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Netflix Christmas movies to watch this festive season, from Klaus to The Princess Switch

We all know the classic Christmas films we'll be tuning into this year, but you might find a new favourite on our list

Patrick O'Donnell

Tuesday 24 December 2019 08:01 GMT

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Klaus: Official Trailer

’Tis the season of family feuds around the dinner table, last-minute present shopping and Netflix original Christmas movies.

Every year, the streaming service releases a plethora of festive content that is devoured by its 158 million subscribers as though it were the last serving of turkey. With Andrew Lloyd-Webber musicals and tales from a galaxy far, far away dominating cinemas each holiday season, traditional festive fare has migrated to to streaming services.

A “classic” Netflix Christmas flick is modest in its production but big on heart. Here are the movies you need to binge on Netflix this Christmas:

The Christmas Chronicles

Starring Kurt Russell as Jolly Old Saint Nick, The Christmas Chronicles echoes Tim Allen’s The Santa Clause trilogy in both plot and sentiment. When Kate and Teddy Pierce accidentally derail Santa’s work commute, the race is on to fix his sleigh and deliver presents before the night is over. A sequel is in the works with Goldie Hawn, Russell’s real-life partner, set to star as Mrs Claus.

The 20 best Christmas films - ranked

Show all 20

1/20The 20 best Christmas films - ranked

The 20 best Christmas films - ranked

20. The Santa Clause (1994)

When Tim Allen’s Scott Calvin accidentally kills Santa Claus (a nice, light-hearted beginning to a family film) he is expected to take his place. He refuses at first – but when his hair turns white, a beard and belly grow overnight, and children start approaching him with their wish lists, he reluctantly takes the mantle. It’s weirder and darker than it has any right to be, but it’s enjoyable to watch.

Buena Vista Pictures

The 20 best Christmas films - ranked

19. The Apartment (1960)

When writer and director Billy Wilder first watched Brief Encounter, in which two people use a friend’s house to consummate an affair, he wrote in his notebook: “What about the poor schnook who has to crawl into the still-warm bed of the lovers?” The result of that scribble is The Apartment, a film that, with its farcical but well-wrought premise and career-best performances from Jack Lemmon and Shirley MacLaine, never puts a foot wrong.

Rex

The 20 best Christmas films - ranked

18. Miracle on 34th Street (1994)

Whether you consider this film a heart-warming gem or an insult to the 1947 original might depend on which version you grew up with – but it’s hard to argue with the performances of Richard Attenborough as Kris Kringle, and Mara Wilson as the precociously cynical Dorey.

20th Century Fox

The 20 best Christmas films - ranked

17. The Holiday (2006)

Film trailer editor Amanda (Cameron Diaz) and wedding columnist Iris (Kate Winslet) exchange homes over Christmas in an attempt to escape their terrible love lives. This Nancy Meyers classic is as predictable as its fake movie trailers, but it’s warm and witty, with a strange but sweet subplot involving an Oscar-winning nonagenarian.

Universal Pictures

The 20 best Christmas films - ranked

16. Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale (2010)

A bizarre and macabre Santa Claus origin story, this Finnish fantasy horror follows a group of Lapland natives who stumble upon the secret of Father Christmas. To say that he’s not the cuddly, benevolent gift-giver we know and love would be an understatement. To say any more would be to spoil the twisted fun.

Kinology

The 20 best Christmas films - ranked

15. Happy Christmas (2014)

This low-budget, entirely improvised film from “mumblecore” actor-director Joe Swanberg is an understated and underrated gem. Anna Kendrick is typically charismatic as an irresponsible twenty-something who crashes, uninvited, back into the life of her older brother Jeff (Swanberg), but the film’s secret weapon is a brilliantly nuanced performance from Melanie Lynskey

Magnolia Pictures

The 20 best Christmas films - ranked

14. White Christmas (1954)

Featuring a reimagined version of the title song, which Bing Crosby introduced in Holiday Inn over a decade earlier, White Christmas was intended to reunite Crosby with Fred Astaire for their third Irving Berlin showcase musical. Astaire declined the project, and eventually Danny Kaye starred instead, as an aspiring entertainer alongside Crosby. The resulting film was a box office smash and a subsequent classic. Astaire missed out.

