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A lot of us have movies that for some reason we watch every holiday season but these movies aren’t your traditional holiday films. The following list will help you pick something that will give you a small dose of holiday spirit without going overboard. All of these films have some component that happens during the holidays. Some are warm and fuzzy; some include mutant creatures that try to destroy the world... Pick whatever you are in the mood for!
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84 Charing Cross Road (1986)
Rated: PG
A New York writer with a passion for literature writes to a London bookstore in search of rare classics. A good-natured, reserved Englishman answers her request, beginning a relationship that spans two continents and two decades.
About a boy (2002)
Rated: PG-13
Will is a good-looking, smooth-talking bachelor whose primary goal in life is to avoid any kind of responsibility. So he decides to invent an imaginary son in order to meet attractive single moms. Will gets a lesson about life from a bright but hopelessly geeky 12-year-old named Marcus. Now, as Will struggles to teach Marcus the art of being cool, Marcus teaches Will that you are never too cool to grow up.
Adam Sandler's Eight crazy nights (2002)
Rated: PG-13
When a small-town, extremely disgruntled guy, Davey Stone, faces another holiday season in his New England hometown, he does what he always has - he messes up big time and lands in jail. But after a few surprises - including the mysterious reason for Davey's bad attitude and the reappearance of his childhood sweetheart - Davey might just decide he has a reason or two to change his ways.
An affair to remember (1957)
Rated: PG
Nickie Ferrante and Terry McKay meet on an ocean liner and fall deeply in love. Though each is engaged to someone else, they agree to meet six months later at the Empire State Building if they still feel the same way about each other. But a tragic accident prevents their rendezvous, and the lovers' future takes an emotional and uncertain turn.
The apartment (1960)
An ambitious office clerk plans to get ahead by lending out his apartment to his boss, but falls in love with the boss's girlfriend.
Auntie Mame (1958)
In 1928, a 10-year-old boy goes to live with his eccentric, sophisticated aunt--a lady who throws a party for any occasion or nonoccasion that comes to mind.
La buche (1999)
When Yvette's second husband suddenly dies days before Christmas, she turns to her three daughters from her first marriage to console her during the holidays. Not wanting their father to be alone, one of the girls invites him to Christmas dinner, forcing their parents to speak to each other for the first time in 25 years. As their complicated lives converge, secrets are revealed that will test their love and their loyalties.
Desk set (1957)
Rated: G
A classic Hepburn-Tracy romance, about the head of the research department at a TV network and an absent-minded computer genius.
Die hard (1988)
Rated: R
A team of terrorists has seized a building in L.A. and taken hostages. A New York cop, in town to spend Christmas with his estranged wife, is the only hope for the people held by the savage criminals.
Edward Scissorhands (1990)
Rated: PG-13
Once upon a time in a castle high on a hill lived an inventor whose greatest creation was named Edward. Although Edward had an irresistible charm, he wasn't quite perfect. The inventor's sudden death left him unfinished, with sharp shears of metal for hands. Edward lived alone in the darkness until one day a kind Avon Lady took him home to live with her family. And so began Edward's fantastic adventures in a pastel paradise known as Suburbia.
The family Stone (2006)
Rated: PG-13
Everett brings his fiancé Meredith home to meet his family for the Christmas holiday. It's an instant disaster when Everett's parents, Sybil and Kelly, agree with their gay, deaf son Thad, pot-smoking son Ben and daughters Amy and Susannah that Meredith is way too uptight to be welcomed into their family. Wanting to please Everett and get along with his family, Meredith recruits her sister Julie to help her thaw the Stone family cold front.
First blood (1982)
Rated: R
An ex-Green Beret, a peacetime misfit, is haunted by memories of Vietnam. Falling foul of an over-zealous small-town sheriff, all hell is let loose as he goes on the run. In the life or death manhunt that ensues, he will need all his old skills to stay alive and outwit his pursuers--the sheriff and his posse, and more than 200 National Guardsmen.
The Glenn Miller story (1953)
Rated: G
This vibrant tribute to Glenn Miller charts his rise from obscurity and poverty to fame and wealth in the early 1940's.
Gremlins (1984)
Rated: PG
When a young bank teller inadvertently breaks the rules of Mogwai care, his new pet Gizmo multiplies into a bevy of mischievous brothers, who soon morph into malevolent scaly creatures.
