20 Best Holiday Season Movies to Watch by the Fire

By Vlad Zakh · August 17, 2026

United States Family feel good for the whole family holiday season

Winter viewing tends to split into comfort rewatches and a few newer additions that actually earned their place, and this list has both. Jingle All the Way is pure 90s chaos, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation is still among the funniest family-holiday-gone-wrong comedies, and Miracle on 34th Street (1994) is a gentle, sincere remake. The Man Who Invented Christmas has Dickens writing A Christmas Carol against the clock. Klaus, The Polar Express, A Christmas Story, White Christmas, Last Christmas, The Family Stone and Christmas with the Kranks round out the list.

Jingle All the Way (1996)

01

Jingle All the Way (1996)

IMDb ★ 5.8 RT 20% Metacritic 34

A father's last-minute hunt for a sold-out toy turns into an all-day citywide brawl.

Directed by Brian Levant · 1h 29m · Rated PG

2 wins & 4 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: Disney Plus · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

The Man Who Invented Christmas (2017)

02

The Man Who Invented Christmas (2017)

TMDB ★ 6.9

Dickens writes 'A Christmas Carol' under deadline pressure, which is more fun than it sounds.

Directed by Bharat Nalluri · 1h 45m · Rated PG

Where to watch

Stream: HBO Max Amazon Channel, Cinemax Amazon Channel, Cinemax Apple TV channel · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Miracle on 34th Street (1994)

03

Miracle on 34th Street (1994)

TMDB ★ 6.7

A gentle, sincere remake that holds up as a rewatch.

Directed by Les Mayfield · 1h 54m · Rated PG

Where to watch

Stream: Disney Plus · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989)

04

National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989)

IMDb ★ 7.5 RT 72% Metacritic 49

A father's picture-perfect family Christmas spirals into one disaster after another.

Directed by Jeremiah S. Chechik · 1h 37m · Rated PG-13

Where to watch

Rent: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Plex · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Christmas with the Kranks (2004)

05

Christmas with the Kranks (2004)

IMDb ★ 5.6 RT 5% Metacritic 22

A couple's plan to skip Christmas entirely outrages their tradition-obsessed neighbourhood.

Directed by Joe Roth · 1h 39m · Rated PG

3 wins & 4 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: Cinemax Amazon Channel, Cinemax Apple TV channel · Rent: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Spectrum On Demand · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Last Christmas (2019)

06

Last Christmas (2019)

IMDb ★ 6.5 RT 46% Metacritic 50

A chaotic woman's new romance coincides with a mysterious health scare she's been hiding.

Directed by Paul Feig · 1h 43m · Rated PG-13

1 win & 2 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: Hulu · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

The Family Stone (2005)

07

The Family Stone (2005)

IMDb ★ 6.3 RT 52% Metacritic 56

A girlfriend's awkward first Christmas with her boyfriend's judgemental, close-knit family.

Directed by Thomas Bezucha · 1h 43m · Rated PG-13

4 wins & 8 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Prime Video with Ads · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Klaus (2019)

08

Klaus (2019)

IMDb ★ 8.2 RT 95% Metacritic 65

A spoiled postal worker's unlikely friendship with a reclusive toymaker sparks the origin of the Santa Claus legend.

Directed by Sergio Pablos · 1h 37m · Rated PG

Nominated for 1 Oscar11 wins & 27 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: Netflix, Netflix Standard with Ads

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

The Polar Express (2004)

09

The Polar Express (2004)

IMDb ★ 6.6 RT 55% Metacritic 61

A sceptical boy boards a magical train to the North Pole on Christmas Eve.

Directed by Robert Zemeckis · 1h 40m · Rated G

Nominated for 3 Oscars5 wins & 26 nominations

Where to watch

Rent: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Spectrum On Demand · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

A Christmas Story (1983)

10

A Christmas Story (1983)

IMDb ★ 7.9 RT 87% Metacritic 77

A boy's single-minded wish for a BB gun at Christmas is met with universal adult disapproval.

Directed by Bob Clark · 1h 33m · Rated PG

4 wins & 11 nominations

Where to watch

Rent: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Spectrum On Demand · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

White Christmas (1954)

11

White Christmas (1954)

IMDb ★ 7.6 RT 76% Metacritic 56

Two performers stage a show to save a struggling Vermont inn run by their old army general.

Directed by Michael Curtiz · 2h 00m · Rated NR

Nominated for 1 Oscar3 wins & 2 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Prime Video with Ads · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

It's a Wonderful Life (1946)

12

It's a Wonderful Life (1946)

IMDb ★ 8.6 RT 94% Metacritic 89

A despairing man is shown by a guardian angel what his community would have lost without him.

Directed by Frank Capra · 2h 11m · Rated PG

Nominated for 5 Oscars11 wins & 7 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Prime Video with Ads · Rent: JustWatch TV, Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

The Holiday (2006)

13

The Holiday (2006)

IMDb ★ 7.0 RT 51% Metacritic 52

Two heartbroken women swap houses across the Atlantic and each fall for someone new.

Directed by Nancy Meyers · 2h 16m · Rated PG-13

2 wins & 12 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: Hulu · Rent: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Spectrum On Demand · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Elf (2003)

14

Elf (2003)

IMDb ★ 7.1 RT 85% Metacritic 66

A man raised as one of Santa's elves travels to New York to find his real father.

Directed by Jon Favreau · 1h 37m · Rated PG

2 wins & 9 nominations

Where to watch

Rent: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Spectrum On Demand · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Love Actually (2003)

15

Love Actually (2003)

IMDb ★ 7.5 RT 65% Metacritic 55

Ten overlapping London love stories converge in the weeks before Christmas.

Directed by Richard Curtis · 2h 15m · Rated R

Won 1 BAFTA Award11 wins & 30 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: Netflix, Netflix Standard with Ads, Starz, Starz Apple TV channel, Starz Roku Premium Channel · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Home Alone (1990)

16

Home Alone (1990)

IMDb ★ 7.8 RT 66% Metacritic 63

A Christmas staple that holds up purely on slapstick craft.

Directed by Chris Columbus · 1h 43m · Rated PG

Nominated for 2 Oscars13 wins & 8 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: Disney Plus · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Streaming availability data from JustWatch, via TMDB. Availability changes often, so check the service before you plan a movie night.

Vlad Zakh

Founder, Movieix

Founder of Movieix. He started the site because most recommendation pages felt like noise. Here, lists are sorted by who's in the film, where it's from and what mood you're in tonight.