Rex

The 20 best Christmas films - ranked

13. Die Hard (1988)

Whatever side you’re on in the infernal debate over whether it’s actually a Christmas movie (Bruce Willis thinks not), it's hard to deny that Die Hard is a perfect action movie. That it takes place on Christmas Eve, and features lines like, “Now I have a machine gun, ho-ho-ho”, makes it ideal holiday viewing too – particularly if you’re a little sick of festive slush.

Moviestore/Rex

The 20 best Christmas films - ranked

12. The Bishop’s Wife (1947)

Based on Robert Nathan’s 1928 novel, The Bishop’s Wife stars Cary Grant as perhaps the most charming angel to ever grace the silver screen. Taking on human form in order to help a struggling bishop (David Niven) and his fractured marriage, Grant’s Dudley accidentally falls in love with the eponymous Julia (Loretta Young). He’s an angel, though, not a homewrecker, and all is well come Christmas Eve.

Rex

The 20 best Christmas films - ranked

11. A Christmas Carol (1999)

There have been about a hundred screen adaptations of Charles Dickens’s iconic novella, which sees a penny-pinching miser change his ways after encountering the ghosts of his Christmas past, present and future. Though this made-for-television film is far from the most famous reimagining, it is one of the best – thanks in no small part to perfectly pitched performances from Patrick Stewart and Richard E Grant.

RHI Entertainment

The 20 best Christmas films - ranked

10. Meet Me in St. Louis (1944)

Sick of playing juvenile roles, Judy Garland nearly turned down her role as the lovesick Esther Smith in this musical comedy. When she finally agreed to do it, the production was marred by her erratic behaviour – she would regularly turn up to set hours late, or not turn up at all. “It was some years later before I really knew what she’d been going through,” her co-star Mary Astor later said, alluding to Garland’s struggles with mental health issues and addiction – but you’d never know any of that watching this warm, charming film. It’s also responsible for one of the best Christmas songs ever made: “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas”.

Rex

The 20 best Christmas films - ranked

9. Home Alone 2

Lost in New York (1992): It is a truth universally acknowledged that the Home Alone franchise went on for three films too long – but this first sequel is surprisingly wonderful. Sure, it follows almost the exact same formula as the original, and simply relocates to the Big Apple, but with a formula this good, and with Macaulay Culkin still on board (he wisely bowed out after this one), it’s hard to complain. If you’re after festive cheer, though, you might want to fast forward through Donald Trump’s brief cameo.

20th Century Fox

The 20 best Christmas films - ranked

8. Carol (2015)

When it comes to Christmas films, there is no shortage of love and romance – but it’s all overwhelmingly straight. Even Love Actually filmed a queer storyline among its 524 interweaving plots, before deciding it should be cut from the film, leaving that “Colin goes to America” abomination intact. And so Todd Haynes’s Carol, a beautifully shot adaptation of Patricia Highsmith’s 1952 novel in which department store worker Therese (Rooney Mara) falls in love with a mysterious older woman (Cate Blanchett) in the run up to Christmas, is a welcome break from heteronorm-nativity.

StudioCanal

The 20 best Christmas films - ranked

7. Love Actually (2003)

We’ve all read that Jezebel article by now, and know that Love Actually is flawed as hell. But there is far too much to enjoy in this ensemble romcom to write it off – namely Emma Thompson’s extraordinary, rightly revered performance as the wronged wife of Alan Rickman.

Rex

The 20 best Christmas films - ranked

6. Gremlins (1984)

There are three simple rules to keep a gremlin from wreaking havoc: don’t expose it to the light, don’t get it wet, and never feed it after midnight. Naturally, over the course of this Christmas comedy horror, all three of those rules are broken. The ensuing chaos makes for riotous viewing.

Warner Bros

The 20 best Christmas films - ranked

5. The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992)

Who’s have thought that one of the best interpretations of Charles Dickens’s festive fable would come courtesy of a bunch of wise-cracking puppets? In his role as Ebeneezer Scrooge, Michael Caine vowed to act “like I’m working with the Royal Shakespeare Company”, whatever ridiculous antics were happening around him. His tactic worked.

Buena Vista Pictures

The 20 best Christmas films - ranked

4. The Snowman (1982)

Though this beautiful, wordless animation is not widely known outside the UK – it was first broadcast on the then fledgling Channel 4 in 1982 and then annually ever since – it is well worth 26 minutes of anyone’s time. Revolving around a young boy and a snowman come to life (a little like Jack Frost, except not terrible), the film ends with a breathtaking flourish, as the pair fly over England’s snowy plains to the melancholy strains of “Walking in the Air".

