04 | Christmas Classics: Stream or Skip?
In this issue: It's Wonderful Life, Miracle on 34th Street, The Santa Clause, Home Alone, Love Actually, and Nightmare Before Christmas.
Hello, how are you doing!
I know, it’s been a while since I last wrote. A small personal update: I just started a new role at an exciting job opportunity, which has been keeping me on my toes and away from my beloved TV.
But it’s the holly, jolly time of the year and I couldn’t leave you without a nice, curated list of Christmas movies to watch during the holiday week.
This year alone, there were over 30 holiday-themed flicks released. My advice? Skip the newbies, and treat yourself to some Christmas classics — I have just the guide you need!
🎄Let’s get the ball rolling:
It’s a Wonderful Life
Genre: Christmas Fantasy Drama
Language: English
Gist: An angel is sent from heaven to help a selfless man on the verge of suicide by showing him what life would’ve been like if he had never existed.
Review: It’s a Wonderful Life is the exact break you need from everything Christmas-y that is being released today. Its tone, formality, and reflection of life from the 1910-40s is a breath of fresh air. Then, there’s the story itself — by depicting George Bailey’s altruistic life, it’s the typical exploration of what Christmas really means, and why you must keep hope against all odds. It’s filled with so much passion and emotion, that it’s hard not to get sucker-punched by all the feels!
No man is a failure who has friends.
SYWT? Yes, start your Christmas binge with this and you won’t regret it!
Miracle on 34th Street
Genre: Christmas Fantasy Drama
Language: English
Gist: Santa Claus gets hired at Macy’s and goes on a mission to make a skeptical employee believe in the magic of Christmas again.
Review: When Susan hires Kris Kringle to be Macy’s Santa, she doesn't realize she’s got the real deal. This film is all about the power of believing: while you can’t prove that Santa is real, you can’t prove that he isn’t either. This is what makes the film fun and introspective, especially when you realize how relevant a 75-old-year movie is even today.
You’ll enjoy Santa being quite radical, especially with the way he opposes the capitalistic snowglobe that Christmas has turned into — Guess, there’s a reason why he wears red!
SYWT? It’s a classic you shouldn’t skip!
The Santa Clause
Genre: Christmas Fantasy Drama
Language: English
Gist: Scott Calvin accidentally kills Santa and must now take his place and fulfill all the Santa duties — chaos ensues!
Review: Here is a Santa who’s a little naughty and speaks mostly in sarcasm. See, Scott Calvin finds himself sucked into an impossible, fantastical scenario where he magically keeps getting transformed into Santa. Despite being ridiculed by all the adults, Scott realizes that being the next Santa is what makes his son happy. Basic moral? You do what’s best for your family — even when people make fun of you or don’t believe in you.
SYWT? If you’re planning to watch this, put this at the bottom of your list.
Home Alone
Genre: Christmas Drama
Language: English
Gist: Eight-year-old Kevin is accidentally left all alone at home on Christmas and must now defend his house against two persistent burglars.
Review: Home Alone is one of the best Christmas movies of all time! I remember watching it as a kid and being amused by the way Kevin booby-traps his house and tricks folks who are far older than him. An odd two decades later, the comedic magic is still alive and kicking as I watch it for a second time. Perhaps what I like most about this film is that it serves as a coming-of-age piece as well, right from Kevin first realizing how lonely life can be to coping and coming up with some very inventive solutions.
(I hope it inspires us too to deal with life in such quirky ways!)
SYWT? Get your lil’ ones, pop some corn, and have a blast with this film!
Love Actually
Genre: Christmas Romance
Language: English
Gist: Ten separate stories depict the lives of different individuals a month before Christmas.
Review: This movie has got everything: A-list actors, separate plots that loosely intertwine in a way that makes you go “oh my god!”, love, drama, comedy and of course, a lot of Christmas. It is cheesy and contrived, but let’s admit it — that’s not always a bad formula. Plot-wise, there’s a lot going on, but at the same time, there’s nothing profound I can say about it other than it’s entertaining.
Love Actually has been described as the quintessential modern-day Christmas film and I couldn’t agree more!
SYWT? If you’re looking for your classic Holiday rom-com with some big names, this is your go-to!
Nightmare Before Christmas
Genre: Christmas/Halloween Animation Fantasy
Language: English
Gist: Halloween Town’s scariest resident, Jack Skellington, decides to kidnap Santa and take over Christmas!
Review: Tim Burton is a genius for a reason, for there’s nothing more innovative than meshing up Halloween with Christmas!
But Jack Skellington isn’t your everyday villain. He’s a tall pumpkin man who’s awfully tired of the job he’s been doing for time immemorial — something, we 9-5-ers might relate to. Taking over Christmas is just his way of shaking things up and experiencing something new and different. Don’t we all want that kind of change from time to time? But Jack will soon learn that taking over Christmas is not as easy as it seems.
From musical numbers to adorable characters, this film is irresistibly charming!
SYWT? A thousand times, yes!
I hope these films make it into your Christmas binge list! If you watched some of this year’s new Holiday releases and liked them, let me know in the comments!
Wishing you a merry Christmas, happy Hanukkah, and joyous holidays!
Before I go:
Here are some ultimate Christmas cookie recipes.
If you’d like to read the previous issue, here’s a link to SYWT’s archive.
Looking for any title in particular? Cue the database — This has the list of movies/TV shows covered so far with ratings and links to the newsletters they were reviewed in.
What’s stuck in my head:
See you next year!
sal.