They Belong in Every Home: The Ten Best Holiday Movies by Farr

Below you'll find the ten titles that to my mind, best capture the essence of the holidays, year in and year out.

The values and emotions imparted in these timeless films are sure to stoke the spirit of "Peace On Earth, Good Will Towards Men" (and women). This leads me to suggest that they belong in every home.

Happy viewing!

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Holiday Inn (1942)

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Don't miss this funny, festive Bing Crosby/Fred Astaire musical about two friends who launch an inn open only on holidays. The film is best known for first introducing "White Christmas", the best-selling single of all time, and an instant favorite with troops then overseas. "Inn" remains consistently tuneful and entertaining, with a sublime Irving Berlin score that covers not just Christmas, but all major holidays. And Astaire and Crosby make a winning team. (For the record, I prefer this Crosby feature to the over-baked, over-saturated "White Christmas", released twelve years later.)

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Don't miss this funny, festive Bing Crosby/Fred Astaire musical about two friends who launch an inn open only on holidays. The film is best known for first introducing "White Christmas", the best-selling single of all time, and an instant favorite with troops then overseas. "Inn" remains consistently tuneful and entertaining, with a sublime Irving Berlin score that covers not just Christmas, but all major holidays. And Astaire and Crosby make a winning team. (For the record, I prefer this Crosby feature to the over-baked, over-saturated "White Christmas", released twelve years later.)

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Ho Ho Hum... Ho Ho Ho!

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Classic Christmas Films

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Comments

[Janbert]

10:23 PM on 01/01/2011

This has long been one of my favorite movies. I tracked it down and bought the DVD a few years ago and still love seeing it each season. An unknown treasure. For the darker hearted please see the black comedy The Ref. We show this to new friends and can usually tell if they are our kind of people if they like it. Oh , and don't forget Die Hard, another Christmas classic!

[Elinore]

11:20 AM on 12/27/2010

Very nice, love to see them. We never had a tree...the neighbors felt so sorry for the one Jewish family, they loaded us with candy! But now, living in the Holy Land (Israel), I miss Christmas, and enjoyed hearing the carols this year in the Christian quarter of Jerusalem--imagine "Jingle Bells" in Arabic? Fun!

[ladiesbane]

10:10 AM on 12/27/2010

The Thin Man was missing from the list. Also, the inclusion of Holiday Inn is interesting. It's the most recent movie I can remember that has a segment in blackface and full costume. I think the broadcast version is bowdlerized -- which makes me wonder which version the original list-maker intended to include.

[PhilTListener]

10:12 PM on 12/26/2010

March of the Wooden Soldiers, of course.

[CPAwADD]

05:25 PM on 12/26/2010

Elf!

[middwestreader]

03:11 PM on 12/26/2010

Try "Angel of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue." In the depths of the Depression, three young siblings hitchhike alone from the midwest to Washington to ask President Hoover to get Kansas City authorities to release their wrongly imprisoned job-seeking father (Robert Urich) so he can come home in time for Christmas. It may not be one of the ten best, but it's a good show and is on Hallmark Channel from time to time. Probably the only movie to show Hoover in a good light too.

[SightSeer]

12:30 PM on 12/26/2010

I've seen and value quite a few of the movies mentioned, but since the title of the article denotes 10 best holiday movies - and not specifically FAMILY holiday movies - please allow a sentimental but cynical and rascally pre-codger to mention a movie whose name no one dared to mention - yet.......BAD SANTA!

[Cuyahoga]

08:24 AM on 12/26/2010

I don't know MOST of these and want to say that reading through the comments - it's wonderful that Mr Farr responds to many. I like the interaction and am making a list of the movies I've missed .... thank you.

[firelord5000]

11:01 AM on 12/25/2010

All good movies, except for ELF.

[Rozanna]

08:25 PM on 12/24/2010

I saw A Christmas Story when it came out. There were maybe 10 people in the audience on a Friday night showing. We couldn't understand why this wonderful movie wasn't catching on, but I guess it finally did get its much deserved recognition.

[LameDuckHunting]

11:28 AM on 12/23/2010

One of my favorite Christmas movies will always be "The Ref." We watch it every Christmas Eve.........................

[Urfubar12]

11:47 AM on 12/23/2010

Ah yes! Love that one too! And Home Alone...I still find it hilarious!

[Urfubar12]

11:24 AM on 12/23/2010

Holiday Inn, White Christmas and Miracle on 34th Street (the original) are my all time top 3 Christmas movies. Just not the same unless I see all three multiple times! I gotta get my does of Bing (who I am actually listening to at my desk right now!)

[cougarsrus]

10:13 AM on 12/23/2010

I know it's really corny but I love Meet Me in St. Louis. It's worth it just to hear Judy Garland sing Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.

[JayPhilosopher]

12:26 AM on 12/23/2010

One could include Charlie Chaplin's "The Gold Rush." It may not exactly be about Christmas, but it does have a lot of snow and it makes you feel cheerful for the human race.

[Miss Trust]

04:59 PM on 12/22/2010

We have a little tradition in my family. Every Christmas Eve, we watch either "We're No Angels" (the one with Humphrey Bogart) or "Arsenic & Old Lace" - after having had an endless discussion as to which movie we had actually seen the year before. I don't have a favorite since each movie is great in its own way. It just wouldn't be Christmas in our family without one of these two movies.

[John Farr]

05:39 PM on 12/22/2010

interesting choices!