Channel 4

The 20 best Christmas films - ranked

3. Elf (2003)

This fish-out-of-water tale, in which one of Santa’s elves (Will Ferrell) discovers that he’s actually a human and sets out to New York to find his father, could have been supremely annoying if it weren’t for Ferrell’s absolute commitment to his ludicrous role. Bolstered by strong performances from James Caan, Mary Steenburgen and Zooey Deschanel, Elf manages to be both self-aware and defiantly uncynical.

Rex

The 20 best Christmas films - ranked

2. Home Alone (1990)

After revelling for a while in every child’s ill-thought-out fantasy – “I made my family disappear,” says Macaulay Culkin’s Kevin when his family accidentally leave on holiday without him – Home Alone then promptly changes tack, inserting two grimy burglars into the mix. Cue some of the most inventive, and surprisingly violent, self-defence techniques you’ve ever seen.

20th Century Fox

The 20 best Christmas films - ranked

1. It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)

Admittedly, for about 120 of this film’s 130-minute running time, it’s really not a wonderful life at all. In fact, this tale of a down-on-his-luck bank clerk (James Stewart) driven to the brink of suicide, before a trainee angel shows him what the world would have been like without him (spoiler: much worse), is deeply emotionally draining. But it’s also warm, funny, timeless, life-affirming, and a deserved classic.

National Telefilm Associates

Klaus

Klaus has the honour of being the first original animated feature to be distributed by Netflix. Produced by Spanish animation studio, SPA Studios, Klaus is an excellent return to the traditional animation style, as well an engaging alternative origin story for Father Christmas that children and adults will love.

A Christmas Prince

When journalist Amber Moore is sent to the fictional Aldovia to cover a press conference given by Crown Prince Richard, who is set to take the thrones, sparks fly. From the scenic winter countryside to sledding on the snow, A Christmas Prince is brimming with festive cheer.

Holiday in the Wild

Kristin Davis swaps cocktails with Sarah Jessica Parker in Sex and the City for safari with Rob Lowe in Zambia. After splitting from her husband, Kate Conrad decides to go on the couple’s planned second honeymoon by herself in order to escape Yuletide pressures.

A Christmas Prince: The Royal Wedding

Audiences can return to Aldovia in this merry sequel, but be warned. All is not well. Amber and Richard are engaged but their upcoming nuptials are threatened by the monarchy’s strict traditions and the public’s growing distrust of the royal family. Expect romantic clichés and ridiculous political subplots galore.

Christmas Inheritance

A spoiled rich girl learns the true meaning of Christmas while helping her dad.

Ellen Langford, played by Eliza Taylor, is told by her CEO father to deliver a special Christmas card to their family’s hometown so she can inherit his business. A big city personality clashes with small town sensibilities in this comedy-drama.

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The Knight Before Christmas

Vanessa Hudgens stars as Brooke, a woman disillusioned with romance, in this time travel caper. Mistaking a 17th-century knight for someone with amnesia, Brooke falls head over heels in love with both him and Christmas.

Holiday Rush

Despite losing his radio show and being recently widowed, Rush Williams will do anything to give his family the best Christmas possible. Played by Romany Malco of The 40-Year-Old Virgin fame, Williams tries to navigate family, love and a new career during the most hectic time of the year.

The Princess Switch

Vanessa Hudgens and Vanessa Hudgens in The Princess Switch (Netflix)

No Netflix Christmas movie is truly complete without Vanessa Hudgens. In this take on The Prince and the Pauper, the High School Musical star plays the dual roles of the Duchess of Montenaro, and Chicago-based baker Stacy De Novo.

After travelling to the fictional country of Belgravia (Americans clearly think all European countries have similar names, see also: Genovia in The Princess Diaries), Stacy bumps into her doppelgänger – who happens to be marrying the crown prince, Edward (Nashville‘s Sam Palladio). Chaos and hilarity ensues.

A sequel is in the works for next year, with Hudgens set to play a third doppelgänger – in what will clearly be the best Christmas movie of this year.

A Christmas Prince: The Royal Baby

A missing treaty. An ancient curse. A potential war. It can only be another addition to the Christmas Prince franchise. When the centennial peace treaty between Aldovia and Penglia is stolen before the leaders of both countries can sign it, the threat of war looms over our protagonists. Amber and Richard must find the treaty in order to prevent war and a curse being put on their child.

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