The holiday (2006)
Rated: PG-13
Amanda lives in Los Angeles and is a movie trailer editor. Iris lives in Surrey, England and is a journalist. The two live five thousand miles apart and have never met, but are dealing with the same problem: men. Amanda just broke up with her cheating boyfriend. Iris has pined for her ex. They both come upon a website that advocates home exchange and the two swap houses for two weeks at Christmas - both with a goal to forget their troubled love lives.
Home alone (1990)
Rated: PG
When eight-year-old Kevin McCallister's family left for vacation, they forgot one minor detail: Kevin!
Home for the holidays (1985)
Rated: PG-13
Claudia Larson is a divorced single mom who just lost her job and now has to fly home for the traditional family Thanksgiving in Baltimore. From the plane, she calls for reinforcements--and her brother Tommy makes it down from Boston with a little surprise: a handsome friend named Leo.
The ice harvest (2005)
Rated: R
It's Christmas Eve in icebound Wichita, Kansas, and this year Charlie Arglist just might have something to celebrate. Charlie is an attorney for the sleazy businesses of Wichita, along with his unsavory associate, the steely Vic Cavanaugh, the two have just successfully embezzled $2 million from Kansas City boss Bill Guerrard. But the real prize for Charlie is the stunning Renata, who runs the Sweet Cage strip club. Charlie hopes to slip out of town with Renata. But as daylight fades and an ice storm whirls, everyone from Charlie's drinking buddy Pete Van Heuten to the local police begin to wonder just what exactly is in Charlie's Christmas stocking.
Lady and the tramp (1955)
Rated: G
Lady, a lovingly pampered cocker spaniel, and Tramp, a jaunty, freedom-loving mutt with a heart of gold, share an enthralling romance and thrilling adventures.
Less than zero (1987)
Rated: R
Julian is a boy with looks, charm, intelligence and a father who sets him up in the record business; he also has a drug habit. His best friend Clay wants to help and is willing to do almost anything for his friend, but Julian is going downhill so fast that he might take his girlfriend and Clay with him.
Lethal weapon (1987)
Rated: r
The story of two Vietnam-vets-turned-cops who have just one thing in common: both hate to work with partners. But their partnership becomes the key to survival when a murder investigation leads to war with a heroin ring.
The lion in winter (2003)
Starring: Patrick Stewart
In the winter of 1183, a royal family prepares for a joyous Christmas holiday reunion of scheming, conniving and deceit. King Henry II summons his cunning prison-bound wife to his side as he prepares to announce the succession of the throne to one of his double-crossing three sons, none of whom are qualified to rule the monarchy. Originally aired as a motion picture on Showtime in 2003.
The lion in winter (1968)
Starring: Peter O'Toole
Rated: PG
Historical drama of the conflict between King Henry II of England and his wife Eleanor of Aquitaine over Henry's successor to the British throne.
Little women (1933)
Starring: June Allyson
Chronicles the humorous and sentimental fortunes of the four March sisters as they grew into young ladies during the harsh times of the Civil war.
Little women (1949)
Starring: Katharine Hepburn
Louisa May Alcott's Civil War story of four sisters who share their loves, their joys, and their sorrows.
Little women (1994)
Starring: Winona Ryder
Rated: PG
Story about the March family of four daughters and a strong mother who, because her husband is away serving in the Army during the Civil War, must raise her "little women" on her own. The daughters include: spirited Jo who longs for a career as a writer; beautiful and conservative older sister Meg; fragile Beth; and the romantic Amy.
Love actually (2003)
Rated: R
It's all about love and holiday cheer in London. The Prime Minister is smitten with his caterer; a widower's young son nurses the ultimate schoolboy crush; a writer falls for his Portuguese housekeeper; a devoted wife and mother copes with her potentially unfaithful husband; and a lovelorn American is desperately attracted to a colleague.
The man who came to dinner (2000)
The story of a noted critic and social celebrity who is stranded at the Stanley family's Midwestern home after injuring his hip on their property.
Meet John Doe (1941)
A genial homeless unemployed baseball pitcher is hoaxed into protesting against existing social evils as a newspaper circulation stunt. He pleas to the "little man" for brotherly love and democratic good will and John Doe clubs are formed. Because of his simple sincerity, he becomes a national hero, but he is shocked when he discovers that it's all a plot by the owner of the paper, who plans to use the voting strength of the clubs to bludgeon his way to power.
