MovieMuse
Our ever expanding Yule Log of all of the Christmas themed or related movies that the team have seen, displayed in order from best to worst. You have Mat to thank for watching all the bad ones, so that you don’t have to!
You can find the full MovieViews review archive, containing almost 2000 films, here…
You can also see the MovieMuse team’s Top Ten Christmas films by checking out the YouTube video at the bottom of the page.
| Poster | Movie | Year | Comments | Rating | Reviewer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
Die Hard | 1988 | Not only the best action film of all time, but also the best Christmas film of all time! An iconic moment in the evolution of action films, showing good guys didn?t need to be muscle-bound heroes and bad guys could be intelligent and engaging. | 10 | Mat |
 |
It's a Wonderful Life | 1946 | Frank Capra's classic tale of a man losing hope and finding redemption in the people around him is often hailed as the best Christmas film ever. I'd wager that you don't need to include the word Christmas in that title. Still an absolute masterpiece. | 10 | Gordon |
 |
Gremlins | 1984 | My personal favourite Christmas film. Gremlins is dark, hilarious and unique. The effects still stand up today and if you don't want your own Mogwai you must be dead inside. | 10 | Gordon |
 |
Stick Man | 2015 | A magically heart warming tale of a humble stick's journey home. Stunningly animated and heart breaking in places, but ultimately uplifting and joyful. Beautiful. | 9 | Gordon |
 |
Home Alone | 1990 | Having not seen the film in the 30 years since its release I was expecting a trite and silly, slapstick comedy. But what I got was a fun and engaging family film that will now be on my annual Christmas watching list. | 8 | Gordon |
 |
Angela's Christmas Wish | 2020 | A superb continuation of the short film Angela's Christmas as the poor Irish children hatch a plot to get their father back from Australia in time for christmas. Captivating. | 8 | Gordon |
 |
Miracle on 34th Street | 1994 | Richard Attenborough is fantastic in this delightful, frequently hilarious story that also has great courtroom drama scenes and retains the old-fashioned charm of the era that the original version was made. | 8 | Mat |
 |
Elf | 2003 | Will Ferrell blends his trademark hyperactive enthusiasm with a childlike innocence that works perfectly in this heart-warming tale that is up there with the very best Christmas classics. | 8 | Mat |
 |
The Muppet Christmas Carol | 1992 | Christmas isn't Christmas without Robin the Frog blessing us, one and all. Darker in places than most Muppet films, but better for it. | 8 | Gordon |
 |
Scrooge | 1951 | This version of A Chrstmas Carol set the standard and the visual theming for all that followed (including The Muppets) | 8 | Gordon |
 |
Trading Places | 1983 | The language in this 80s comedy classic is a bit un-PC nowadays but the story is still clever and both Aykroyd and Murphy are at their best, supported brilliantly by Denholm Elliot and Paul Gleason in particular. | 8 | Mat |
 |
Angela's Christmas | 2017 | A delightful and charming short animation about a 1910s Irish girl who steals the baby Jesus from a display because the church isn't heated and the baby looks cold. | 7 | Gordon |
 |
Joyeux Noel | 2005 | The story of the WWI Christmas ceasefire by French, German and British troops in the trenches shows the compassion from all sides, but seems too preoccupied with the art of the film at the expense of narrative. | 7 | Gordon |
 |
Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale | 2010 | A dark, comic twist on the Santa Claus legend, which hints at being a horror film but never truly follows through with it. Well put together on a modest budget, featuring a brilliant performance from Onni Tomilla who would go on to star in Big Game. | 7 | Mat |
 |
The Forgotten Toys | 1995 | A delightful tale of the toys that get thrown away as time and technology march on. With a great voice cast and some charming characters, it is worth 25 minutes of anyones time. | 7 | Gordon |
 |
Krampus | 2015 | Possibly the most terrifying of all Christmas horror movies due to certain scenes, but also one of the most amusing and well realised, with a good cast and a positive festive message amongst the carnage. | 7 | Mat |
 |
Scrooged | 1988 | An often overlooked Christmas film and made for Bill Murray at the height of his powers I would say. No one could play a modern day Scrooge any better and the film is a great take on the classic story. | 7 | Simon |
 |
Lethal Weapon | 1987 | Apart from the pointless ending Lethal Weapon holds up extremely well and reminds us of how good Mel Gibson's psycho persona really is. | 7 | Gordon |
 |
A Christmas Carol | 1984 | One of the definitive tellings of a well known tale. Tiny Tim is annoying though! | 7 | Gordon |
 |
Love Actually | 2003 | Over the top, sentimental, awkward, comical and packed with cheese - Love Actually is all of these things but so is Christmas, so as a heart-warming festive feelgood movie it's hard to beat. | 7 | Mat |
 |
Arthur Christmas | 2011 | Run of the mill Christmas tale, but has some wonderful characters and comedy moments. | 7 | Gordon |
 |
Better Watch Out | 2016 | An unexpectedly smart Christmas horror film packed with dark humour, impressive acting from the young cast and some genuine shocks in the storyline. A welcome surprise from a genre overloaded with duds. | 7 | Mat |
 |
Klaus | 2019 | An alternative take on how the Santa legend was founded. A smart-mouthed and privileged post man is 'posted' to a remote town and sees the light. | 7 | Gordon |
 |
The Christmas Chronicles | 2018 | Predictable but watchable family christmas caper with a wonderful performance from Kurt Russell as the fat man in the beard (and what a beard it is!). | 7 | Gordon |
 |
The Grinch | 2018 | Despite some token hip-hop that feels out of place, this retelling of the Dr Seuss classic does easilly as good a job as the live action alternative. | 7 | Gordon |
Why not visit the MovieMuse ‘World Cup of Movies‘ to help us crown the best movies of all time.