My Top 15 Movies of 2017

At first, I wasn't going to do a top ten-movie list of 2017, since I spent the second half of the year digging into the past and missing a lot of important movie releases. I can usually get a fair deal of Award contenders out of the way at the Stockholm International Film Festival in November, which is always nice since most big Oscar-movies save their release here for Awards-season, as to have a stronger opening.

However, due to my surgical wound not having healed, and the festival opening literally the day after I started chemo, it became an impossibility for me to attend it. Which means that movies such as Call Me By Your Name, The Shape of Water and a bunch of other movies I was looking forward to can’t make the list. I usually try to avoid movies that had a wide release in their home market the previous year, even if they had a Swedish release in 2017, but few years will see as many potentially great movies off the docket. It also means that a lot of movies that came out around this year’s Oscars, such as Moonlight (which would probably be number one if it was eligible), La La Land, Hidden Figures and I Am Not Your Negro are not going to appear on this list. However, I decided to compensate by writing another entry dedicated to movies that I was introduced to this year that I just feel like recommending. Movies that became highlights of an otherwise miserable year. This will be posted at a future date.

Oh, and also, the reason why the list is 15 movies instead of ten is that I had already started writing this entry, then finding an opportunity to see a few extra movies that I felt needed to be on the list. And instead of wasting my writing I decided to give a few extra movies some love instead! However, before we get into the good, I want to acknowledge the bad by crowning the “most disappointing” and “worst movie I happened to see”. With that in mind, let’s get started.

Most Disappointing

Kingsman: The Golden Circle (Dir: Matthew Vaughn, 141 mins.)

The last movie I saw before my hiatus due to surgery and chemo, and what a way to take a 2 ½ month break on! I loved the original Kingsman, and have as of writing it watched it at least upward of twenty times (it used to be one of my go-to study-movies in Korea), so the prospect of seeing what more awaited Eggsy and Roxy as actual Kingsman agents was an exciting one.
Literally everything about this sequel takes it in the wrong direction. Characters are killed off without reason or purpose, others are brought back no only without reason beyond fan service, but in ways so ludicrous they actually weaken the very concept of dying within the franchise in ways so awful you actually stop taking death seriously.
The plot is dumb, the pacing bloated and despite the amount of new characters in the film, portrayed by actors like Jeff Bridges, Halley Berry and Channing Tatum, they end up having virtually nothing to do in favor of a returning villain I doubt anyone ever wanted to see again, along with a main villain played by Julianne Moore, who is wasted both in concept and in acting ability due to a story that gives her nothing to do.
I actually turned to my friend during the third act and asked him “why are they doing this?” as in reference to the filmmakers seemingly actively trying to murder all the potential this franchise still possessed.
The Golden Circle actually manages to make me like the first movie less, and if that isn’t disappointing, I don’t know what is.

Worst Movie That I Saw

Resident Evil: The Final Chapter (Dir: Paul W.S. Anderson, 106 mins.)

An awful ending to an awful series that I for some reason have seen all but the first entry to in the theater. It is baffling how despite every entry of this franchise being written by the same man, it seems that every single one of them past the second one retcons the ending of the previous entry, as if Anderson is so devoid of intelligence, he can’t figure out that if the studio has greenlit four of these atrocities that maybe they’ll allow him to make a fifth one, and that he should possibly try and come up with an ending that he can see himself expanding upon if said sequel gets made.
This movie is no exception. It retcons, revisits old location (that look basically nothing like they did in previous films), brings back characters, kills off new characters without as much as giving them a single scene for us to get to know them first, and violates the viewer’s eyes with incoherent, headache-inducing editing.
The only good things about this movie is that it does actually sort of tie some aspects together better than I expected, mostly because I expected nothing, and that it is finally over. These movies are no more, and hopefully whatever reboot rises from their ashes, glances at the games and says “I want to be more like you”.

My Top 15 Movies of 2017

15. Wonder Woman (Dir: Patty Jenkins, 141 mins.)

It is unacceptable that it took us 15 years from the birth of the comic book movie boom with Spider-Man (X-Men sort of started it in 200, but it was Spider-Man that truly started it) to finally give the biggest female superhero on the face of the planet her own movie. On top of the time it took, I was near certain that I would loathe this movie, since it grew out of Warner Bros. continuous attempts to make a cinematic universe stick. However, once the day came to see it I was pleasantly surprised that not only was it leagues above the putrid garbage that is Man of Steel, Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice or Suicide Squad, but it was a genuinely good, fun and heartfelt interpretation of Wonder Woman’s first time on Earth.
Gal Gadot proved me wrong once and for all, that she can indeed wield the Lasso of Truth, and whilst the movie has been held up higher than it should by many, it is a good comic book movie that does for Wonder Woman what the first Captain America movie did for that character.
On top of that, the movie actually made me start picking up Wonder Woman’s ongoing comic book, which has gotten me further into comic books again, and that is something that deserves to be recognized.

