The holiday season is usually a cheerful one, no matter the amount of snow you have to clean up to get to work or school, it makes for a cozy and romantic mood. You might have already stocked up on all the cozy season staples such as tons of cocoa for hot chocolate, all your TBR books to finish before the year ends, along some warm and fuzzy sweaters.
This is why we’re here to aid you with another one of the holiday season staples, which are some top Christmas movies on Netflix that you could binge the entire month. This is quite a comprehensive list made of some very enjoyable, warm and funny, romantic, and other dramatic movies that you will love watching alone or with whomever, you call family. So buckle up, here comes our list.
- Single All The Way
If fake dating is your favorite romance trope but you have not found much luck with films with this trope in a Christmas setting, look no further. This is a super cute rendition of best friend-to-lovers, fake-dating into a very charming setting. Peter asks his best friend to be his fake boyfriend for Christmas with his family so they would stop pestering him regarding his love life when they find out Peter’s family has been doing some matchmaking, giving things a spicy, jealous-yearning turn.
2. Let it Snow
If you are looking for younger characters in the Christmas setting that you could root for, with more fun, where smaller stakes seem much bigger, this is going to be your jam. It has been a long time since we’ve had teenagers to root for in a film, and this film brings just that small-town charm, matched with smaller and more intricate relationships of a bunch of high school seniors.
3. Holidate
Another fake-dating trope but this time with a twist. If you are an Emma Roberts fan, you will want to watch her most recent attempt at being one of the most relatable characters, in a romance film. Our two main characters end up making a deal of being each other’s date to all Holiday events including Halloween, Thanksgiving, and of course, Christmas. But you know how the lines blur when you have to fake being in love with someone, we’ve all read and watched enough romance to know.
4. Klaus
We simply could not leave this animated genius out of our Christmas list. This is a fictionalized version of the backstory of Santa Claus, yes you read that right, that Mr. Claus. The story follows a spoiled young man named Jasper who gets sent to a crime-filled town as a punishment from his father. There he goes on a heart-warming journey to bring joy back to the rotten town along with a toy-making recluse, a certain Mr. Klaus(very subtle). It encapsulates the true joy, warmth, and collective nature of the community that the Holiday season harbors in us. The animation style on this is truly to die for.
5. Happiest Season
Abby and Harper are a love-stricken couple when they have to spend a few five days at Harper’s parents’ house for Christmas. Things take an unexpected and tense turn when Abby finds out Harper has not come out to her family and has to pretend to be roommates. This movie will remind you of everything important that a family should be, and what it should leave behind in order to love and support its people.
6. Love Hard
If you want a fun-filled experience but in a Christmas setting, this one with Nina Dobrev flying 3000 miles to surprise a guy she met online, only to realize she has been catfished, will do the job. Our heroine, while coming to terms with the horror she has to live through, realizes the guy whose profile she got catfished by actually lives in the same area where she has flown. She hatches a plan with the catfisher to impress and get together with the one she thought she was dating online, but some cute hijinks ensue, and a tale of self-love and kindness is born. Oh and yes, holidays and the charm.
7. Last Christmas
If you are a lover of people finding their calling in helping others or being of service to their community, this one will break your heart, in all the right ways. It seems like a love story at first but it’s so much more, with themes of a racist Britain weaving a very realistic storyline. It also has excellent Asian representation, which is something we’re seeing way more of now in the romance genre. It highlights how the biggest changes are sparked by the smallest efforts, whether that’s singing to raise funds or just being kind to someone you pass by on the streets. If nothing else, watch Last Christmas gain a forever distorted image of Emilia Clarke in an elf costume.
8. Midnight at Magnolia
If you think you have had too much fake-dating in this list of Christmas movies on Netflix, no you have not. This one with two long-time friends who have been radio hosts together for many long years will cure you of that excess fake-dating trope in your content. They’re family friends who spend Christmas together at The Magnolia where their families co-host, what could go wrong in such a cozy environment? Nothing, because everything only goes right from here. The families unite, as do the friends and it leads to an understanding finally being crossed, let’s just say, sometimes people are meant to be.
