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I love the holidays. Other than the hustle and bustle associated with this time of year, I always look forward to the holiday season. Once the commotion is behind me, I find many opportunities to enjoy films and television that showcase holiday themes.
What do I choose to watch this time of year? I have a pretty extensive collection of holiday themed films that range from classics like It's A Wonderful Life to modern fare such as the new CGI-laden remake of A Christmas Carol. It's amazing to look at some of the older black and white films and see that thematically they still hold up well.
There are a few films and shows that certainly make it into the viewing rotation every year in our household: Christmas Vacation, It's a Wonderful Life, A Charlie Brown Christmas, Emmet Otter's Jug Band Christmas, and of course A Christmas Story. Each year I view each of these titles multiple times, and I find that I never tire of them. In fact, I pretty much refuse to let anyone in my house watch any television on Christmas day other than 24 hours of A Christmas Story on TBS. As you can tell, I am pretty nuts about holiday fare.
In addition to the films and shows mentioned above, several others that I enjoy are Elf, The Year Without A Santa Claus, and Jingle All The Way, featuring one of my favorite comic actors, the late Phil Hartman. When I was very young one of my favorites was an Italian film called The Christmas That Almost Wasn't, and I have watched that occasionally as well.
Holiday films are just plain old fun for me. This time of year, my wife and I find ourselves frequently quoting Christmas Vacation, and then wanting to pop it into the DVD player one more time. Watching Emmet Otter brings back childhood memories and it is very nice to be able to share my favorites from my youth with my young kids as well. Watching them together is almost like passing the torch to the next generation, and I enjoy seeing them learn to appreciate these treasures.
What do you and your family most like to watch this time of year? Do you have any holiday traditions as far as viewing holiday themed movies and shows?