14. Okja (Dir: Bong Joon-ho, 120 mins.)

Bong Joon-ho is one of my favorite directors working today. His movie The Host was one of the first Korean movies I ever saw, and has not made a single bad movie to date. With his last movie Snowpiercer, he proved that he was able to make English language films without losing his unique voice, unlike most other Asian directors who have tried to extend their lens to Hollywood, and whilst his follow-up Okja ends up toward the bottom of his filmography, it is still a good film with plenty of moments and performances that make it an enjoyable watch.
The movie centers around Mija, a Korean farmgirl who lives with her grandfather on a country mountainside. When an international mega corporation develops a new breed of “super pig”, they are given one of them to raise and soon the pig, named Okja is as integral a part of the family as Mija or her grandfather. However, one day the company comes calling, as the super pig program is about to be unveiled to the public and the production about to go into full swing. With a world standing in between them, Mija must fight to get Okja back, no matter what, or who gets in the way.
With a cast that includes the like of Jake Gyllenhaal, Tilda Swinton, Paul Dano, Lily Collins and Steven Yuen, Okja is exciting, funny and surprisingly emotional, and is funded by Netflix so that’s where you’ll find it. 

13. The Villainess (Dir: Jung Byung-gil, 129 mins.)

I heard a lot about this Korean action-thriller before finally being able to see it. In fact, not being able to go to the film festival this year, of all the movies I was saddened to the most not being able to see was this one. Luckily for me, a copy of it fell into my mail slot the day of the festival’s opening and I was able to see it.
The movie tells the story of Sook-hee (Kim Ok-bin), a woman forced into the life of a secret government assassin after an attempted revenge plot against the men who murdered her lover goes wrong. When Sook-hee turns out to be pregnant, however, she finds herself sandwiched between emotionally cold life of an assassin, and the warm, loving world of motherhood.
The Villainess is stylish, fun, creative and well-shot, which only potential weakness is that its plot is melodramatic in ways that those not accustomed to may find off-putting, but if you are a fan of Asian cinema or open-minded, it is a real special experience.

12. John Wick: Chapter 2 (Dir: Chad Stahelski, 122 mins.)

The first John Wick was a real surprise, and was in my opinion, the movie the first Taken should have been. A hardcore action film with white-knuckle choreography and a gritty, yet engaging plot. It proved that Keanu Reeves still has plenty to offer, and let us peek into a world of assassins that hinted at a lore and code of conduct that was genuinely intriguing.
So along comes Chapter 2, which picks up just days after the first film and John finds himself forced back into the life he has fought to renounce as an old debt comes back to haunt him. John Wick Chapter 2 does what any sequel should set out to do. It furthers John’s personal story, while giving us more understanding of his past as well as elaborating on how this world and its characters work. The action scenes continue to be intense, mostly well-shot and fun, as well. If anything about the movie is worth critiquing, it is that John himself does have a little too much of a “main character shield” (meaning that since he’s the main character he is out of serious harm’s way) and that some of the shootouts last just a little too long. Except for these points, if you liked the first John Wick, you most certainly will like this follow-up, which did well enough to spawn a third movie, which is currently being developed.  

11. The Big Sick (Dir: Michael Showalter, 117 mins.)

Horror movies and romantic comedies have very few things in common, but I maintain that one of the few things is that only a few good of each genre come out per year. I traditionally only find one good romantic comedy, and this year’s entry is a good one indeed.
Kumail Nanjiani stars as himself in this comedic retelling of how he in his early days as a struggling comedian, doing standup shows in-between Uber-fares, whilst dreaming of making it big and getting to do a one-man show based on his childhood in Pakistan. One day, after a show he meets Emily and a complicated relationship starts to form. Especially because Kumail’s family is dead-set on arranging a marriage to a Pakistani girl, and make it clear that under no circumstances will a relationship with a white, American girl be accepted.
When Emily ends up falling ill, he soon finds himself having to answer some pretty serious questions and having to deal with a pair of would-be-in-laws.
I should probably admit that I went to see this movie mere days after finding out I had cancer, which may have had some level of impact on my investment in this movie, especially when it comes to the hospital scenes in the second half of the film, but despite this I am sure that The Big Sick is a fun, engaging and genuine film, that clearly benefits from its based-on-real-events story.

