Christmas movies are about shameless joy, uninhibited sweetness, and guaranteed happy endings. We don’t always have to be challenged. We don’t always have to learn more about the human condition. Sometimes, we want to be happy, and this list of yuletide films, from the classics to the unconventional, are sure to spark that cozy feeling of twinkling lights and sugar plum dreams in your tired, old candy cane bones.
Below are the eight best Christmas movies now streaming on Hulu.
1. The Holiday
No one does Christmas like Nancy Meyers. This 2006 romantic comedy follows two women (Kate Winslet and Cameron Diaz) who switch houses during the Christmas season to distance themselves from their recent heartbreaks. Diaz stays in Winslet’s ivy-covered, English countryside cottage and ends up meeting Jude Law, so a big return on investment here. Across the pond, Winslet’s stay in Los Angeles leads her to Jack Black and all his earnest charisma. The Holiday is predictable, but it’s a sweet and heartfelt film through and through. Though all the actors are oozing charm, prepare yourself to be unexpectedly in love with MVP Black by the end of the movie.
How to Watch: The Holiday is streaming on Hulu.
2. Jingle All the Way
Finally, a movie that focuses on what Christmas is really about: Prezzies!!! Jingle All the Way is a ‘90s kids classic starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sinbad (hello, throwback!) as two somewhat absent dads, each trying to redeem themselves by buying their children the perfect Christmas gift. On Christmas Eve, they both set out to snag that year’s big gift, a Turbo-Man action figure, and upon discovering the toy is sold out, launch into a series of increasingly desperate escapades. The film was inspired by the real-life fervor for Cabbage Patch Kids and Mighty Morphin Power Rangers toys in the '80s and '90s, so there is something comfortingly familiar about this story. It’s not a good movie, per se, but then again, not all beloved Christmas movies are! Jingle All the Way is high-energy, slapstick, and somewhat deranged, but you’ll feel transported to the '90s by the storied cast that includes Phil Hartman, Rita Wilson, and Jim Belushi.
How to Watch: Jingle All the Way is streaming on Hulu.
3. Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale
Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale dares to ask the question: “What if Santa Claus was a horrifying demon that devoured naughty children in their sleep?” This Finnish Christmas horror (with a hint of dark comedy) is a must-watch for any film fan looking for something new this holiday season. Written and directed by Jalmari Helander, Rare Exports takes place in the harsh, isolated wilds of northern Finland, where families travel by snowmobile to reach one another and the community relies on the yearly reindeer migration to survive. A young boy, Pietari, is the only one to sense the coming danger when a nearby research facility finds something in the ice, something that was seemingly trapped there on purpose, something like… Santa Claus.
It’s a shocking and fantastic premise that works thanks to the director’s slow and methodical building of suspense and the full commitment of the actors. By the time we catch the first glimpse of a potential monster, we are absolutely on board, frightened and delighted at the same time.
How to Watch: Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale is streaming on Hulu.
4. The Happiest Season
The perfect Christmas rom-com for the 2020s, The Happiest Season follows Harper and Abby, a young couple headed to Harper’s family’s home for Christmas. The only issue is that Harper has not told her family yet that she’s dating women, which leaves Abby in the uncomfortable position of having to lie about herself for the holidays. The cast here is top notch. Kristen Stewart and Mackenzie Davis shine in their lead roles, and the internet had a complete breakdown about how magnetic Aubrey Plaza is as Harper’s ex-girlfriend. Alison Brie, Dan Levy, Mary Holland, Victor Garber, and Mary Steenburgen round out the sparkling cast in this film written and directed by Clea DuVall.
It’s a much-needed and utterly modern take on the holiday romance. And what’s more, it feels believable, which is almost unheard of for a Christmas movie! Don’t waste another second waiting to watch this intelligent, funny, and cheerily sincere film.
How to Watch: The Happiest Season is streaming on Hulu.
