The Muppet Christmas Carol Is Our Top Christmas Film
Christmas isn’t complete without the usual dose of festive film time so each year crimbo classics are repeated on our screens to get us all in the mood for snow, miracles and Santa.
Family adventure runs wild at Christmas and we have witnessed everything from a dead dad that turns into a snowman in Jack Frost to women who swap lives in the Holiday.
Mentioning no names there are Christmas films both old and new that you would never want to find in your stocking but more often than not most of them leave you feeling merry and you immediately find yourself reaching for the mince pies.
It is no easy task but at Female First we have somehow managed to narrow it down to the top 10 Christmas films of all time.
1.The Muppet Christmas Carol
Released in 1992
Director: Brian Henson
In this film the Muppets re-tell Charles Dickens’ family fantasy ‘A Christmas Carol’. Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy and Fozzie are some of the characters that have got together with actor Michael Caine, who plays Ebenezer Scrooge, to create the musical.
The plot is based around Scrooge, a money-lender who dislikes Christmas. He refuses to let his staff have time off at Christmas and as a result he is visited by the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Yet to Come.
These ghosts delve into the life of Scrooge, they reminisce about his youth, show him how families celebrate at Christmas time and remind him about the way his own family spent the festive period.
It is the Ghost of Yet to Come that finally convinces Scrooge to change his unenthusiastic attitude towards Christmas. They take him to the future and he is shown that when he passes away people are not saddened by the event. People are glad to see the back of him and do not wish to celebrate his life.
Scrooge vows to embrace the Christmas spirit from then on and wakes on Christmas day to spread good deeds and charity.
Although the film is centred around a human being, the Muppets add humour to the film, something which makes it stand out against the countless number of other Christmas Carol adaptations.
2.Home Alone 2: Lost in New York
Released in 1992
Director: Chris Columbus
‘Yikes, I did it again!’ Producing a sequel is risky since everyone’s natural instinct is to compare but luckily for director Chris Columbus, Home Alone 2 was a raging success.
The family Christmas comedy is based around a 10-year old boy called Kevin McCallister who finds himself alone in New York after boarding the wrong flight and getting separated from his family.
For Kevin, spending Christmas in New York City is a dream come true so whilst his family are stranded in Florida worried sick about his well-being, he books himself in to top hotel ‘The Plaza’ using his dad’s credit card.
The award winning adventure once again features Harry and Marv, formally known as the ‘wet-bandits,’ who are hatching a plan to rob ‘Duncan’s Toy Chest.’ On their travels they bump into Kevin, who in Home Alone 1 captured them using various booby traps and shopped them to the Police.
The terrifying bandits immediately aim to seek revenge but once again clever Kevin constructs a ‘not so fun house’ and the self-titled ‘sticky-bandits’ find themselves out-smarted.
Kevin is a loveable mischievous child who on the road to beating the bullies comes across a pigeon lady, toy shop owner and snooping hotel porters.
Like in almost every other Christmas film Kevin has a happy ending; he is safely reunited with his family just in time to open a mountain of presents at the hotel.
Originally the plot synopsis may not seem Christmassy but the soundtrack, which includes songs such as ‘Jingle Bell Rock’ and ‘It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas’, Christmas trees and shopping chaos on the snowy streets of New York create a festive vibe.
3.Miracle on 34th Street
Released in 1994
Director: Les Mayfield
In this family drama another child that does not believe in Santa is given something to believe in after meeting a man convinced he is the real Santa Claus.
Kris Kringle played by Richard Attenborough is hired as Santa in a New York store and is very honest to customers about where they can buy the best toys for their children, this in turn gets the store a great reputation.
Young actress Mara Wilson plays six-year-old Susan Walker whose mother does not want her to believe in Santa. However after paying a visit to Kris Kringle at the store, Susan begins to consider the possibility that Santa Claus does exist.
The best thing about Christmas films is that the characters encompass such passion and excitement about Christmas. The confidence they have in the magic encourages others to believe and to be generous and kind-hearted.
It is a sad world when a person’s generous nature and good spirit leads people to think they must be mental but this is the battle Kris Kringle faces in ‘Miracle on 34th Street.’
His friends battle to prove his sanity but it is not an easy fight and they have to overcome obstacles on the way.
The happy ending sees that everyone gets the gifts they never thought they would receive and Kris Kringle is a free man.
4.The Nightmare Before Christmas
Released in 1994
Director: Henry Selick
On first glance Tim Burton’s spectacular animated musical seems like a horror not a happy Christmas tale.
Although Halloween does feature in the film the story is about the King of Halloween Town, Jack Skellington discovering Christmas.
Jack stumbles across Christmas Town whilst walking his dog and although at first he finds it difficult to grasp the idea of Santa Claus and giving nice gifts, once he finally understands the concept of the festival he returns to Halloween Town in the hope that along with his friends he can recreate Christmas for them all.
Jack kidnaps Santa to steal his role and give gifts to the children but when he fails the task miserably he is exposed as an imposter.