10. Split (Dir: M. Night Shyamalan, 117 mins.)

M. Night Shyamalan made a good movie again. Need I say more? It doesn’t matter, because I will. Casey (played by the great Anya Taylor-Joy) is the awkward girl at school, always alone, quiet and uninvited. However, when she, for once, is invited to fellow classmate Claire’s (Haley Lu Richardson) birthday party, she along with the birthday girl and fellow classmate Marcia (Jessica Sula) find themselves drugged, abducted and locked up in a bunker by a mysterious man (James McAvoy), who seems to have multiple personalities living within him.
It soon becomes clear that the clock is ticking and the girls are going to have to figure out how to escape before it’s too late.
Split benefits from lowered ambition by M. Night Shyamalan, who here takes a more basic approach to his story and characters. Casey is a likeable lead, who uses intelligence and composure under pressure to adapt to the situations the man keeping them locked up puts her in. On top of this, James McAvoy is truly excellent as the man, being able to switch between menacing, funny and even somewhat sympathetic with effectiveness that few actors can.
All I can hope is that this film’s sequel, which is already filmed, continues down the same path of quality and that this is more than just a flash in the pan for Shyamalan.

9. Lego Batman (Dir: Chris McKay, 104 mins.)

A spinoff to a movie that never should have been good to begin with. How could that possibly be worth watching? Well, it may not be as finetuned as 2014’s The Lego Movie, but it is as surprising. In this film we once again make the acquaintance of Will Arnett’s Batman, an egotistical man-child who spends his nights fighting crime and basking in his own glory. All seems fine until he, by accident, adopts Dick Grayson (Michael Cera) at the same time as Gotham gets a new police chief and Joker, in an attempt to make Batman realize how much he needs him, ends all crime in Gotham.
What follows is a ridiculously funny tribute to Batman’s history that I have seen four times so far and it keeps making me laugh. It never slips over into parody, and no matter how much it makes fun of the Dark Knight’s legacy, it never becomes disrespectful and in fact, in my opinion, becomes the best Batman movie we have seen since The Dark Knight, and that means something.

8. Dunkirk (Dir: Christopher Nolan, 106 mins.)

I have to admit, I am not a Nolan-fanboy. I like the man’s work, but both The Dark Knight Rises and especially Interstellar are movies that have leveled my expectations of his movies moving forward. So, when it was announced that he would be making a World War II film, I shrugged and went about my day, knowing I would obviously see it, but probably not reflect on it beyond that. Thankfully, this is my favorite Nolan film since The Dark Knight, and most of the reason behind that is, much like M. Night Shyamalan’s Split, that it has a lowered scope. There is no advanced theoretical science or immense plot twist, but instead just a really well told story separated into three different segments: soldiers on the beaches of Dunkirk, civilians in Dorset setting out to collect the soldiers and pilots above it all.
We cut between the three as the tension, violence and hopelessness rises.
Well-performed, shot, edited and directed, on paper it isn’t surprising, since the same could be said about any Nolan-production, but what sets it apart is the simplicity and the length, which is a comfortable hour-forty-five. Meaning you don’t have to set an entire afternoon aside to enjoy this film.

   

7. Blade Runner 2049 (Dir: Denis Villeneuve, 163 mins.)

In an era where we get reboots, remakes and late sequels to classic films, I have been skeptical of Blade Runner 2049 ever since it was announced. I love the original film, but have reservations concerning certain things director Ridley Scott has stated about the nature of certain elements of the film I feel best left unexplored and even more importantly; unanswered. However, when it was announced that the sequel was being handled by star-director Denis Villeneuve (Prisoners, Incendies, Sicario, Arrival), my spirits lifted.
As things would have it, this film came out a week after my surgery, and as of writing this I wasn’t able to get out to see it until a few days ago, but the wait was worth it, because Blade Runner 2049 is the rare film that manages to take its predecessor and pick up 35 years later without losing the soul, intelligence or cohesion of what the original was.
We follow Ryan Gosling’s K, a Replicant Blade Runner tasked with tracking down a threat to the human dominance of the planet, and the further he goes, the deeper a hole he seems to dig for himself in this gorgeously designed neo noir, filled with great performances (an elderly Harrison Ford for once seems to actually care about his performance), music and intrigue. In fact, the film is so interesting, it easily warrants its long runtime and engages so thoroughly that the 163 minutes might as well be a standard two-hour fare. The fact that this movie failed miserably at the box office is downright criminal.

6. Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 2 (Dir: James Gunn, 137 mins.)

Guardians of the Galaxy was a movie that grew on me the more times I saw it, and the further from the zeitgeist it got. It is a fun, heartwarming film about family and togetherness born in loneliness. Its plot was nothing special, but it compensated for it with delightful characters and humor, along with great visuals and a world that expanded the Marvel Universe significantly.
So, it shouldn’t really come as a surprise that the same can be said about the sequel. Volume 2, once again centers on our heroes Peter Quill, Gamora, Rocket Raccoon, Groot and Drax the Destroyer as they find themselves battling armies, monsters and space pirates, all while Peter finally gets to meet his long absent father.
It is hard to truly emphasize just how much of this film’s appeal comes from its cast of characters, who you grow to feel for, and even when someone does or says something you disagree with, the characters are three-dimensional enough that you can see why they did it. On top of our gang of misfits we also get more of Nebula and Yondu, along with a new addition in the form of Pom Klementieff’s adorably naïve Mantis.
A joy to behold, I only hope James Gunn can wrap up his trilogy as well as he has started and continued it. However, before we get answers to that question, there is a huge war on the horizon…

5. Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri (Dir: Martin McDonagh, 115 mins.)

