Whether it is for Friday night movie night, a quiet Saturday afternoon, or a sick day, it is the perfect time of year to watch one of these classic Christmas movies.
Today, we are taking a break from book talk and instead sharing some fun Christmas movies!
Our family loves classic movies. They are some of the first movies that my kids remember watching. Christmas movies are no different. We love classic Christmas movies and have been watching them for years.
Each year we try to find one or two more classic Christmas movies so that we can add them to our list.
So we put together a list of some of our favorite classic Christmas movies to share with you in case you are trying to find new Christmas movies to watch.
We would love to find more to add to our list. If you have a Christmas movie that you love, be sure to leave us a comment, letting us know what it is. We would love to have more Christmas movies for movie night at our house.
White Christmas
Many people have heard of the classic Christmas song “I’m Dreaming of White Christmas,” but they haven’t seen the movie White Christmas that the song is from. A group of entertainers head to Vermont and end up saving the inn that their retired WWII General is trying to keep open. This is the movie I watch every year while I wrap Christmas presents. If you have never seen this one, I highly recommend it!
It Happened on 5th Avenue
A group of down and out people take over a mansion on 5th Avenue. It is a Christmas favorite about family and the importance of being together. It is also enjoyable because of the richness of the house, comedy, and even love stories within.
Christmas in Connecticut
I had never heard of Christmas in Connecticut until a friend mentioned it to me about ten years ago. It has become one of my must watch Christmas movies, and we recommend it to people when they are looking for an old Christmas movie to watch. It is about a homemaker star, that really isn’t much of a homemaker, who falls in love in this fun romantic comedy.
Holiday Affair
Holiday Affair is a 1947 movie that too many people have forgotten about. An unemployed store clerk finds the true meaning of the holidays when he helps a war widow and her son. Robert Mitchum does an amazing job along with Janet Leigh who is somewhat in the middle of a love triangle, which deals with practical versus heart.
A Charlie Brown Christmas
A must watch for kids and adults! This movie brings back so many memories for me, and I am sure that I am not the only one. Also, we just love dancing to the song “Linus and Lucy.”
The Bishop’s Wife
This 1947 movie stars Cary Grant. This one is not as well known as the modern version, but I prefer this one. It reminds you of the importance of family, especially during Christmas.
The Preacher’s Wife
The Preacher’s Wife is The Bishops Wife turned into a modern classic starring Whitney Houston. I prefer the older version, but this one is well worth watching too.
The Shop Around the Corner
Did you know that the 1998 movie, You’ve Got Mail, starring Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan was loosely based on the movie The Shop Around the Corner? If you loved You’ve Got Mail, but haven’t seen this one, it is a fun one to watch. My girls and I watched it a few years ago and loved it.
How the Grinch Stole Christmas (1966)
A book turned into a classic movie. If you grew up in the 1970s and 1980s, you probably watched this every year on tv. There is a reason that it has held the test of time.
How the Grinch Stole Christmas (Jim Carrey)
How the Grinch Stole Christmas, both the old version and this newer one are on my must watch every year. I love this one as much as the old version as the comedy is amazing as is seeing the story come to life.
Home Alone
Released in 1990 Home Alone is now a classic Christmas Movie. A fun story about this movie is that my father-in-law let my kids watch this when they were quite young. They probably were not quite ready to watch this. He totally forgot about some of the language and scenes, but they enjoyed it and have been watching it almost every Christmas since.
Elf
Will Ferrell. What else is there to say?! This movie shares a hilarious story about Santa Clause, his elves, the North Pole, and New York City while sharing what family is all about. We watched this several years ago with our kids, and it has become a family must watch every year.
It’s A Wonderful Life
The first time I remember watching this was as an adult. It is a classic that everyone should see at least once. It is the story of the Christmas spirit, the importance of being around the people that we love, and how important our lives are.
Frosty the Snowman
If you grew up in the 1970s or 1980s, you probably saw this many times as a kid. I still enjoy this one because it brings back fun memories of watching it as a kid.
Miracle on 34th Street
This is another one that I watched the first time as an adult. It is a classic movie that you need to see at least once.
The Santa Clause
Tim Allen is Santa Clause in this classic movie from 1994. Some in our family love this one and some don’t. I am on the side of loving it partially due to the comedy but also the sweet family life aspect of the storyline.
Thanks for the recommendation list. There are a lot of good ones there. My favorites:
1. White Christmas. Hands down, it’s my all-time favorite and is a must-watch every year.
2. Meet me in St. Louis. It’s not always thought of as a traditional Christmas movie, but Judy Garland singing “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” is so so good.
3. Miracle on 34th Street. I prefer the original with Natalie Wood over the remake with Mara Wilson, although it’s pretty good too.
I’ve never heard of Christmas in Connecticut or It Happened on 5th Avenue. I’ll see if our library has those available for check out.
I totally forgot about Meet Me In St. Louis! That is another great one. Thanks for the reminder.
I have only seen the one version of Miracle on 34th Street. I will have to watch the other one.
If you like movies like White Christmas and Meet Me In St. Louis, I think you will enjoy Christmas in Connecticut and It Happened on 5th Ave.
Thanks again for the movie suggestions. I watched both Christmas in Connecticut and It Happened on 5th Avenue and they were so much fun. I think It Happened on 5th Avenue has become a new favorite. We enjoyed it so much the first time, we watched it again before returning it to the library. It kept us laughing all the way through.
I am so glad that you enjoyed them! Christmas in Connecticut is one of my favorites and my oldest daughter told me this year that the one Christmas movie she wanted to watch was It Happened on 5th Ave. Classic Christmas movies are so much fun to watch. I am glad that we could help you find some new favorites.
I have fond memories of most of them, but my absolute favorites are “The Shop Around the Corner” and “Christmas in Connecticut’.” I’ve watched them so many times, and will watch again, any time they are on, any time of the year.
I love the old Christmas movies but a newer one that I try to watch every year is “While You Were Sleeping”. The music is great and I love all the characters. The love story is sweet too. Actually it’s not that new anymore! The 90s. LOL!
Several of these are favorites with us, as well. It Happened on 5th Avenue is a favorite of my oldies-movie-loving daughter and mine! Of course, It’s a Wonderful Life and White Christmas are hard to beat! Another old Christmas one we love is Remember the Night with Fred Murray and Barbara Stanwyk. We’re watched a few Christmas movies this year and are planning to watch several more this week!
Thank you for the reminder of Remember the Night! I have not watched that in years.
I love your recommendations! I’ve always enjoyed your blog, but I don’t read as much historical fiction as you. However, your movie list was spot on. I love a lot of the older movies, and I had never heard of Holiday Affair or What Happened on 5th Avenue. I saw them on your blog, so I checked them out from the library. We absolutely loved them. Would you be able to write more movie recommendations for other seasons of the year? Or maybe just an overall favorites movie blog?
I am so glad that you enjoyed our Christmas movie list. We love old movies, usually more than newer ones actually. I will a few movie posts to my list of posts to do this year.