As the temperature drops outside and all the holiday decorations begin to bombard us everywhere, we prepare to get into holiday mode. Planning for our nights of decorating, overwhelming gift shopping, building gingerbread houses, and letting the house overflow with the sweet smell of cookies in the oven. What does that call for? It calls for crawling onto the couch with a fluffy blanket, a cup of hot cocoa, and throwing on a good movie for the night. But what happens when you aren’t in the mood for one of the three versions of The Grinch, Elf, A Christmas Story, or the entire Home Alone series? Don’t worry. This short list contains what I consider to be must-watch movies every holiday season.
- The Holiday (2006)
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When Amanda Woods (Cameron Diaz) and Iris Simpkins (Kate Winslet) decide to swap homes after being so unlucky in love, they find themselves 6,000 miles from home, living different lives. Amanda’s experiencing an English village as Iris is now in a stunning Hollywood mansion. They find what they seem to be missing back at home; a man who’s making them feel worthwhile again.
- Love Hard (2021)
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Netflix’s spin on Die Hard and Love stars Nina Dobrev and Jimmy O. Yang as Natalie and Josh, a couple of 20-somethings who meet over a dating app. After traveling 3,000 miles from Los Angeles, Natalie doesn’t know she is in for quite a surprise when her amazing miracle dating app man isn’t exactly what she thought he was.
- Last Christmas (2019)
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Almost too good to be true, Tom (Henry Golding) walks into Kate’s (Emilia Clarke) life when feels as if everything is falling apart after a horrible health scare. She starts to fall for Tom and even begins volunteering at the nearby homeless shelter she believes he volunteers at. In the end, Tom gives Kate his heart, but what she finds out with that information is the real tearjerker. Was their love story all in her head?
- You’ve Got Mail (1998)
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Surprise, Surprise! This is a holiday movie, as are about 85% of movies that took place in New York in the ‘90s or early 2000s. Kathleen Kelly (Meg Ryan) is a bookseller at The Shop Around The Corner, working across the street from the new Fox & Sons Books owned by Joe Fox (Tom Hanks). The two booksellers grow a mutual hate for each other as competitors. He begins talking to a woman over the internet and starts a romantic cyber-affair. Little does Joe know, Kathleen is the woman on the other side of the computer screen. He soon discovers he is speaking with Kathleen, and must overcome his disliking of her because his romantic feelings are growing stronger every day.
- Serendipity (2001)
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This 2001 film stars John Cusack as Jonathan, who meets Sara, played by Kate Beckinsale, as they both grab the same pair of gloves at Bloomingdales. Each insists that the other take the gloves to give to their respective significant other. To thank Jonathan, Sara takes him for a drink at Serendipity 3. By the night’s end, they realize there is a little spark between them, despite already being in separate relationships. Sara, a massive believer in fate and destiny, leaves her number in a book and sells it to a used bookstore. Years later, the book lands in Jonathan’s hand, but Sara and Jonathan are both engaged to other people. Is it truly destiny?