On paper a movie about a woman who, fed up with the stalled investigation into the rape/murder of her daughter, decides to rent three billboards outside of her small hometown, sounds like a very bleak and heart-wrenching affair. To a certain extent it is, also, but what is so surprising and fantastic about Martin McDonagh’s latest film is just how much humor is injected into this story. Tragedy and comedy co-exist in this film, which throws both at the viewer as if it is a yo-yo hurled by the screenwriter. You’ll find yourself laughing and tearing up in equal measure and one of the best things about the film is not just how the script allows the fantastic cast led by Frances McDormand, Woody Harrelson and Sam Rockwell to really show how good they are, but how it also doesn’t subscribe to villainization. The characters have different viewpoints, and you won’t agree with them all, but you see where they are coming from and why they feel the way they feel, which is something far too few movies choose to do.
Three Billboards Outside of Ebbing Missouri is the kind of movie I wish we would see more often, but also kind of hope we don’t, because it would make the few we get feel far less special.

4. Baby Driver (Dir: Edgar Wright, 113 mins.)  

Like Bong Joon-ho, Edgar Wright is one of those directors who’s work I am guaranteed to see. The kind of creators that I don’t just admire, but who’s next movie I am eagerly anticipating before details are even announced.
So, with this in mind it probably isn’t a surprise that Baby Driver is near the top of my list. Because on top of being a movie made by a reliable filmmaker, it also centers on a character who uses music to drown out his tinnitus, and anyone who knows me knows that I am always listening to music to drown out the constant ringing in my head.
Baby Driver is a modern day car-movie that pays tribute to everything from Bullitt to Walter Hill’s classic The Driver (the same movie Drive was cribbed from), taking the best parts of the era where such films thrived and injecting it with modern aesthetics and camerawork. However, what sets Baby Driver apart from those films more than anything is the fact that Baby’s addiction to music means that much like a Tarantino-movie Wright uses the licensed soundtrack, which features everything from Beck to T-Rex to Barry White to sculpt an experience that is more musical than most actual musicals. Cars swerve to guitar strings, bullets impact to beat drops and footsteps land with drumbeats in a movie that, much like Wright’s previous North American film Scott Pilgrim VS. The World, revels in style over substance.
Not the deepest of experiences, but with performances from the likes of Ansel Elgort, Lily James, John Hamm, Jamie Foxx and the last Kevin Spacey performance I was able to fully enjoy, it is the best type of genre movie, and one of my absolute favorites of the year.

3. Get Out (Dir: Jordan Peele, 103 mins.)

White people am I right? I seriously did not see this one coming. Comedian Jordan Peele, or comedy duo Key & Peele-fame apparently spent his summer vacation 2016 filming this movie, which delves into basic human trauma, prejudice and fear in ways that most horror movies could only dream of doing.
Daniel Kaluuya stars as Chris, a twenty-something professional photographer who is driving up with his girlfriend Rose (Allison Williams of Girls-fame), to meet her parents over the weekend. Chris has reservations over the idea, considering that he is apparently Rose’s first black boyfriend and she hasn’t told her family that.
Once at the house, awkward moments and weird, creepy things begin to happen, and soon Chris doesn’t know what is real or what is false, as well as who he can trust. Or is it all in his head?
Jordan Peele blends humor with fear here in ways that I haven’t seen tackled in a long time (if ever, to be honest) and once the credits rolled for this movie I knew I would be returning to it, and returned I have.
Get Out is the type of movie that isn’t just fun to watch, it is fun to revisit and introduce other people to. Unfortunately, I can’t say much more about this film, since the very nature of what makes it so great is everything that shouldn’t be told in advance, but rather experienced. So, watch it yourself, because it is absolutely worth it.

2. A Silent Voice (Dir: Naoko Yamada, 130 mins.)

I have to admit; this movie is technically a 2016 release. However, since it was only released in Japan in 2016 and I really want to highlight it, I am going to cheat with this one.
Shoya Ishida is a late-teen in Japan, who at the story’s beginning is putting his affairs in order. He has grown tired of the isolation and bullying he is experiencing in school and has decided to end his life. However, before he can do so, he wishes to find Shoko, a girl he used to go to school with, and apologize for the way he tormented her during their time knowing each other.
Once the two are reunited, however, something begins to happen, and they find their lives more intertwined than either of them ever could have anticipated. Can the past be forgotten? And can friendship, or even love, blossom in soil fertilized by tragedy and tears?
A Silent Voice struck me extremely hard, because as a victim of bullying myself, it is always a powerful experience to see bullying portrayed with layers, which it definitely is here. Shoya may only be able to see what he did was wrong through the lens of someone who has himself been put through it, but at the end of the day, that doesn’t matter as much as his attempts to make it right with Shoko.
The movie is beautifully animated, scored and acted by its cast, and in a year where the international release of Makoto Shinkai’s Your Name dominated the anime discussion, A Silent Voice flew under many people’s radar, which is really sad. And despite of what it may sound like, you don’t need to have a relationship with severe bullying, or be a fan of anime to appreciate and enjoy A Silent Voice. Its beauty transcends its genre, and I hope more people give it a chance. 

