Grab a blanket, some hot cocoa, and roast some chestnuts on an open fire while you watch all these Christmas movies that are the highest-rated on IMDB.
What’s the holiday season without a Bonafide binge of all your favourite Christmas movies? From feel-good flicks and touching classic movies to heartwarming romcoms and family favourites, tis’ the season to get comfy and invoke the Xmas spirit. And if you’re looking to fill your watchlist this holiday season, check out these 12 highest rated Christmas movies on IMDB – some of which you’ve probably never heard of.
There is one certainty in life, and it is this: Every year come December, streaming platforms like Hallmark and Netflix unveil their seasonal selection of feel-good holiday romcoms. Love them or hate them, romantic comedies are singularly excellent in one way – they are imbued with infernal optimism, an incredibly quality that can make even the bitterest chronic singleton feel just the tiniest bit warm and fuzzy inside. From classics like Love Actually (2003) and The Holiday (2006) to newer offerings like A Castle For Christmas (2021) and The Princess Switch (2018), these Xmas movies are as essential to a December binge as caramel popcorn, hot cocoa, marshmallows, and cinnamon-spiced everything nice.
The magic of Christmas movies cannot be overstated; after all, this same magic extends to family offerings and children’s animations of the season. Year after year, age-old Christmas classics like A Christmas Carol are reinterpreted for the big screen. To date, the Charles Dickens’ classic has seen 16 movie and television adaptations. Various iterations of Xmas movies featuring grouchy villains have been made, most notably Seuss’ How The Grinch Stole Christmas (2000), The Grinch (2018), and Bad Santa (2003). Even taking into account the growing popularity of Hollywood remakes, it’s clear to see that Christmas movies are a winning formula.
After all – who doesn’t love a tale of redemption with the promise of a happy ending at Christmas time?
12 Highest rated Christmas movies on IMDB that you’ve probably never heard of
Jump To / Table of Contents
- 1 A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965)
- 2 How The Grinch Stole Christmas (2000)
- 3 The Snowman (1982)
- 4 The Holdovers (2023)
- 5 A Christmas Carol (1951)
- 6 The Shop Around The Corner (1940)
- 7 Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964)
- 8 The House Without a Christmas Tree (1972)
- 9 A Christmas Story (1983)
- 10 The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992)
- 11 National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989)
- 12 Holiday Inn (1942)
A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965)
IMDb rating: 8.3
Directed by: Bill Melendez
Cast: Peter Robbins, Christopher Shea, Kathy Steinberg, Tracy Stratford, Bill Melendez, and others.
Release date: 9 December 1965
Genre: Animation, comedy
Running time: 25 minutes
Synopsis: A classic among Christmas movies of old, A Charlie Brown Christmas is a surprisingly poignant tale. Beset by seasonal depression despite his best-beloved parts of Christmas, Charlie Brown decides to direct an annual Christmas play in the hopes of improving his spirits. However, he soon invites ridicule when the group eschews his choice of the play’s central decoration: a less-than-impressive Christmas tree. The movie adopts an interesting take on the role of capitalism in our modern world, as well as how it has a tendency to outshine the true meaning of Christmas.
(Image: CBS)
How The Grinch Stole Christmas (2000)
IMDb rating: 8.3
Directed by: Ron Howard
Cast: Jim Carrey, Taylor Momsen, Christine Baranski, Josh Ryan Evans, Jeffrey Tambor, and others.
Release date: 20 November 2000
Genre: Comedy drama
Running time: 1 hr 44 minutes
Synopsis: One of IMDB’s top rated Christmas movies, Dr. Seuss’ How The Grinch Stole Christmas is a well-loved tale of redemption that takes place in the fictional town of Whoville. The titular character is a hostile green monster with a bad temper who will stop at nothing to ruin Christmas for the town’s inhabitants. Despite successfully enacting a heist of Whoville’s Christmas presents to punish the town for their ‘avaricious love of Christmas’, he is eventually enlightened as to the holiday’s true meaning – gratitude, togetherness, and the joy of forgiveness.
(Image: Universal Studios)
The Snowman (1982)
IMDb rating: 8.2
Directed by: Jimmy T. Murakami and Dianne Jackson
Cast: David Bowie, Raymond Briggs, and Mel Smith.
Release date: 26 December 1982
Genre: Animation, children’s movie
Running time: 26 minutes
Synopsis: Adapted from a 1978 picture book by Raymond Briggs of the same name, The Snowman is an animated television film and symphonic poem that depicts the heartwarming friendship between a young boy named James and a snowman. The charming animation, which runs a modest 26 minutes in length, is the epitome of short and sweet, driving home the beauty of dreams and the imagination.
