Movie Marathon Recommendations: Christmas 2021
By Danielle Aranda, Abby Gail Tiongson, Angeline Yambao, Regine Sales, Demeter Caubang, Alexandra Paculan, Riana Beduya, Loreigne Elumba and Luisa Singson
Christmas is just around the corner, Rams! Though we don’t have the picturesque white Christmas everyone dreams of, the world is never at a loss for stories that are just chock full of Christmas spirit, effectively reminding one and all of the true purpose of the holiday—to gather ‘round and be thankful for the year we’ve had as we welcome the new. And what better way to prepare for the season than with a good movie marathon?
So get cozy, open up your browser, and line up these movie recommendations to help get you into the holiday cheer!
1 . The Nutcracker and the Four Realms (2018)
This movie recommendation for Christmas will really make you realize lessons about family, bravery, the value of people and loyalty. In this story, Clara and her family is really devastated by the recent passing of her mother, and they are about to go to a ballroom party the night before Christmas. The Nutcracker and the Four Realms is all about the mysterious adventure of Clara in an entirely different place from her home in London. She discovers so many lessons along the way with the “Captain” a nutcracker soldier she met and became friends with while looking for the key that will open an egg-shaped gift from her mother. Aside from the good storyline, this movie has great production design and orchestral music that best tells the narrative it wants to tell the audiences. In the end, the center character Clara goes back to London and celebrate Christmas eve with his father and two other siblings which made the story relatable to a lot of people out there with their families on Holidays.
2. Rudolph, the Red Nose Reindeer (1964)
Rudolph is more than just his shiny nose. Indulge in the American tale of how an extraordinary reindeer saved Christmas with his olfactory oddity. Enjoy being a kid or reliving childhood sentiments through this timeless, classic film for the whole family.
Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer from 1964 is a short, serene, and straightforward film. It narrates the story from the Kris Kringle jingle and epitomizes valuable lessons that everyone can appreciate. Rudolph relays accepting your own differences and being comfortable with other unique personalities in society.
The festive film is also beautifully rendered in stop-motion animation. The alluring quality of this medium is how organic art materials can project an authentic and marvelous ambience. Hence, making inanimate objects come to life adds to the magic of the holidays. This makes the film stand out amongst other animated retellings of Rudolph or any TV Christmas special available. Indeed, a unique medium for a unique main character.
Therefore, enjoy watching beside your loved ones in sweaters while drinking hot coco (or chocolate tablets from grandma’s pasalubong) with little marshmallows in them. Cheers!
3. Let it Snow (2019)
Here’s a recommendation for all hopeless romantics this holiday season! Setting aside the differences between this movie adaptation and its novel, the motion picture is pretty great by itself. Let It Snow includes a perfect mix of friendship, love, and laughter as it follows the tale of three holiday romances all brought together by the minor inconveniences of a town covered in snow. The story revolves around the little adventure of two best friends, a rising pop star and a conflicted daughter, two secret lovers, and a girl in search of acceptance. All these folks had one thing in common: their destination – because during a cold, snowed-in Christmas eve, where else would they be than at a party at Waffle Town? On their journey, they discover the magic of Christmas felt in the presence of the people they truly want to spend it with. All in all, the movie radiates warmth and comfort with its charmingly predictable and cliché storytelling that will make people want to cuddle up with their loved ones this Christmas.
4. Klaus (2019)
A postman stumbles into the unhappiest place on Earth as if adulting isn’t awkwardly insufferable as it is, but Fate and Christmas seem to say another story.
No matter what age you are in, I’d bet you’d come to find the movie “Klaus” (2019), a wholesome 2D animated film that brings back nostalgic memories from when we were children celebrating the holidays with our most cherished people.
As cliche and cringe-worthy as it may sound, its story undeniably penetrates through the heart and soul of mankind with this one line in the movie: “A truly selfless act always sparks another.” Because “Klaus” humbly exhibits the pivotal importance of holding onto the core of our inner child that invisibly resides within the outward version of ourselves and by extension to others. May we hold onto the vulnerable creature that lives within, making us irrevocably human amidst a world termed as survival of the fittest. And may we not confuse the persona of being courageous, strong, and resilient through the absence of fear.
Hopefully, you’ll be able to pause amidst your busy schedule and be touched with the warmth of kindness that’ll linger forever from people whom we have come to cherish dearly with the bit of time we hold in this world. May we spend the holidays receiving love and inviting happiness into our doorsteps. May we never stop believing in our childhood beliefs about Christmas. I’m inviting you to watch “Klaus,” an original Netflix film that’ll make you believe in magic and why we continue to pursue art through humanity-it’s not too late to write those letters, Rams
5. Jingle Jangle (2020)
Christmas, the holiday that unites us with our family as we end the year. Virtual reunions with our loved ones would seem lacking, Jingle Jangle will surely fill this gap! Jingle Jangle follows Journey as she spends the Christmas Holiday with her Grandfather, a once-renowned toymaker Jeronicus, and the adventures as they defeated Gustafson, the assistant who was behind Jeronicus’ failure. With its heartwarming, radiant musical genre, the story of union, the hope that blossoms from it, and the adventures that await us as we meet our loved ones, again, is a great reminder of what we once had, and what we shall surely experience soon.
6. It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)
Tired of Santa Claus, Christmas Chronicles, and other Christmas fantasy movies? Congratulations! You have found the movie you are looking for, as this movie talks about life at its raw form, all its beautiful moments and ugly truths through the eyes of George Bailey. It’s a Wonderful Life strays a way to the usual themes of Christmas as it explores much deeper themes connected to what the holidays are traditionally supposed to concern: the pitfalls of greed and commercialism, the hidden loneliness and problems amidst the merriness, and the values of basic goodness and sacrifice. This Frank Capra’s 1946 film will surely make you realize the answer to the question: “What would this world be like if I had never been born?”
7. A Boy Called Christmas (2021)
A bedtime story, that’s what all Elfheim was for everyone. But not for Nikolas and his father. After the king offered a reward to whoever traveled to the edge of the kingdom to bring back a spark of hope, his father set forth to the North to search for the magical village of Elfheim, which one can only find with faith. After Nicholas found the map to Elfheim from the hat his mother made, he went out on an adventure to look for his father.
Accompanied by his pet mouse named Miika and a reindeer named Blitzen, will he succeed in finding his father and bring back hope to their kingdom? “A Boy Called Christmas” is a freshly popped Christmas film based on a book of the same name by Matt Haig. Welcome the holiday season with Nikolas and his friends as they go through an extraordinary adventure to the North!
8. Elf (2003)
This year was still a tough one, and it’s quite alright to acknowledge that. But let’s not take the holidays for granted and allow ourselves to reignite the youthful spark of Christmas time.
Elf (2003), which features the iconic actor-comedian Will Ferrel, is that fresh breath of December air reminding us to care less about what everyone else thinks and to simply be a beacon of love as the year comes to a close. There’s a reason why we love this oversized, over-joyous, human/elf clad in pine green so much, and it’s because he represents a part of ourselves that many of us have lost: our inner child.
It’s okay to want the simpler things in life— to eat gingerbread cookies, hold your loved one’s hand, and remind people that they’re loved. Take this time to do just that.
Let Buddy say, “You did it! Congratulations” because no matter what this year has thrown at you, you’re still here and we’re proud of you.