1. War for the Planet of the Apes (Dir: Matt Reeves, 140 mins.)

I still remember the day Rise of the Planet of the Apes’ reviews started to appear. A reboot I had written off as a guaranteed watering down of a franchise I love, it soon dawned on me when all the reviews I read were positive that there was hope, and I went to see it twice in the theater. That is how much I liked it.
Then came the sequel, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes. A film that somehow took the first movie’s formula, refined it and made a truly dark, serious and intelligent film about the conflict between human and apes, and was better for it. Now all that remained was to see if returning director Matt Reeves could stick the landing to this series, taking the character of Caesar, whom we had met as a baby and give us a satisfying and logical conclusion to what we had seen so far. To say that I was worried, yet excited would be an understatement.
My worry was unfounded. Because War for the Planet of the Apes is a triumph in every way. The already mind-blowing special effects are somehow even better, creating a cast of apes so realistic that if you were to take it back in time and show it to the cast and crew of the 1969 original, they would assume that we one day would have developed the technology to train apes to act, shoot weapons, ride horses and speak.
On top of this, Reeves and his crew have enough confidence in their product to allow long periods of time to pass with nearly all dialogue being performed using sign language along with visual storytelling in a way that makes this already believable dystopia feel even more real.
Andy Serkis and his fellow ape performers are accompanied by a menacing Woody Harrelson, who plays a Kurtz-esque colonel out to exterminate the apes for good, and newcomer Amiah Miller as the mute little girl Nova, who joins Caesar, Maurice and company on their journey of revenge.
War for the Planet of the Apes is a triumph, that earns it top spot not just by being a fantastic, emotional journey, but also by concluding what has become one of the best trilogies ever made within the Hollywood Studio system, and I can’t recommend it, or it’s previous two entries, enough.

Well, that's my list. Hopefully I get a chance to make one next year as well. Here's to a year full of writing, filmmaking and good movies! 

Christmas Movie Recommendations!

I promised a friend of mine to give some Christmas movie recommendations, and decided to just make a list for all my friends who might be looking for something new or forgotten to bring the holiday cheer this year. Some movies you might associate with Christmas may not be on this list, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t good, but just might be too obvious or not my cup of tea. I’ll be listing movies in three categories: classics (1900-ca. 1975), modern (1976-present) and alternative. Classics are obviously the ones that I feel everyone should see as well as some forgotten from earlier years, which often bring on the Christmas cheer, while modern is mostly the same, with a few exceptions and alternative are movies that either have Christmas as a backdrop to tell a darker story or movies that have violent or cynical views of the holidays. Are you ready? Then let’s ho-ho-go!

CLASSICS

It’s a Wonderful Life (1946), 130 mins.
One of my top three favorite films of all time, this, the story of George Bailey, a man with world sized dreams in the small town of Bedford Falls, is one of the most heart-warming things I have ever seen. It took me two viewings to fall in love with this movie, but since then it has been one of those movies that I have seen nearly a hundred times and it still makes me cry every time. A beautiful, sincere and near-perfect film. If you haven’t seen it, give it a chance.

Miracle on 34^th Street (1947), 96 mins.
When Macy’s Santa Claus, a man named Chris who claims to be the actual Santa Claus ends up in legal trouble, the lawyer he is staying with finds himself having to prove in a court of law that what Chris says is true. Meanwhile, Chris is concerned with the neighbor girl Susan (played brilliantly by a young Natalie Wood), who’s mother encourages her to not believe in what she can’t see, and making her and her mother see that belief and faith can be just as powerful as what is right in front of you. A brilliant movie, that was remade in 1994 with Richard Attenborough, but if you can handle older movies I absolutely recommend the original movie, whether it be the black and white or colorized version of it.

The Thin Man (1934), 93 mins. 
Not a movie that really has Christmas as a focus, but more as a backdrop, this movie starring my favorite old Hollywood coupling, Myrna Loy and William Powell is the first in the six-part Thin Man series where husband and wife duo Nick and Norah Charles solve mysteries along with their pet dog Asta. Here, retired detective Nick is roped into a late December disappearance of a scientist, all while trying to get Christmas and New Year’s parties in order, and keeping stiff drinks in their hands. Not the most Christmassy of movies, but worth a watch all the same!

