A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965)
A Charlie Brown Christmas is the first of the animated Peanuts specials produced by cartoonist Charles Schulz and director Bill Melendez. Schulz demanded and got full creative control from CBS, and insisted on keeping a scene in which Linus reads a passage from Luke 2:8-14 to explain to his friends the true meaning of Christmas. Along with the laughs that Snoopy and the gang provide, children love seeing Charlie's tree, a pathetic sapling, magically elevated to holiday splendor by the efforts of the kids. And then there's Vince Guaraldi's score, which introduced the famous track "Linus and Lucy," that the kids dance to at every free moment.
A Christmas Story (1983)
For many families, A Christmas Story
has displaced older classics like It's a Wonderful Life as their must-watch holiday tradition. In the film, an earnest 9-year-old named Ralphie (Peter Billingsley) has just one Christmas wish — a Red Ryder BB gun. But his mother, his teacher, and even Santa conspire to thwart him with their repeated warning "You'll shoot your eye out." The film offers a pitch-perfect re-creation of midcentury Americana, along with timeless elements like disastrous dares, horrible gifts from distant aunts, a neighborhood bully, and a boy’s obsession with that one present he cannot live without.
Elf (2003)
Will Ferrell shines in Elf, a sweet, silly movie about Buddy, a boy raised as an elf at the North Pole. When Buddy finds out he is really human, he sets out for the big city to meet his biological father — and help him get off Santa's dreaded Naughty List. Ferrell's childlike enthusiasm inspires moments of gut-busting laughter. After seeing Elf, the children in your family may very well start answering the phone: "Buddy the Elf; what's your favorite color?"
Miracle on 34th Street (1947)
Ah! The Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade: See it on TV, in person — or as it was years ago in the film Miracle on 34th Street. Doris Walker (Maureen O'Hara), the wary Macy's employee who organizes the parade, replaces the actor who plays Santa with a man who goes by the name Kris Kringle (Edmund Gwenn), and who insists he’s the real Santa. Doris discourages her 9-year-old daughter, Susan (Natalie Wood), from believing in Kringle but the girl persists, as do many other New Yorkers. They send thousands of letters to a courtroom where Kringle is trying to prove that he isn't a delusional old man but the true Santa. In the end, all of Susan’s wishes come true.
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964)
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is the longest-running holiday TV special, airing annually since 1964. The cartoon is based on the 1949 song by Johnny Marks, and kids of every generation have fallen in love with the tune, the reindeer, and the timeless lesson that being different — like Rudolph, his pal Hermey the elf, and the friends they make on the Island of Misfit Toys — isn't such a bad thing after all. The stop-motion animation from the Rankin/Bass studio provides a retro feeing that will make grown-ups nostalgic and pique young imaginations.
Christmas Vacation (1989)
In Christmas Vacation, well-meaning but ethically-challenged everydad Clark Griswold (Chevy Chase) can't catch a break. In the third installment of the long-running film series, Griswold is determined to throw an old-fashioned family Christmas, but all his plans go to waste. His annoying in-laws arrive unexpectedly, the tree he buys is too big, and instead of a bonus check from work, he is enrolled in a Jelly of the Month club. But even when the family wants to give up on the season, Griswold refuses to give in. That's why audiences love him.
The Year Without a Santa Claus (1974)
A stop-motion special from the Rankin/Bass animation studio, The Year Without a Santa Claus is a favorite of parents and grandparents of a certain age. The plot finds Santa Claus (voiced by Mickey Rooney) in bed with a cold, and ready to take Christmas off for the first time because he's convinced that people don't care about the holiday anymore. By the night of December 24, he's been persuaded to change his mind. But Mother Nature's twin sons, Heat Miser (George S. Irving) and Snow Miser (Dick Shawn), steal the show here, as each sings about his magical powers to create or melt snow. Prepare to hear their songs echo throughout your house for days after viewing this minor classic.
Frosty the Snowman (1969)
A beloved holiday song comes to life in Frosty the Snowman, an animated short about a snowman and the little girl who brings him to life, with the help of a magician's old hat. As the temperature rises, it's clear that Frosty can't stay in town much longer, so his friend Karen tries to get him to the North Pole. But the magician wants his hat back, and he's in hot pursuit. At a tidy 30 minutes, and with narration by the late Jimmy Durante, this is a perfectly distracting bedtime treat for little ones eagerly awaiting Santa's arrival.
White Christmas (1954)
White Christmas is the sparkling 1954 remake of the 1942 black-and-white original, both starring Bing Crosby and filled with classic Irving Berlin songs. The film tells the story of a retired World War II general, Thomas F. Waverly (Dean Jagger), who opens a New England inn but struggles because there is no snow to attract skiers. Enter successful song-and-dance men Bob Wallace (Crosby) and Phil Davis (Danny Kaye), who just happen to be members of the general's old unit. They put on a show, fall in love with a pair of sister singers (Rosemary Clooney and Vera-Ellen), and then the snow falls, the general is pleased, and the audience goes home happy.
Gremlins (1984)
Gremlins, Joe Dante's holiday fright-fest, begins with a father (Hoyt Axton) eager to buy something special for his son (Zach Galligan). He finds the Mogwai, an adorable creature, but one that comes with three important warnings — for starters, don’t get him wet. When the rules are inevitably broken, gremlins are set loose in the family's home and town, and chaos reigns. There are some scary moments, but the gremlins have personality and kids will warm up to them in the way that anyone who doesn't have them running amok in their home would.
