POPULAR CHRISTMAS MOVIES

THE POLAR EXPRESS

The Polar Express is a 2004 computer-animated musical Christmas

fantasy movie based on the children’s book of the same title by

Chris Van Allsburg. With a budget of $165 million, The Polar Express

is listed in the Guinness World Book of Records as the first all-digital

capture film. The main character of the story, a boy, is given a unique

opportunity to travel to the North Pole and visit Santa Claus,

which has always been his dream.

SCROOGED

Produced and directed by Richard Donner in 1988, Scrooged is another

movie based on the famous Dickens´ Christmas Carol. Starring

Bill Murray as Frank Cross, a cold-hearted television programming

executive, the movie didn’t get a positive reception as some other movies

but it still made it among the most popular American Christmas comedies.

CHRISTMAS IN CONNECTICUT

Christmas in Connecticut is a 1945 romantic comedy directed by

Peter Godfrey, and starring Barbara Stanwyck, Dennis Morgan and

Sydney Greenstree. The movie is a romp of criss-crossing relationships,

deceit, funny scenes and witty comments. Arnold Schwarzenegger

directed a remake of this movie in 1992 but it wasn’t as successful as

the 45´original. Watching Christmas in Connecticut is a tradition for

many families.

RUDOLPH THE RED-NOSED REINDEER

Produced and directed in 1998 by William R. Kowalchuk, Rudolph the

Red-Nosed Reindeer is another popular animated Christmas movie.

With the first appearance in a 1939 booklet written by Robert L. May,

Rudolph, the main character, is the lead reindeer pulling Santa’s sleigh

On Christmas Eve. In many countries, Rudolph has even become a figure

of Christmas folklore and is especially popular among children.

IN BRUGES

This 2008 British-American movie written and directed by Martin McDonagh

is not a traditional Christmas movie but since the plot is set in

Christmas time, it is often ranked in this category. Combining several

different genres such as drama, thriller as well as comedy, the film stars

Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson as two Irish hitmen. Filmed in the

Belgian city of Bruges, the movie garnered a cult status for its

dark humour and dialogues.

FROSTY THE SNOWMAN

If you like more peaceful and gentle Christmas movies, you cannot

miss Frosty the Snowman, a classical Christmas animated fairy tale

based on the popular song of the same title. The program, which

first aired in December, 1969 on CBS, was produced for television by

Rankin/Bass and featured the voices of comedians Jimmy Durante as

narrator and Jackie Vernon as the titular character. The movie is marked

by the traditional cell animation that was used back then.

THREE NUTS FOR CINDERELLA

Directed by Vaclav Vorlicek in 1973, Three Nuts for Cinderella is a

traditional Czech-German Christmas fairy tale. Cinderella, a poor

and humble girl has three wishes at her disposal, gained from three

magic nuts. With their help, she becomes the longed-for bride of a

handsome prince. The film is shown on TV around Christmas time

every year in many European countries such as the Czech Republic,

Germany, Slovakia, Switzerland and Norway.

A CHRISTMAS STORY

A Christmas Story is a 1983 comedy film directed by bob Clark who was

awarded two Genie Awards for it. Starring Peter Billingsley as a

9-year-old boy Ralphie Parker, the film has since become a holiday

classic and is shown numerous times on television during Christmas time.

In 2012, the film was even selected for preservation in the National Film

Registry by the Library of Congress for being “culturally,

historically, or aesthetically significant”.

IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE

Produced and directed by Frank Capra in 1946, It´s a Wonderful Life is

a Christmas fantasy comedy-drama based on a short story

“The Greatest Gift” written by Philip Van Doren Stern. The film stars

James Stewart as George Bailey, a kind man who has given up his

dreams in order to help others and whose imminent suicide on

Christmas Eve brings about the intervention of his guardian angel. It is

one of the most popular Christmas movies in America and it even has

been recognized by the American Film Institute as one of the 100 best

American films ever made.

MIRACLE ON 34TH STREET

Based on a story by Valentine Davies, the 1947 version of Miracle on

34th Street ranks among the most popular Christmas classic.

Directed by George Seaton, the movie won Academy Awards for Best Actor

in a Supporting Role (Edmund Gwenn), Best Writing, Original Story

(Valentine Davies) and Best Writing, Screenplay.