The Shop Around the Corner (1940), 99 mins. 
Centered around a little shop in Budapest, we follow Alfred Kralik (James Stewart), assistant manager of the shop who clashes with new hire Klara Novak (Margaret Sullavan) at every turn. What neither of them knows is that the other is their pen pal, whom they are in love with and hope to marry someday. As Christmas approaches, the pressure mounts and the only question is: will Christmas make or break what very well could be the love of a lifetime? Highly recommended.

Christmas in Connecticut (1945), 102 mins.
Barbara Stanwyck stars as Elizabeth Lane, a magazine food columnist who writes about her life on an idyllic Connecticut farm, where she cooks delicious food and cares for her family and animals. One day her publishes decides that to boost the readership he plans to have Christmas at her farm, and invite a war hero to add a sense of drama to the whole event. The only problem? Elizabeth is a single New Yorker and her recipes she provides are all from a cook-friend of hers. She soon finds herself looking for a farm, husband and baby to fill the roles in the fake life she has promoted, and things only get more complicated when sparks begin to fly between her and the soldier that shows up for dinner. 

Scrooge (1951), 87 mins.
The first of many versions of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol on this list, this version, starring Alistair Sim is a good, reaffirming telling of the tale. Sim plays a great, bitter Ebenezer Scrooge, who especially shines when the movie comes toward its ending and he begins to see the error of his ways. A recommendation, especially if you, like me, can’t get enough of this story.

How the Grinch Stole Christmas (1966), 23 mins.
A classic in every sense of the word. This Chuck Jones-directed short based off of the Dr. Seuss classic of the same name, may have been the first cartoon to really hammer home why Christmas is more than just presents and decorations as long as you open your heart to its magic. Sadly, especially in Sweden, the vulgar insult starring Jim Carrey is by far more known, and whilst even I can get some enjoyment out of it, it has nothing on this short, which gets to the point quicker and better than the Ron Howard movie.

Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town (1970), 51 mins.
This puppet stop motion film focuses on a younger Santa Claus, showing how he goes from a boy raised by a family of toymaking elves to the bearded present giver we all know and love. It’s silly, cheap and has some incredibly stupid moments in it, but the whole production has a level of sincerity and the cast including Mickey Rooney, Keenan Wynn and Fred Astaire has so much charm it more than makes up for its shortcomings.

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964), 55 mins.
Made by the same studio who made Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town, this retelling of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer takes a lot of liberties with the story, but still entertains, and in some ways almost warrants a watch because it changes things up. The Santa in this version is actually kind of a dick, and the plot additions to the story are ridiculously strange, but if you haven’t seen it at least once, you’re kind of missing out.

A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965), 25 mins.
Charlie Brown, bothered by the commercial nature of Christmas is searching for a way to truly get into the Christmas spirit. Linus suggests he take on the role as the director of the school’s nativity play, and Charlie Brown takes on the job. What follows is a typical Charlie Brownish set of misfortunes, but with a sweet and genuine ending that will leave you warm inside. One of my Christmas musts. 

The Twilight Zone: The Night of the Meek (TV-episode, 1960), 23 mins. 

Of all the TV episodes I want to recommend, this is the one I just couldn’t leave off (the rest are off due to lack of time, to be honest). This episode from the show’s second season is about Henry Corwin, an alcoholic mall Santa Claus, who after a particularly disastrous Christmas Eve finds a sack on the street which gives whoever wields it exactly what they want. Tired of the commercial and soulless attitude of many modern people’s Christmas, he decides to use the bag for what for good, becoming a real Santa Claus. It is a touching and thoroughly heartwarming in a way that is actually pretty impressive for a 23-minute episode. A strong recommendation.   

MODERN

Christmas Eve on Sesame Street (1978), 60 mins.
I think the title says it all. It’s Christmas Eve on Sesame Street and everyone is getting ready. However, everything comes to a grinding halt when Oscar the Grouch asks Big Bird the simple question “how does Santa get down all those chimneys?” and no one can come up with a logical answer. What follows is an investigation across Sesame street as Big Bird, Grover, Kermit and others set out to answer the question. On top of this we get to see Bert and Ernie struggle to find presents for each other and Cookie Monster trying to resist eating Santa’s cookies.
It’s a sweet little piece that won’t do much for you unless you have nostalgia for Sesame Street, but if you do, it really brings on the warm fuzzy feelings within.

The Snowman (1982), 26 mins.
A boy builds a snowman. It comes to life and they fly away on a magical adventure that is the stuff of winter legends. It’s short, has magical music and an art style not easily forgotten. I don’t have much to say about it, but if you are one of the few who hasn’t seen this classic, make sure this year is the one you rectify that on!

