Is [insert film title here] a Christmas movie? The answer is always ‘Yes!’

is it a christmas movie?

It’s the most wonderful time of the year! Hot takes roasting on an open thread, hashtags nipping at your prose.

is it a christmas movie?

Once a year, everybody on social media and beyond come together in a grand celebration of that most joyous of events: debating whether or not “Die Hard” (or occasionally another film) is really a Christmas movie. Here’s the real Good News: every movie can be a Christmas movie and it’s entirely up to you!

Of course, there are indisputable Christmas movies, those that deal specifically with Christmas, so “Miracle On 34th Street“, “A Christmas Carol”, “The Santa Clause“, “Jingle All The Way”, “Nativity!” etc. These films are set at Christmas, are about Christmas, feature Christmas characters and usually rely on a little (or a lot) of Christmas ‘magic’ to resolve their plot.

is it a christmas movie?

Then there are the films which are set at Christmas and may involve Christmas on a plot level, even if only by reference, like the seemingly perennially debatable “Die Hard” (and its less often debated sequel “Die Hard 2: Die Harder”). “Die Hard” involves a few good jokes and references to Christmas but it doesn’t go much further than that whereas “Lethal Weapon” takes Riggs on a very Christmassy journey of rediscovering friendship and family, culminating with him joining a Christmas dinner which seemed unthinkable at the start of the film. “Gremlins”, “Jaws The Revenge“, “The Long Kiss Goodnight”, “Batman Returns”, “Iron Man 3” and, arguably, “It’s A Wonderful Life” fall under this category as well.

is it a christmas movie?

“It’s A Wonderful Life” also belongs in the next category of potential Christmas movies: movies traditionally watched/ on TV at Christmas. Unlikely now in the age of instant, on-demand entertainment but for decades, the only place to see old favourite movies was on TV, and certain movies stuck to the festive period like glitter on crazy glue. “The Sound Of Music”, “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang”, “The Great Escape”, “The Wizard Of Oz”, “Star Wars” and many more, all were firm fixtures of the festive TV schedules, with the Queen’s Speech being invariably followed by a pre-1985 Bond movie. Anchored in cosy family memories of gathering around the TV to solve a problem like Maria, hide from the Childcatcher, cheer on Steve McQueen or head off to see The Wizard, every single one of these movies (and others) are Christmas movies too.

is it a christmas movie?

And finally, there are movies you might watch with friends or family each and every year without fail. They have no connection to the holiday season except for the fact that you love them and find time to enjoy them or share them with your loved ones every year. It’s that moment when life slows down just enough to spare the time to crack open a tin of Quality Street, crank up the Dolby Atmos soundbar and enjoy a movie together.  Do you watch “Aliens” every Christmas Eve over a bowl of chilli and some beers? Cool – “Aliens” is a Christmas movie.  Do you and your family always sit down on Boxing Day to watch “Rocky”? Fill your boots, it’s a Christmas movie. Hell, even if the only tenuous connection to the season is featuring an abundance of snow, if it’s a movie you enjoy regularly in December (or November if you’re feeling a bit glum and need to cheer yourself up), “Lord Of The Rings: Fellowship Of The Ring”, “Fargo”, “Doctor Zhivago” and “Frozen” are a-okay and if anyone says otherwise, you know what to tell them:

is it a christmas movie?

Is “Die Hard” a Christmas movie? Anything and everything can be a Christmas movie and the only person whose opinion matters is yours. Whatever your seasonal selection, you’ve nothing to worry about.

Enjoy your Christmas movies, and God bless them, every one.

is it a christmas movie?


Hi there! If you enjoyed this post, why not sign up to get new posts sent straight to your inbox?

Sign up to receive a weekly digest of The Craggus' latest posts.

We don’t spam! Read our privacy policy for more info.

logo

Related posts

To The Devil A Daughter (1976) Review

To The Devil A Daughter (1976) Review

A satanic potboiler so clichéd that Beelzebub himself would probably demand a paternity test. I’ve often used @TheMarckoGuy’s Month Of Spooks as a chance to catch up on classic horror movie’s I’ve never seen before but this year, I decided to revisit "To The Devil A Daughter", a film...

Craggus’ Trek Trek Phase II Vol 22

Craggus' Trek Trek Phase II Vol 22

If you have been disatisfied with Craggus' Trek Trek Phase II Vol 22 or any earlier volumes, you can take it up with my super visor… Star Trek The Next Generation Season Seven staggers across the finish line, saving the very best to the very last in Craggus' Trek Trek Phase...

The Sanctuary

The Sanctuary

The Sanctuary offers little respite from Star Trek Discovery’s worst habits. *SPOILERS* Having done a pretty good job so far of pairing a ‘story of the week’ with drip-fed hints of the ongoing series arc, “The Sanctuary” sees “Star Trek: Discovery” fall back into its worst habits with...

Sherlock Gnomes (2018) Review

Sherlock Gnomes (2018) Review

Sherlock Gnomes' failures are elementary Following in the footsteps of the Man Of Steel and Captain America, Gnomeo and Juliet become the latest characters to have their sequel hijacked by a bunch of different characters as the franchise tries to position itself as a vehicle to...

WandaVision Episode 9

WandaVision Episode 9

"The Series Finale" Review So here we are at last. Nine weeks seem to have flown by as Marvel Studios have served up, piece by piece, one of their boldest, most emotional and most fascinating productions yet. WANDAVISION has surely surpassed all expectations and THE SERIES FINALE (as if...

Cats (2019) Review

Cats (2019) Review

I don't think anyone was readdicle, for these Jellicles Much has been made of the bizarre nature of Tom Hooper's movie adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical adaptation of T S Elliot's book of cat poems and sure, there's no denying that there are a bunch of weird choices in...

Get Away (2024) Review

Get Away (2024) Review

Even the Griswolds never had a vacation like this one. Between this and There's Something In The Barn, there's an emerging subgenre of Scandinavian comedy horror that involves an English-speaking family blundering about the place and getting on the wrong side of local custom. Actually...

Babygirl (2025) Review

Babygirl (2025) Review

Babygirl is less an erotic drama and more an HR nightmare. Once thought to be all but theatrically extinct, clinging on to the half-life of the straight-to-streaming potboiler or naughty nineties nostalgia, Babygirl very mindfully, very demurely emerges to revive the erotic thriller and...