5. Dear Santa
We know what the people want for Christmas: an informative documentary! Dear Santa delves into the U.S. Postal Service’s 100-year-old "Operation Santa" program, which enables members of the public to fulfill the Christmas wishes of needy kids country-wide. Every year, thousands of children drop off letters to Santa at the Post Office, and Dear Santa takes us on a journey across the country to show how they facilitate making those kids’ dreams come true. The documentary floats on the kindness and magic of this massive USPS program and is certain to fill your heart with yuletide warmth.
How to Watch: Dear Santa is streaming on Hulu.
6. The Mistle-Tones
Tia Mowry is Holly, a bubbly woman whose greatest dream in life is to join the local Christmas cover group, the Snow Belles, and spend every Christmas Eve… checks notes … singing at the mall. But when Holly is denied a spot in the group by Snow Belle queen and diva Marci, played by none other than Tori Spelling, she starts her own singing group and competes with the Snow Belles for the coveted mall gig.
The Mistle-Tones, which premiered in 2012 as part of ABCFamily’s "25 Days of Christmas," is fun and fluffy, and it stays engaging thanks to its multiple Christmas medley performances. There is romance here for Holly — her boss is a standoffish workaholic? I bet that’s about to change!!! — but Mowry and Spelling are both so accustomed to the camera, their casual self-assurance tends to steal most of their scenes.
How to Watch: The Mistle-Tones is streaming on Hulu.
7. The Man Who Invented Christmas
Are you a biopic-lover trying to sneak a drama into holiday family movie night? The Man Who Invented Christmas should do just the trick. This moody and unconventional movie tells the somewhat true story of Charles Dickens (Dan Stevens) on the brink of financial ruin, writing A Christmas Carol in six weeks so it could be published in time by Christmas. It’s delightful to witness random events in Dickens’ life (like a man in a cemetery grumbling “Bah, humbug!”) coming together to inspire the story we know so well. Even more surreal, Dickens manifests and talks to the fictional characters (Christopher Plummer is a perfect Scrooge) as he pieces together the plot in real time. But instead of focusing overly on retreading a story we know by heart, the movie smartly stays fixated on Dickens himself: his state of mind, his haunting past, and his increasing stress under the mounting pressure for success.
How to Watch: The Man Who Invented Christmas is streaming on Hulu.
8. Every Other Holiday
A divorce-reconcilation fantasy just in time for Christmas! When their kids announce the only item on their Christmas list is a holiday with both Mom and Dad, celebrated on their Grandma and Grandpa’s farm, divorced parents Tracie and Rick don’t have much choice but to pack the car. Unfortunately Grandma, played by a flawless Dee Wallace, is seriously overbearing, has never liked Rick (or his guitar!), and is determined to stamp out any unexpected holiday sparks that might fly between the separated couple — because you know there are gonna be sparks!
Every Other Holiday goes down like butter. It’s gentle and heartwarming, and it feels relatively fresh compared to other TV holiday flicks, thanks in part to the unexpectedly high-caliber talent of its two leads, Shuyler Fisk and David Clayton Rogers. Because Every Other Holiday is a Lifetime movie, there is a sprinkling of church here and there, and there are of course some chunks that could have benefitted from a little more editing, but this gooey movie is a solid guilty-pleasure watch.
How to Watch: Every Other Holiday is streaming on Hulu.
9. Same Time Next Christmas
Same Time, Next Christmas is barely a Christmas movie. It’s an easy rom-com whose pivotal plot points happen to take place during the holiday season. But that might be just what you’re looking for after mainlining yuletide cheer for days on end! This fluffy romp follows a star-crossed couple whose families spend Christmas at the same Hawaiian resort each year. Though they were close as kids, Olivia (Lea Michele) and Jeff (Charles Michael Davis) can’t seem to get the timing right as adults. Maybe it has something to do with their inexplicable inability to communicate outside the one week annually they each spend in Hawaii. Just a guess.
Though the movie sneaks Michele covers of Christmas songs into the soundtrack, the real stars here are the parents, with Nia Vardalos and George Newbern overflowing with charm as her super horny parents. It’s not going to win any awards, but if you keep your expectations low, Same Time, Next Christmas is a pleasant little romance for a cozy night on the couch.
How to Watch: Same Time, Next Christmas is streaming on Hulu.
Comments