Home Alone (1990), 103 mins.
Who hasn’t seen this movie about young Kevin McCallister, who is forgotten at home as his family travels to Florida only to find himself having to fend off to burglars as they try to rob his house? I feel a lot of people spend so much time focusing on the pratfalls and the slapstick, which is indeed great, they miss the fact that the parts focusing on Kevin learning to handle himself and how much he actually misses his family. There are a lot of moments that are so heartfelt they make me teary-eyed.
The sequel is a bad retread of the first, now with the added subtraction of having a cameo by the worst president the U.S. has ever had. If you somehow want to go further down the line of sequels than that, make sure to stop after the third one, which has a few moments in an otherwise awful mess involving North Korean terrorists and advanced microchips and a young Scarlett Johansson.

Arthur Christmas (2011), 97 mins.
From the people who brought you Wallace & Gromit and The Chicken Run, comes this computer animated gem that is the most recent to-be-classic on this list. It is the story of Arthur Christmas, son of Malcolm Christmas, the current Santa Claus and second in line to the role of Santa. A bumbling oaf, he is relegated to working answering letters to children writing to Santa. However, what he lacks in poise and wit, he more than makes up for in enthusiasm and Christmas spirit. When a child is missed, her gift left at the pole, Arthur, his grand Santa and a wrapping-obsessed elf set out to deliver the present and make sure that no child is left behind.
It may get a little too slapstick-y at times, but at its core, Arthur Christmas is a sweet movie that bypasses the new millennium’s cynicism, instead using much of that cynicism to reaffirm just why Christmas matters and is so beautiful. A classic in the making. And one of my highest recommendations.

Joyeux Noël (2005), 116 mins. 
This is one of the heaviest Christmas movies ever made. And one of the best, also. Based on several different real-life events, this World War I period piece centers on a battlefield where German, French and Scottish forces are locked in trench warfare. That is until Christmas Eve, when the troops crawl out of the mud, shake hands and celebrate Christmas together. Knowing that this actually happened, along with strong performances and a dedication to authenticity gives this French, German, U.K. (among others) co-production to become something emotionally powerful and still, over a hundred years later, politically poignant. 
If you are up for something deeper and more “real” this holiday season, then I sincerely recommend this beautiful movie, which gives me goosebumps whenever I think of it.

The Hogfather (2006), 189 mins.
This two-part TV-adaptation of Terry Pratchett’s book of the same name centers around the Discworld equivalent to Christmas, Hogswatch, and how when The Hogfather (the Santa equivalent) goes missing, Death has to step in and fill the role to make sure that Hogswatchnight goes off without a hitch. We then follow Death, his granddaughter Susan and a various ensemble of other characters are they either attempt to find the Hogfather, destroy Hogswatch all together, or just survive the night’s events.
A long sit at three hours, it is worth the time if only for the scenes involving Death, who is both funny as well as surprisingly sweet, especially when it comes to his obvious affection for his granddaughter.
On the longer side, but if you want something a little more TV-esque in pacing, or are just looking to branch out, this might tickle your fancy.

Ernest Saves Christmas (1988), 95 mins.
Probably unknown to most non-American audiences, Ernest was a character played by Jim Varney in a series of comedies which saw the character go to jail, get scared stupid, etc. However, out of the movies starring the character, probably the best and most well-known is this Christmas-centric one where Ernest one day picks up a chubby old man from the airport only to find out that the man is an elderly Santa Claus, who is in town to approach a local children’s entertainer to take over as Santa in order to save Christmas. The two are soon joined by a teenage runaway as Ernest mugs at the camera and makes bad jokes for 90 minutes. The humor is stupid, the plot ridiculous and the setting of Florida doesn’t exactly scream “CHRISTMAS!”, so why should you watch it? Because the old Santa Claus (played by Douglas Seale) might just be the finest Santa Claus ever put to screen. He has a voice so sweet it brings a smile to your face (he also played the Sultan in Disney’s Aladdin for reference) and whenever he goes for maximum effect, it works without fail. A flawed film, but not without some merit.

A Christmas Carol (1984), 100 mins.
Another adaptation of the timeless classic, this time starring the always fantastic George C. Scott. Not much to say about this one, but if you want a more straight, non-animated version of the story, but don’t want to go too far back for one, then this is a good one to choose.

Jingle All the Way (1996), 89 mins.
Full disclosure, I know this movie is awful. The script is terrible, the child acting by Anakin Skywalker himself Jake Lloyd is awful and Sinbad is so not funny as Arnold’s foil, he might as well be writing a book on how to ruin your reputation, but there is something working in this movie’s favorite, and that is Arnold. He is so charming, that he makes this awful movie about a father trying to get the must-have toy for his son the day before Christmas, whilst also trying to keep his handsy neighbor (played by the late, great Phil Hartman) away from his wife, work. Not really a recommendation, but still something I just felt like throwing on the list.

