There are many debates about which films are or aren’t Christmas movies. Are they just set at Christmas or do they actually engage with the holiday spirit, and does that even matter? “Die Hard” always manages to be at the center of the conversation, but plenty of other films also fall into this category. So if you don’t go in for syrupy-sweet and sentimental holiday movies, there are still plenty of action movies, indie films and period pieces with just enough seasonal flair to convince your family that this is a holiday-appropriate film. Plus, they’re good enough to revisit every year.
As mentioned, “Die Hard” is always at the center of the debate, but after years of discussion, there seems to be consensus that “Die Hard” is indeed a Christmas movie. It takes place in Los Angeles on Christmas Eve where tough cop John McClane (Bruce Willis) has flown in to see his family. At his wife’s office Christmas party, he encounters a “hostile takeover,” literally, in the form of a group of terrorists led by Alan Rickman; bloody holiday violence ensues. Director John McTiernan recently settled the debate after a fashion, saying, “We hadn’t intended it to be a Christmas movie, but the joy that came from it is what turned it into a Christmas movie.” Watch it on HBO Max.
Tim Burton’s “Batman Returns” is arguably the best Batman movie, featuring Michael Keaton as Bruce Wayne/Batman, opposite villains played by Danny DeVito (Penguin), Christopher Walken and an unforgettable Michelle Pfeiffer as Catwoman. The Christmas backdrop and events set around the holiday lend extra pizzazz to the city of Gotham in Burton’s signature whimsically dark aesthetic. Watch it on HBO Max.
"Hustlers," Lorene Scafaria’s tribute to hustlers with hearts of (14k) gold, features a pivotal Christmas-set scene that represents not only the peak of success for the stripper scammers, but also the warm chosen family they become for each other. Also! J-Lo in a Santa hat. Watch it on Showtime or rent it for $1.99 on Fandango Now.
Famed screenwriter and director Shane Black is known for his predilection to set events at Christmas, saying that the holiday is a moment of “hush in which we have a chance to assess and retrospect our lives… Christmas is just a thing of beauty, especially as it applies to places like Los Angeles, where it’s not so obvious, and you have to dig for it, like little nuggets.” His 2005 LA-set Christmas neo-noir “Kiss Kiss Bang Bang” pairs Robert Downey Jr. and Val Kilmer (rent it on Amazon for $2.99), while his 2016 LA-set Christmas neo-noir “The Nice Guys” features Ryan Gosling and Russell Crowe (watch it on Hulu). Make it a double, you won’t be disappointed.
Another fantastic LA Christmas movie is Sean Baker’s 2015 film “Tangerine,” shot on an iPhone, which takes to Santa Monica Boulevard to depict one chaotic Christmas Eve in the lives of best friends and transgender sex workers Sin-Dee (Kitana Kiki Rodriguez) and Alexandra (Mya Taylor, who won an Independent Spirit Award). Like any good holiday film, it culminates with a stirring musical performance.
No one does sumptuous, tortured period romances like Todd Haynes, the apex of which might be his 2015 Christmas-set lesbian romance “Carol,” starring Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara, two women who meet in a department store over a pair of gloves and end up on a furtive road trip together. Watch it on Netflix and Tubi, and pair the film with creamed spinach, poached eggs and martinis for an appropriately themed dinner.