9. Grumpy Christmas (coming December 21)
There are some very cute Christmas titles coming to Netflix in the upcoming weeks and since the Christmas season goes on for the whole of December, you can add this one to your list to watch closer to Christmas eve. Grumpy Christmas tells the story of old Servando and Alicia, two stubborn adults who get in a competition to control Christmas after their families have to spend it together at the beach house. It is a heartwarming tale of family, second chances, love and giving importance to things that matter to us above everything else. If you are a fan of the classic meanness of Grinch but with a fresh take regarding the Christmas season, this one will be a perfect addition to your list of Christmas movies.
10. A Naija Christmas (coming December 16)
Netflix announced their first-ever Nigerian Christmas original called ‘A Naija Christmas’. The story follows three brothers Ugo, Chike, and Obi, along with their mother during the Holiday season. In an attempt to fulfill their mother’s wish, all three brothers decide they will hunt for a partner they can bring home for Christmas. Meanwhile, their mother decides to orchestrate her own special Christmas party. It is high time we had a diversity of different cultures celebrating Christmas, one of the biggest festive holidays of the year. Set in Lagos, Nigeria, this dazzling, funny, and heartwarming story is coming to Netflix this week.
We all know the animated format of storytelling is underrated by a long margin, especially compared to the live-action format. However, we know there are some true admirers of animated film and TV, people who are not only fond of storytelling in this genre but also recognize the truly beautiful variety of animation styles out there. Without further ado, here are our top picks of animated movies with general themes of love and community that make for a perfect family/friend/solitary movie evening.
1. Home
The incredibly beautiful art style in Home has its own fan base, and rightly so. This movie is as much about Home as it is about people that make it home. A misfit alien named ‘Oh’ accidentally sends an invite to the entire galaxy compromising security for its kind, when it has to befriend a human teenager Tip in order to survive.
Vampires, ghouls, werewolves, and every other disgustingly awesome and scary creature you can think of will be found in this movie. Hotel Transylvania (3 parts) follows the story of Dracula, a hotel owner and overprotective single dad of his daughter Maevis, when she starts falling for a human boy visiting the hotel, leaving Drac rather concerned. The storytelling, characters, and art style all fuse together to make this a series worth watching. Without further spoilers, parts 2 and 3 of the movie follow the Dracula family ahead in their lives, finding their vampire roots and trying to keep their family values alive.
3. The Mitchells vs The Machines
If you want a modern take on what a family actually looks like and what it takes to maintain that connection in this tech-heavy world, with a side of sci-fi and what the world could look like if we have potential robots taking over, this one for you. The Mitchells, as the title shows are a disjointed family that is in survival mode in between their cross-country trip when a robot apocalypse starts.
It has been a long time since we had a looks-are-not-the-only-thing-that-matter movie and Backs Out the Outback is here to break that streak. If snakes, scorpions, and tarantulas make your breath hitch, this will help you understand how reputations are man-made, and they don’t translate well all the time. It tells the story of some of our very famous misunderstood wild creatures, their soft hearts, and how good looks can also hide cunning wills sometimes. We often mistake good presentation with goodwill, most of the time, when often the opposite can be true, whether that’s for people or places. The message in this film applies to a far wider range due to its universal relativity.
We are strong believers of found family, no matter how strange or revisited it looks. This tells the story of four strange siblings, who in an attempt to get rid of their selfish parents end up making a family of their own terms. The color palette and art style in this movie is dreamy and will have you feeling warm and light throughout the entire movie.
This ends our list of all Christmas movies on Netflix that are holiday season picks that may or may not have the holiday specialties, but they certainly do have the holiday spirit. Enjoy your Christmas tucked in with your favorite comfort drink or meal and this list to keep you and your company.
