wonderful Life

After George Bailey (James Stewart) wishes he had never been born, an angel (Henry Travers) is sent to earth to make George's wish come true. George starts to realize how many lives he has changed and impacted, and how they would be different if he was never born.

Karen says: Some of my friends love this movie.  It’s good - but not my favorite

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A Christmas Story

Based on the humorous writings of author Jean Shepherd, this beloved holiday movie follows the wintry exploits of youngster Ralphie Parker (Peter Billingsley), who spends most of his time dodging a bully (Zack Ward) and dreaming of his ideal Christmas gift, a "Red Ryder air rifle." Frequently at odds with his cranky dad (Darren McGavin) but comforted by his doting mother (Melinda Dillon), Ralphie struggles to make it to Christmas Day with his glasses and his hopes intact.  (Don’t shoot your eye out, Ralphie)!

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Trading Places

Upper-crust executive Louis Winthorpe III (Dan Aykroyd) and down-and-out hustler Billy Ray Valentine (Eddie Murphy) are the subjects of a bet by successful brokers Mortimer (Don Ameche) and Randolph Duke (Ralph Bellamy). An employee of the Dukes, Winthorpe is framed by the brothers for a crime he didn't commit, with the siblings then installing the street-smart Valentine in his position. When Winthorpe and Valentine uncover the scheme, they set out to turn the tables on the Dukes.

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Elf

Buddy (Will Ferrell) was accidentally transported to the North Pole as a toddler and raised to adulthood among Santa's elves. Unable to shake the feeling that he doesn't fit in, the adult Buddy travels to New York, in full elf uniform, searching for his real father. As it happens, this is Walter Hobbs (James Caan), a cynical businessman. After a DNA test proves this, Walter reluctantly attempts to start a relationship with the childlike Buddy with increasingly chaotic results.

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The Muppet Christmas Carol

The Muppets perform the classic Dickens holiday tale, with Kermit the Frog playing Bob Cratchit, the put-upon clerk of stingy Ebenezer Scrooge (Michael Caine). Other Muppets -- Miss Piggy, Gonzo, Fozzie Bear and Sam the Eagle -- weave in and out of the story, while Scrooge receives visits from spirits of three Christmases -- past, present, and future. They show him the error of his self-serving ways, but the miserable old man seems to be past any hope of redemption and happiness.

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White Christmas

Two talented song and dance men (Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye) team up after the war to become one of the hottest acts in show business. One winter they join forces with a sister act (Rosemary Clooney and VeraEllen) and trek to Vermont for a white Christmas. The result is stuff dreams are made of.

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The Santa Clause

Divorced dad Scott (Tim Allen) has custody of his son (Eric Lloyd) on Christmas Eve. After he accidentally kills a man in a Santa suit, they are magically transported to the North Pole, where an elf explains that Scott must take Santa's place before the next Christmas arrives. Scott thinks he's dreaming, but over the next several months he gains weight and grows an inexplicably white beard. That night at the North Pole wasn't a dream after all, and maybe Scott has a lot of work to do.

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How the Grinch Stole Christmas

This made-for-TV Christmas special is a classic. Based on Dr. Seuss's book is about a Christmas-hating Grinch who wants to make everyone as miserable on Christmas as he is. The poor, small-hearted Scrooge learns the true meaning of Christmas through the loving Whos in Whoville.

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National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation

As the holidays approach, Clark Griswold (Chevy Chase) wants to have a perfect family Christmas, so he pesters his wife, Ellen (Beverly D'Angelo), and children, as he tries to make sure everything is in line, including the tree and house decorations. However, things go awry quickly. His hick cousin, Eddie (Randy Quaid), and his family show up unplanned and start living in their camper on the Griswold property. Even worse, Clark's employers renege on the holiday bonus he needs.

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Home Alone

When bratty 8-year-old Kevin McCallister (Macaulay Culkin) acts out the night before a family trip to Paris, his mother (Catherine O'Hara) makes him sleep in the attic. After the McCallisters mistakenly leave for the airport without Kevin, he awakens to an empty house and assumes his wish to have no family has come true. But his excitement sours when he realizes that two con men (Joe Pesci, Daniel Stern) plan to rob the McCallister residence, and that he alone must protect the family home.

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The Polar Express

When a doubting young boy takes a train ride to the North Pole, he embarks on a journey of self-discovery that shows him that the wonder of life never fades for those who believe.

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Christmas With The Kranks

Finally alone for the holidays, Luther (Tim Allen) and Nora Krank (Jamie Lee Curtis) plan to eschew the Christmas traditions and take a cruise in the Caribbean instead. This doesn't sit well with their Christmas-obsessed neighbors Vic Frohmeyer (Dan Aykroyd) and Walt Scheel (M. Emmet Walsh), who are determined to win the annual "best decorated street" competition, and the Kranks soon find themselves social outcasts because of their lack of Christmas spirit.

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Here you are—a very short list of Christmas Movies. I’ve seen most of them.

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And, for those of you who want more “sugar coating” in your life, you might like to watch the Hallmark Channel for a month of Christmas TV movies!!  (Joke - if you have blood sugar problems, these overly sweet and sappy movies might be too much)  (Aside, the lady I visit at the Nursing Home frequently has this channel on. The plot is the same—girl meets boy, fights, and falls in love—but in 100 different locations. Last week, she was watching one set in Finland with a dog-sled team competition).

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So, however, you celebrate (or not) this season, enjoy, smile, and hope for peace on earth.

Karen White, December 11, 2024