Eventually Jack’s faith in Halloween is restored and he saves Santa. Santa is finally free to deliver the correct gifts to boys and girls therefore it is back to normality in both Christmas and Halloween world.
The Oscar nominated family film is quite dark and the voices of Jack and Sally played by Chris Sarandon and Catherine O’Hara are eerie therefore it is unlike any other Christmas film. Its wicked humour and songs such as ‘What’s this?’ and ‘Kidnap the Sandy Claws’ add to the films originality.
The endearing relationship between what is essentially a rag doll (Sally) and a Skeleton (Jack) makes the film more emotional, realistic and in some ways you could say romantic.
Like most men it takes Jack a while to realise he has feelings for Sally but unsurprisingly the happy ending is sealed with a kiss.
5.Love Actually (Its all about love…actually)
Released in 2003
Director: Richard Curtis
Love. For singletons at Christmas the plot could be a potential nightmare. Rather than leaving you happy and festive it is more likely to have you reaching for the supersize tin of chocolates and a box of tissues.
The romantic drama follows a group of people and their relationships in the run up to Christmas.
The film is crammed with famous actors and actresses including Hugh Grant, Martine McCutcheon, Colin Firth, Keira Knightley and Bill Nighy. With such a star-studded cast it is no surprise that it has been such a success and bagged ten awards.
Rather than a solid storyline the plot follows coupled falling in love, falling out of love and mourning the passing of loved ones. One young boy even learns about love.
The characters are a mixed bag, amongst others you enter the love lives of a Prime Minister, actor, housemaid and rock star and through this film you explore the ups, downs and funny stories that come hand in hand with love.
6.Santa Claus the Movie
Released in 1985
Director: Jeannot Szwarc
Imagine being told that your fate is to dress up in a red and white suit and deliver presents to every child on Earth. You wouldn’t quite believe it, so when that exact thing happens to Claus after he is rescued from death by blizzard in the 14th century, he is slightly taken aback.
However it is soon explained that because he can’t have children of his own he is now able to deliver to provide for children all over the world. Alongside his wife Anya (Mrs Claus) he soon slips into the role and begins preparing for the next Christmas.
The film then jumps to the late 19th century where you see Santa, who is played by David Huddleston, taking a young homeless boy called Joe under his wing. Joe previously had no faith in Santa Claus but after spending time with him Joe’s faith is restored.
The film also focuses on the career struggles of Patch (Dudley Moore), one of Santa’s elves. Patch wants to create the best toys for children but faces a disappointing result when they all break on Christmas day.
Patch is upset that he upset so many children so sets out to prove to Santa that he can be a successful toy maker after all. He joins forces with businessman B.Z to produce toy but is oblivious to the fact that B.Z is under investigation for shoddy manufacturing. When B.Z does a runner from the authorities Patch gets the blame.
No Christmas film would be complete without a happy ending so in keeping with tradition Patch manages to talk himself out of trouble and the film ends with a joyous celebration as he is reunited with Santa Claus.
The fantasy film has sleighs, snow, reindeer, toys and elves and is everything you could want in a Christmas film.
7.The Polar Express
Released in 2004
Director: Robert Zemeckis
Grammy Award winning ‘The Polar Express’ is about a boy who is losing his belief in santa. When a steam engine pulls up outside his house on Christmas Eve instead of Santa’s sleigh he is taken on an unexpected journey with lots of other children.
The purpose of the trip is to meet Santa and restore the young boy’s belief in him but the quest is not made easy as along the way they face complications. For example, were you the child who always lost their return train ticket or the ticket for the gig you have been excited about for weeks? Imagine if you lost your ticket for the most magical train in the land, gutted. There’s always one.
The boy finally gets to meet Santa before making it home safely in time to open his present that Santa has kindly left him under the tree.
8.Elf
Released in 2003
Director: John Favreau
In this relatively recent Christmas family comedy written by David Berenbaum, Will Ferrell plays ‘Buddy,’ a child who was adopted at birth and raised by an elf family in the North Pole.
After discovering that he is adopted he goes to find his biological father Walter, played by James Caan, in New York City.
Buddy’s over enthusiastic approach to all things Christmassy means that befriending his father and being accepted by colleagues is initially not an easy task.
Fortunately for Buddy he eventually manages to turn the situation around and restore his family’s faith in Christmas, however things get turned upside down when he is thrown out of home on Christmas Eve.
This joyous ending comes when Buddy bumps into Santa in Central Perk, sounds unrealistic I know but all you have to do is believe. Buddy, his family and his love interest all help Santa to save Christmas and I can imagine they all lived happily ever after.
Will Ferrell is on top form as buddy in this Golden Trailer award winning Christmas film, a snowball fight with his brother and a singing scene in the shower room prove to be particularly funny.
This film is guaranteed to spread Christmas cheer.
9.The Santa Clause
Released in 1995
Director: John Pasquin
The Walt Disney film sees divorced father and businessman Scott Calvin, played by Tim Allen thrust into the role of Santa Clause after the real one falls off his roof.