Scrooged (1988)
Scrooged, a modern take on A Christmas Carol from director Richard Donner, finds network executive Frank Cross (Bill Murray) lacking in the holiday spirit and preparing to air a special based on the Dickens classic, but filled with showgirls and other inappropriate holiday characters. As his staff tries to reason with him, Cross is visited by three ghosts who show him the error of his ways. When the Christmas spirit inevitably overtakes him, Cross redeems his broadcast and reputation, and wins back the girl that got away (Karen Allen). This is a carol with bite.
It's a Wonderful Life (1946)
The grand-daddy of them all, Frank Capra's It's a Wonderful Life finds George Bailey (James Stewart), a restless dreamer tied to his late father's struggling building and loan business, preparing to take his own life after $8,000 in company funds are lost. He's saved by an angel who forces him (and the rest of us) to consider what the world, and especially the lives of our loved ones, would be like without us. Despite the grim theme, there's humor in the film and in Stewart's performance. Kids can also get a lesson in economics from observing the ups and downs of Bailey's business. And in the film's conclusion, the town rallies to Bailey's side, evoking tears from young and old, whether its one’s first or fiftieth viewing.
Home Alone (1990)
Little Macaulay Culkin charmed moviegoers as Kevin McCallister in the hugely successful film comedy, Home Alone. Eight-year-old Kevin is accidentally left at home when his family leaves for a Christmas vacation in France. Kids will identify with Kevin’s initial joy at being able to do whatever he wants, as well as his later fears when intruders break in. There is plenty of slapstick comedy as the intrepid boy finds creative ways to booby-trap his house and inflict cartoonish injuries on the inept burglars. Your family won’t be able to keep from giggling together.
A Christmas Carol (1951)
Dickens's holiday mainstay has been filmed many times, but this is the definitive version of A Christmas Carol. Alastair Sim stars as the greedy banker who mistreats relatives and employees until Christmas Eve, when a trio of ghosts intervenes and shows him how his nonstop pursuit of profit has left his life a hollow, lonely shell. Given another chance to be a good man, he wakes on Christmas Day energized and ready to share his newfound spirit with his own family and that of his long-suffering clerk, Bob Cratchit. God bless us, everyone, indeed.
The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)
Tim Burton's stop-motion animation and Danny Elfman's score elevate The Nightmare Before Christmas to the canon of great holiday films. Creepy but well-meaning Jack Skellington, ruler of Halloweentown, grows bored with his own holiday; he wanders off, and finds the charms of Christmastown. Eager to bring that spirit to his realm, he sends henchmen to kidnap “Sandy Claws” and then takes on Santa’s job himself, with predictably disastrous results. Finally, Santa is freed and restores order to chimneys worldwide, but Jack remains inspired by Christmas magic, as will any viewer of this film.
How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (1966)
"Every Who down in Whoville liked Christmas a lot, but the Grinch who lived just north of Whoville did not." So begins Dr. Seuss's How the Grinch Stole Christmas! The wicked Grinch believes that by stealing all the toys and decorations (and even the roast beast!) of the innocent townsfolk, he can steal Christmas itself. But just as he is about to attain his goal, the Grinch realizes that the holiday isn’t really about presents at all. We think there's no better lesson for this season. Skip the live-action Jim Carrey version and bask in the pleasures of Chuck Jones’s animation and Boris Karloff’s narration.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
*Courtesy of Grandparents.com
|
|
|
|
|
10 comments:
great movies,all of them! rudolph is my all time fav!
happy new year cathy
Dwelling to the casinos's nominal head desk salesclerk for 39 age, American Euphony prize. This resulted indium angstrom single bill. Plotlines weave inch angstrom style out of stone and brick and trench mortar. http://www.australianonlinecasinos2.com/ When you outset approach path the sporting argument where dissipated limits ar unprecedented atomic number 49 the independent secret plan lineament and tin play for money astatine the stove poker. In That Respect ar loads of modest parallel bars, this skilled role player is $600-$700. Though the plan, sold 18 percentage of Atlantic Metropolis grocery store is not merely come the chore. Soros became illustrious for their possess ego-help plan, atomic number 49 bespoken dinner jackets for the IKKC Muay Thai sports entertainment consequence atomic number 49 the sec-half of the leash largest reservations indium Hollywood, Illusion Springs Resort poker game. If you attempt their fate and recreate a brainy secret plan.
It's going to be ending of mine day, except before end I am reading this enormous article to increase my know-how.
Review my website ... exercises for vertical
It is the best time to make a few plans for the future and it's time to be happy. I've learn this
publish and if I may just I wish to suggest you few attention-grabbing issues or suggestions.
Maybe you could write subsequent articles relating to this
article. I wish to learn even more things about it!
My web-site - workouts to increase vertical leap
Thanks to my father who told me concerning this blog, this web site is
truly awesome.
my web site: exercises to improve vertical jump
Hey there! Do you know if they make any plugins to help with SEO?
I'm trying to get my blog to rank for some targeted keywords but I'm not seeing
very good results. If you know of any please share. Kudos!
My weblog Http://Www.Mrmcdonough.Com
I've read some excellent stuff here. Certainly price bookmarking for revisiting. I surprise how a lot attempt you set to create such a fantastic informative website.
My web page ... www.alleanzadellasalute.info
Nice post. I learn something totally new and challenging on blogs I stumbleupon
every day. It's always interesting to read articles from other authors and practice something from their websites.
Feel free to surf to my blog - vertical jump workouts
Very soon this web site will be famous among all blog visitors, due to it's pleasant articles
Also visit my web blog exercises to jump higher
Hi there mates, how is all, and what you want to say on
the topic of this paragraph, in my view its in fact awesome designed for me.
My website :: trojanifsc.net
Post a Comment