Mickey’s Christmas Carol (1983), 26 mins.
Another adaptation, this time starring Scrooge McDuck in the role he was created to play. A short, simple, yet affective version. It certainly doesn’t hurt the short that all the parts are played by characters we all have connections to before even seeing it. There isn’t much more to say about it, but that it is a good adaptation of the classic.

A Christmas Story (1983), 93 mins.
From the same director that brought you the Christmas slasher movie Black Christmas (listed below in the alternative section), here we’re presented with the story of Ralphie Parker, a kid with one simple desire: getting a BB gun for Christmas. We follow Ralphie and his family as Christmas swiftly approaches, getting a slice-of-life-view of this white nuclear family in 1950’s America. And while this is an American classic, this last point works against the film in nearly any other part of the world. It’s too white, familial and American for me to relate to on many levels, yet still has some truly great moments in it, warranting at least one watch, just don’t go in expecting something life-changing. 

Love Actually (2003), 136 mins.
I almost didn’t put this on the list, simply because I assume everyone who would want to see it already has. It has stars, stars and more stars in an ensemble picture with so many stories that even if you don’t care for all the plots, there will most likely be at least a few that do.
If there is any REAL reason for me to put this on the list it is to make sure that those who don’t know of the short film sequel Red Nose Day Actually are made aware, which while just sort of OK, does follow up on some of the characters and serves as a reminder of how good the original truly is.

ALTERNATIVE

Gremlins (1984), 106 mins.
Another of my Christmas Eve musts. Gremlins, despite at its core being about how the tiny town of Kingston Falls being overrun with the titular monsters, oozes Christmas through nearly every pore. Movies like Die Hard or Lethal Weapon take place on Christmas, but even if it factors in, it usually stays at an arm’s length from the plot, but not so much here. Christmas is everywhere here. When Billy Peltzer, son of a cooky inventor, is given mythical Chinese creature known as a Mogwai (named Gizmo) as a Christmas present along with a list of three rules by which he must abide by, it isn’t long before something goes wrong and the town is thrust into chaos. Can Billy, Gizmo and Billy’s friend Cate stop the gremlins and save the town or will Christmas be lost?

Black Christmas (1974), 98 mins.
This slasher horror movie is set in a sorority building in the fictional town of Bedford, where a killer lurks in the attic. As the Christmas break begins one by one the girls living in the house begin to disappear, as the killer, known only as Billy, picks them off one after the other. Since they are expected to go home over the holidays, it isn’t thought much about, until the third act of course, when it becomes apparent that the remaining girls aren’t the only ones living in the sorority house…  

Santa Claus Conquers the Martians (1964), 81 mins. 
Do you hate yourself? Do you love garbage? Then look no further than this Ed Wood-esque catastrophe of a “movie” about how Martians kidnap Santa Claus, since they don’t have one on Mars, and some people set out to get Santa back. Schlocky, campy and confusing, this is one of those movies that is so bad you almost HAVE to see it at least once in your life. 

Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale (2010), 82 mins.
This strange Finnish horror comedy centers on two kids, who stumble upon the dark secret of Santa Claus, and how the Finnish mountain of Korvatunturi (rumored location of Santa’s workshop according to Finnish folklore) is actually a burial mound containing a bunch of Santa-like monsters, who want nothing more to punish bad little children by boiling them alive.
Now these two, anything-but-good boys must stop these Santas before it is too late.  

Die Hard (1988), 132 mins.
A movie I’m sure needs no introduction. Bruce Willis stars as New York police officer John McClane, who flies to Los Angeles to try and reconcile with his estranged wife Holly. He arrives at her office in the middle of the company’s Christmas party, and while John is resting in Holly’s office, the building is invaded by terrorists. What follows is some of the best American action ever put to film. Die Hard differs from so many of its contemporaries, in that it actually has weight to its action. You feel the falls, the hits and the bullets with John, as he swears, shoots and limps his way through Nakatomi Plaza, in a movie that hardly needs Christmas as an excuse to watch it, but is a must none the less.
Oh, Die Hard 2: Die Harder also takes place around Christmas and is a pretty solid sequel, but if you only watch one make sure it’s the first one.

Tokyo Godfathers (2003) 92 mins.
One of the last features by acclaimed Animé auteur Satoshi Kon, this story of three homeless people who find a baby in the garbage on Christmas eve deserves more attention. Much like the rest of Kon’s work, it is gorgeously animated and filled with both dark humor and heartfelt moments, and certainly isn’t afraid to handle more serious subjects, such as gender issues, depression, abuse and alcoholism. It’s a damn fine movie, and shouldn’t be missed.

Movies to get expanded upon later due to time constraints:

Lethal Weapon, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Trading Places, Nightmare Before Christmas, Bad Santa, The Santa Clause, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, Fred Claus, Santa Claus: The Movie, Scrooged, Krampus, Love Actually, White Christmas, It Happened on 5th Avenue