(Image: TVC London)
The Holdovers (2023)
IMDb rating: 8.1
Directed by: Alexander Payne
Cast: Paul Giamatti, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Dominic Sessa, Carrie Preston, Brady Hepner, and others.
Release date: 27 October 2023
Genre: Comedy drama
Running time: 2 hrs 13 minutes
Synopsis: One of the newest entries into the hallowed ground of holiday entertainment, The Holdovers has nonetheless garnered acclaim amongst critics, earning it a place in our list of the highest rated Christmas movies to watch. Set in 1970, the movie centres around Paul Hunham, a strict and generally disliked classics professor at a New England boarding school, Barton Academy. During the Christmas break, the ‘holdover’ students are left in Hunham’s care, including Angus Tully, whose family dynamics prove to be both messy and damaging. Through a series of events including various lovable side characters, both Hunham and Tully discover in one another the joys of found family. The movie ends on a poignant and hopeful note, which is certain to inspire gratitude this holiday season.
(Image: Focus Features)
A Christmas Carol (1951)
IMDb rating: 8.1
Directed by: Brian Desmond Hurst
Cast: Alastair Sim, Jack Warner, Kathleen Harrison, and others.
Release date: 22 November 1951
Genre: Drama
Running time: 1 hr 26 minutes
Synopsis: Nostalgia is the currency of Christmas, and there’s nothing that better exemplifies the spirit of the season than Charles Dickens’ iconic tale of redemption. Although many iterations of the tale have been told across movies and television, the 1951 version of A Christmas Carol remains a standing favourite amongst Xmas movie buffs. As with most retellings, the story centres miser Ebenezer Scrooge on the eve of Christmas, when he is visited by the ghosts of Christmas past, present, and future. Gaining perspective from the ghosts, he eventually acknowledges his avarice and past misdeeds to become a good, changed man.
(Image: United Artists and Renown Pictures Corporation)
The Shop Around The Corner (1940)
IMDb rating: 8
Directed by: Ernst Lubitsch
Cast: Margaret Sullavan, James Stewart, Frank Morgan, and others.
Release date: 12 January 1940
Genre: Romantic comedy
Running time: 1 hr 39 minutes
Synopsis: A beloved classic that perfectly illustrates the Enemies-to-lovers trope, The Shop Around The Corner proves the timeless allure of romantic Christmas movies – the original Christmas romcom that launched a thousand ships. Alfred Kralik and Klara Novak are colleagues in a Budapest leather goods shop. By day, they simply cannot get along; yet by night, unbeknownst to one another, they are pen pals, whose correspondence has led to a budding romance. Through twists and turns, the lovebirds find their way to understanding one another, giving way to the happy ending we all love to see.
(Image: MGM)
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964)
IMDb rating: 8
Directed by: Larry Roemer
Cast: Billie Mae Richards, Burl Ives, Larry D. Mann, and others.
Release date: 6 December 1964
Genre: Animation, drama, children’s film
Running time: 47 minutes
Synopsis: The world’s most beloved reindeer comes to life in this nostalgic, feel-good 47-minute television special. Baby Rudolph is the son of Santa’s lead reindeer Donner, and harbours high hopes of someday joining the sledding team. However, his bright red, glowing nose earns him much ridicule among the other reindeer. Through trials, tribulations, and a terrible storm, Rudolph shows us it’s not the colour of your nose that matters; it’s how you wear it.
(Image: Universal Studios)
The House Without a Christmas Tree (1972)
IMDb rating: 8
Directed by: Paul Bogart
Cast: Jason Robards, Mildred Natwick, Lisa Lucas, and others.
Release date: 3 December 1972
Genre: Drama
Running time: 1 hr 15 minutes
Synopsis: A heartwarming tale that is certain to tug on all your heartstrings, this 1972 classic is a poignant take on tragedy and its role in shaping our habits and lives – as well as how love, generosity, and fresh perspective can set us free. Ten-year-old Addie Mills is a lonely child who shares a home with her widowed father James, and her grandmother Sarah. Having never recovered from the loss of his wife, an embittered and melancholy James has long refused to put up a Christmas tree, much to the chagrin of Addie and Sarah. Through a series of eye-opening events, he learns the error of his ways, restoring love, hope, and faith within his heart, and within his family.
(Image: CBS)
A Christmas Story (1983)
IMDb rating: 7.9
Directed by: Bob Clark
Cast: Peter Billingsley, Melinda Dillon, Darren McGavin, and others.
