15 Christmas Movies For Every Kind Of Holiday Mood

Holiday Entertainment Archive Photos/Moviepix/Getty Images ‘Tis the season for lots of feelings. Don’t worry, there’s a movie for that (whatever “that” is) by Jamie Kenney Updated: Feb. 20, 2024 Originally Published: Dec. 9, 2021

Your days are merry and bright, but also stressed and overwhelmed. Don’t worry: we’ve picked the best Christmas movies for any mood that may strike.

Christmas Vacation

When you have been freezing your butt off stringing Christmas lights on your house for hours and you need a break — and inspiration. HBOMax

Home Alone

20th Century Fox/Kobal/Shutterstock When you feel like you're failing as a parent this holiday: you'll feel better about your parenting after watching the McCallisters...

The Nightmare Before Christmas

When your family won’t let you put a Santa hat on the 12-foot skeleton you bought for Halloween and you're salty about it. Disney+

How The Grinch Stole Christmas (2000)

Archive Photos/Moviepix/Getty Images When you’re just really over “Ugly Christmas Sweater” parties. I dress terribly all year, this is not novel or fun.

The Santa Clause

When you’re pregnant during the holidays and you need to believe your sudden weight gain and newly sprouted facial hairs are magical. Disney+

The Muppet Christmas Carol

Disney+ For holiday moments when you feel like you’re a cranky old man surrounded by weirdos, but you still do love the weirdos.

How The Grinch Stole Christmas (1966)

When you fantasize about following through on your threat to call Santa and cancel Christmas because your kids just won’t behave. DailyMotion

Elf

HBO Max When you need to remind yourself that you haven’t been eating too many sweets because candy is an important food group.

A Charlie Brown Christmas

When you need inspiration for sweet new dance moves before your company's holiday party. AppleTV

Jingle Jangle

Gareth Gatrell/NETFLIX For when you’ve convinced yourself you can sing the high note in “O Holy Night” and discover, actually, you can’t.

Miracle on 34th Street

When the Thanksgiving Day Parade is over and you really wish it wasn’t. Movieclips Classic Trailers

Scrooged

MovieClips/YouTube When you feel like, actually, there’s no rule that says you can’t put booze in hot cocoa…

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer

When holiday stress is so crushing you have to regress to a childlike state. Nothing gets you there like old school stop-motion animation. CBS

A Christmas Story

Amazon Video When you’ve been hinting at a particular gift for months and you know you’re still not getting it because no one listens to you ever.

It’s A Wonderful Life

When the house is still a wreck but you’ll deal with it in the morning because you’ll be damned if you don't watch this movie on Christmas. Amazon Video