Scott is told that he is now responsible for delivering toys to the children and he soon gains a taste for all things associated with Christmas. He even begins to look like Santa when his hair turns grey, a beard begins to grow and his belly becomes more rounded. The weird behaviour means that people are wary of Scott so his ex-wife insists that he should only have limited access to his son Charlie.
The job of delivering presents is not an easy one for Scott; after whisking Charlie off to the North Pole to help him prepare for Christmas Eve, Charlie’s mother things that Scott has kidnapped him and calls the police. Scott is arrested on Christmas Eve mid-delivery.
Thank goodness Scott’s new elf friends are around to rescue him. In the end Charlie’s mother realises that Scott is the real Santa and says he can see his son whenever he wants.
10.The Snowman
Released in 1982
Director: Dianne Jackson
‘We’re walking in the air,’ one line of the chorus and the sherry will be in full flow. The classic short film is shown on Christmas day each year but if you blink you miss it.
The Bafta Award winning animated adventure once again features snow, Santa and the North Pole and is simply a Christmas must.
Yet another plot about belief, it involves a young boy who makes a snowman on Christmas Eve. As often seems to be the case in Christmas films, the snowman comes to life on the night of Christmas Eve and takes him on a magical trip to the North Pole to meet Santa Claus.
After exploring a human house, the snowman takes the boy to a snowmen party and to meet Santa. A wonderful time is had by all and the young boy is returned safely by the snowman.
No chance of a happy ending here, we all know the fate of a snowman, they melt.
Female First
Kelly Warden
Christmas isn’t complete without the usual dose of festive film time so each year crimbo classics are repeated on our screens to get us all in the mood for snow, miracles and Santa.
Family adventure runs wild at Christmas and we have witnessed everything from a dead dad that turns into a snowman in Jack Frost to women who swap lives in the Holiday.
Mentioning no names there are Christmas films both old and new that you would never want to find in your stocking but more often than not most of them leave you feeling merry and you immediately find yourself reaching for the mince pies.
It is no easy task but at Female First we have somehow managed to narrow it down to the top 10 Christmas films of all time.
1.The Muppet Christmas Carol
Released in 1992
Director: Brian Henson
In this film the Muppets re-tell Charles Dickens’ family fantasy ‘A Christmas Carol’. Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy and Fozzie are some of the characters that have got together with actor Michael Caine, who plays Ebenezer Scrooge, to create the musical.
The plot is based around Scrooge, a money-lender who dislikes Christmas. He refuses to let his staff have time off at Christmas and as a result he is visited by the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Yet to Come.
These ghosts delve into the life of Scrooge, they reminisce about his youth, show him how families celebrate at Christmas time and remind him about the way his own family spent the festive period.
It is the Ghost of Yet to Come that finally convinces Scrooge to change his unenthusiastic attitude towards Christmas. They take him to the future and he is shown that when he passes away people are not saddened by the event. People are glad to see the back of him and do not wish to celebrate his life.
Scrooge vows to embrace the Christmas spirit from then on and wakes on Christmas day to spread good deeds and charity.
Although the film is centred around a human being, the Muppets add humour to the film, something which makes it stand out against the countless number of other Christmas Carol adaptations.
2.Home Alone 2: Lost in New York
Released in 1992
Director: Chris Columbus
‘Yikes, I did it again!’ Producing a sequel is risky since everyone’s natural instinct is to compare but luckily for director Chris Columbus, Home Alone 2 was a raging success.
The family Christmas comedy is based around a 10-year old boy called Kevin McCallister who finds himself alone in New York after boarding the wrong flight and getting separated from his family.
For Kevin, spending Christmas in New York City is a dream come true so whilst his family are stranded in Florida worried sick about his well-being, he books himself in to top hotel ‘The Plaza’ using his dad’s credit card.
The award winning adventure once again features Harry and Marv, formally known as the ‘wet-bandits,’ who are hatching a plan to rob ‘Duncan’s Toy Chest.’ On their travels they bump into Kevin, who in Home Alone 1 captured them using various booby traps and shopped them to the Police.
The terrifying bandits immediately aim to seek revenge but once again clever Kevin constructs a ‘not so fun house’ and the self-titled ‘sticky-bandits’ find themselves out-smarted.
Kevin is a loveable mischievous child who on the road to beating the bullies comes across a pigeon lady, toy shop owner and snooping hotel porters.
Like in almost every other Christmas film Kevin has a happy ending; he is safely reunited with his family just in time to open a mountain of presents at the hotel.
Originally the plot synopsis may not seem Christmassy but the soundtrack, which includes songs such as ‘Jingle Bell Rock’ and ‘It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas’, Christmas trees and shopping chaos on the snowy streets of New York create a festive vibe.
3.Miracle on 34th Street
Released in 1994
Director: Les Mayfield
In this family drama another child that does not believe in Santa is given something to believe in after meeting a man convinced he is the real Santa Claus.
Kris Kringle played by Richard Attenborough is hired as Santa in a New York store and is very honest to customers about where they can buy the best toys for their children, this in turn gets the store a great reputation.
Tagged in Christmas Films