Release date: 18 November 1983
Genre: Comedy
Running time: 1 hr 33 minutes
Synopsis: Marketed as a tribute to an all-original, traditional, one-hundred percent, red-blooded, two-fisted, all-American Christmas movie, A Christmas Story tells the tale of nine-year-old Ralphie. More than anything, Ralphie wants a Red Ryder Carbine Action 200-shot Range Model air rifle for Christmas; for his safety, however, he is dissuaded by his mother, his teacher, and a mall Santa, all of whom seem to think that he might shoot his eye out. Come Christmas morning, he is surprised to receive the air rifle after all. Despite causing mishaps with his new toy, the movie ends with Ralphie reflecting on what he calls the best Christmas present he has ever or would ever receive.
(Image: Warner Bros.)
The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992)
IMDb rating: 7.8
Directed by: Brian Henson
Cast: Michael Caine, Dave Goelz, Steve Whitmire, and others.
Release date: 11 December 1992
Genre: Musical, comedy drama
Running time: 1 hr 25 minutes
Synopsis: Yet another classic retelling of Charles Dickens’ classic A Christmas Carol, The Muppet Christmas Carol retains much of the beloved original storyline. Michael Caine takes on the role of Ebenezer Scrooge, who is shown the error of his ways when the ghosts of Christmas past, present, and future visit him in all their Muppet-y glory. A fun and family-friendly movie for the holiday season, this Xmas movie is well deserving of its high IMDb rating.
(Image: Disney)
National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989)
IMDb rating: 7.5
Directed by: John Hughes
Cast: Chevy Chase, Beverly D’Angelo, Juliette Lewis, and others.
Release date: 1 December 1989
Genre: Comedy
Running time: 1 hr 37 minutes
Synopsis: With its incredibly accurate depiction of family life in the holiday season, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation brings to life a vivid caricature of chaos and drama – but with heartfelt hilarity and genuine moments of human connection. Clark Griswold and his wife Ellen find themselves hosting an unexpectedly boisterous holiday party when members of their family begin to turn up unexpectedly one by one. Despite horrific accidents and fights, the family eventually manages to find peace amongst themselves, showing us that the true spirit of Christmas lies in forgiveness and family.
(Image: Warner Bros.)
Holiday Inn (1942)
IMDb rating: 7.3
Directed by: Mark Sandrich and Robert Allen
Cast: Bing Crosby, Fred Astaire, Marjorie Reynolds, and others.
Release date: 4 August 1942
Genre: Musical, romantic comedy
Running time: 1 hr 40 minutes
Synopsis: A black-and-white musical classic poised to bring nostalgic delight to your annual rewatch of Christmas movies, Holiday Inn stars beloved Hollywood greats Bing Crosby, Fred Astaire, and Marjorie Reynolds among others. The romantic drama follows Jim Hardy (Bing Crosby), once part of a musical dance and song act with Ted Hanover (Fred Astaire) and Lila Dixon (Virginia Dale). Heartbroken when Lila leaves him for Ted, Jim attempts to break out on his own, returning to his farm to seek solace and healing. Following trials and tribulations, he turns his farm into a Holiday Inn where he falls in love with aspiring performer Linda Mason (Marjorie Reynolds).
(Image: Universal Pictures)
(Main and featured images: Holiday Inn/Universal Pictures)
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
– What is the highest rated Christmas movie on IMDB?
The highest rated Christmas movie on IMDb is It’s A Wonderful Life (1946) with a rating of 8.6.
– What is the highest ranking Christmas movie of all time?
On IMDb, the highest rated Christmas movie is It’s A Wonderful Life (1946), with a rating of 8.6. On Rotten Tomatoes, however, the highest ranked Christmas movies are Meet Me In St. Louis (1944) with a 100% certified fresh rating, and The Shop Around The Corner (1940) with a 99% certified fresh rating. The Holdovers (2023) comes in at number three, with a 96% certified fresh rating.
– What is the #1 watched Christmas movie?
A survey conducted in December 2022 revealed that the most-watched Christmas movie is Home Alone.
– What is the most played movie at Christmas?
Some popular Christmas movies include How The Grinch Stole Christmas, A Charlie Brown Christmas, Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer, and Frosty The Snowman.
This story originally appeared in Prestige Singapore
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Emmelyn curates and creates content in Kuala Lumpur, where she's spent the past decade building a portfolio comprising copy and video spanning both print and digital platforms. Endlessly fascinated with cookbooks, interior design, aesthetics, and video games, she is also an ardent foodie - a lemon tart, lychee martini, and coffee enthusiast. Her favourite animal is the common wombat. She's written one award winning cookbook.
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