In the spirit of the season I thought I would list my favorite holiday movies. Most of these tend to lean toward comedy but overall they use Christmas as backdrop to provide us with a situation in which we are all familiar. I suspect most of you have viewed these films many times but for me they have become a holiday tradition.
Top Five Holiday Movies
1. It's A Wonderful Life - it doesn't get any more classic than this. Frank Capra's 1947 masterpiece shows all of us what the true meaning of Christmas is - as well as life itself. I watch this every year with my wife and can't imagine Christmas without it.
2. A Christmas Story - what other movie can withstand 24 hours of constant rotation? The 1950's in America seemed to be such an idyllic time and director Bob Clark really captures the look and overall feeling of that era. Sadly - Clark and his son were killed in a head on collision by a drunk driver in 2007.
3. Love Actually - director Richard Curtis takes on the stories of several different characters and manages to not short change any of them. While the film mostly deals with relationships it also has a lot of heart and many funny moments.
4. The Ref - the late Ted Demme directed this black comedy. Denis Leary plays a burglar who is trying to evade authorities on Christmas Eve. Leary's plan takes a wrong turn as he takes a bickering couple (played beautifully by Kevin Spacey & Judy Davis) hostage and they proceed to drive him crazy.
5. Bad Santa - Billy Bob Thornton nails his role as an alcoholic criminal who under the guise of Santa, stakes out a department store safe. Great supporting roles from the late John Ritter and Bernie Mac also hit all the right notes. This is one that shouldn't be watched with the kids.