Meet me in St. Louis (1944)
In Saint Louis before the 1904 World's Fair, Alonzo Smith threatens to uproot his family and move to New York, which greatly upsets his wife and four daughters.
Millions (2004)
Rated: PG
The United Kingdom decides to convert to the Euro in seven days. For the Irish criminal world, it's the biggest opportunity there ever was. When a railway heist goes wrong and an enormous bag of money falls from the sky into the hands of Damian and Anthony, there's only one thing the two can do--spend it like there's no tomorrow! But Damian and Anthony have differing views on what to do with the money. What they both discover is that money can cause lots of problems.
Mixed nuts (1994)
Rated: PG-13
A wild and wacky comedy about oddball characters in Los Angeles at Christmastime, centered around a suicide hotline service.
My mother's castle (1991)
Rated: PG
The story of Marcel Pagnol's childhood holidays in Provence continues in My Mother's Castle. During a Christmas in the region Marcel's affection for the area deepens and he also learns to love and appreciate his mother's true nature.
Planes, trains and automobiles (1987)
Rated: R
Neal Page wants to fly home to spend Thanksgiving with his family. Del Griffith leads Page on a hilarious cross-country wild goose chase that keeps him from tasting his turkey.
Radio days (1987)
Rated: PG
A look back at radio from the late 1930s to the mid-1940s, focusing on an extended Jewish family, all avid radio listeners, and on a young woman who eventually succeeds as a radio gossip columnist.
Rocky IV (1985)
Rated: PG
Rocky faces his greatest challenge as he climbs into the ring against a savage Russian fighter, each determined to destroy the other.
The shop around the corner (1940)
The setting is pre-World War II Budapest. Bickering co-workers in a gift shop don't realize they're lonelyhearts penpals.
Sleepless in Seattle (1993)
Rated: PG
After hearing a man confess his love for his dearly departed wife on a call-in radio show, a woman falls deeply, inexplicably in love with him. Deciding he is her destiny, she treks across country on a wildly romantic impulse to meet him.
The thin man (1934)
Crime/comedy thriller featuring Nick Charles, private eye, and his wife Nora. The plot unfolds at Christmas when an eccentric inventor disappears after threatening his mistress with a lawsuit for embezzlement.
Trading places (1983)
Rated: R
The rich and greedy Duke Brothers wager a bet on whether a born loser like Billy Ray Valentine, a hustler from the ghetto, can become as successful as Winthorpe, a wealthy investment executive, if put in the proper environment--and if a prig like Winthorpe were to lose all, would he turn to a life of crime? Valentine becomes the golden boy of the commodities market and Winthorpe finds himself out in the streets. The two pawns meet, compare notes, figure out who's doing this to them and Valentine and Winthorpe set in motion some hilarious revenge plans of their own.
Unaccompanied minors (2006)
Rated: PG
It's Christmas Eve and a huge blizzard has just shut down Hoover International Airport, threating to ruin holiday plans for all stranded travelers. Snowed in en route to their father's house, two unaccompanied minors, Spencer and his sister, Katherine, are ushered to the airport's UM Room, a holding cell for dozens of stranded, parent-free kids from all over the country. Spencer decides to make a run for freedom. With the airport's peevish Passenger Relations Manager and his lackey and every other airport security guard hot on his trail, a group of UMs help each other flee the clutches of airport authority.
When Harry met Sally (1989)
Rated: R
Romantic comedy that starts with the relationship between just-graduated-from-college Sally and Harry. They drive to New York together and find they dislike each other, but through the years develop a close friendship.
While you were sleeping (1995)
Rated: PG
A lonely young woman saves the life of a handsome stranger she has fallen in love with from afar. His family mistakes her for his fiancee, and she goes along because she likes his offbeat family so much. Matters take a hilarious turn when she meets and falls in love with her make-believe lover's brother.
This list was contributed by Appleton Public Library Reference and Information Services Staff
"Christmas won't be Christmas without any presents," grumbled Jo, lying on the rug."
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"HA! What shall we hang... the holly, or each other?"
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The Lion in Winter |
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The Lion in Winter |