Christmas Movies Archives

Second-Tier But Fun Christmas Movies

Everyone knows the usual Christmas classic movies on the top of every list. But what are some favorite second-tier Christmas movies that, while not classics, are thoroughly enjoyable?

Almost everyone has seen the classic great Christmas movies like It’s A Wonderful Life, White Christmas, Miracle on 34th Street, A Christmas Story, and the many iterations of Ebeneezer Scrooge in A Christmas Carol. While familiarity is the point of re-watching your favorite Christmas movies, sometimes a person wants to branch out a little to find their own comforting movie for a quiet night.

Below are three movies that are not classics and have their faults, but that I enjoy for something a little different.

Holiday Affair (1949)

Viewers of Turner Classic Mvies are probably already fans of Holiday Affair. Like It’s a Wonderful Life, Holiday Affair was not a big hit when it was released after World War II, but repeated showings on television have given the movie a broader audience.

Holiday Affair doesn’t have the holiday spirit and deeper meaning of It’s a Wonderful Life. There’s no angels and Christmas plays more of a background in this romantic comedy. But it has Robert Mitchum, who reportedly accepted the role in the family friendly movie to repair his image after getting busted for having marijuana.

Mitchum and Janet Leigh are a great couple in the movie, even if the will-they or won’t-they aspect is fairly a foregone conclusion, as it is Mitchum after all. But the movie is fun, with a highlight being that Mitchum’s competition played by Wendell Corey is not a typical heel but a nice guy.

If you like your movies in black and white, check out a couple of Barbara Stanwyck films, Christmas in Connecticut (1945) and Remember the Night (1940). The latter also stars Fred MacMurray and is endearing for a storyline that is not your typical romance as a prosecutor ends up falling in love with the woman he is supposed to prosecute.

Daddy’s Home 2 (2017)

While Daddy’s Home was a fun comedy that touched on issues of masculinity, the sequel ramps up the fun with the addition of Mel Gibson and John Lithgow and with setting the movie at Christmas time. The cast also includes Will Ferrell, Mark Wahlberg, Linda Cardellini, and John Cena.

You do not need to have seen the first film to enjoy Daddy’s Home 2, which finds Ferrell and Wahlberg’s characters having come to a happy way to work together raising healthy kids while Ferrell is married to Wahlberg’s ex-wife. But things take a funny turn when their fathers show up for Christmas.

I won’t ruin more, but like many great holiday movies there is a wonderful music scene that helps bring everyone together and tie up some loose ends.

You will not be abandoning your favorite Christmas movies for this one, but it is a fun addition if you want something lighthearted and a little different.

A Christmas Story Christmas (2022)

This film is also a sequel, but this time a sequel to a movie that has become a classic in its own right, A Christmas Story (1983). Producers had made two previous tries at creating a good sequel to the original A Christmas Story. But My Summer Story (1994) and A Christmas Story 2 (2012) are at best, for die-hard fans of the original, or at worst, better forgotten completely.

A Christmas Story Christmas, however, does things that a good sequel does. It brings back many of the actors from the original, including Scott Billingsly as Ralphie but also many of the other kids as grownups. So as a start, the movie is a nice nostalgic trip to catch up with favorite characters (from an original movie that was already nostalgic).

A Christmas Story Christmas also has callbacks to man of the events from the original, like a trip to see Santa Claus, someone accepting a dare, etc. If there is one weakness in the movie it is that it might be a little too long and seem episodic, straying from the main story in an attempt to squeeze everything in. But those episodes gives something to fans of the original.

More importantly, the over arching story captures many of the themes of the original while adding something worthwhile. While the original focused on a grown up’s memories of being a child, A Christmas Story Christmas, at its best, is about the challenges of the holidays as an adult trying to survive Christmas while also trying to create new memories for the children.

While A Christmas Story Christmas may never reach the classic status of A Christmas Story, it has a lot to say and is a nice break from the repeated viewings of the beloved original.

Honorable Mention: While many might mention Love Actually (2003) as a fun second-tier holiday film that many love and many hate, there is another movie from one year earlier also featuring Hugh Grant that deserves mention. About a Boy (2002) is a comedy drama based on a Nick Hornby novel that is not entirely about Christmas, but has several Christmas references including he setting at the end and the lead character, played by Hugh Grant, living off the money from one Christmas song. But the film captures the holiday spirit, where one might see Grant being a version of Ebeneezer Scrooge and one awkward boy (played by Nicholas Hoult) replacing Dickens’ ghosts.

What your favorite second-tier Christmas movies? Leave your two cents in the comments.

Buy from Amazon

A Christmas Movie: “The Crossing” (Missed Movies)

If you are looking for an unusual holiday movie, you should check out The Crossing (2000). The film is an excellent A&E made-for-TV movie starring Jeff Daniels as George Washington. The Crossing portrays the story behind Washington’s famous crossing of the Delaware River on the night after Christmas in 1776 to fight the Battle of Trenton.

While one may only pack so much information in an 89-minute movie, few holiday movies will put you on the edge of your seat like The Crossing. Director Robert Harmon does an excellent job of condensing the story to convey the drama, risk, and importance of George Washington’s decision to cross the Delaware.

Most people are familiar with the crossing because of the famous painting Washington Crossing the Delaware by artist Emanuel Gottlieb Leutze. But in watching The Crossing I was surprised by how much I did not know — or had forgotten.

Perhaps because of the painting, many think of the crossing as being near the end of the American Revolutionary War. But it occurred closer to the beginning of the war. The crossing took place less than six months after the signing of the Declaration of Independence, when the war would continue until 1783. Also, the battle was not against the main British forces but against hired German Hessian forces.

None of that, though, lessens the significance of the battle and George Washington’s decisions. The Crossing does an excellent job of portraying the risks involved and the importance of the battle.

The film is based on the novel of the same name by Howard Fast, and it takes some liberties for dramatic effect. But the film sets the big picture accurately. The Colonists had suffered repeated defeats at the hands of the British. And the British were expecting a quick end to the war. But Washington decided to take his weary men in a risky move. The result of his decision would gain supplies for the winter and provide a much-needed victory to inspire the Colonists and future enlistments.

While the personality of Washington remains somewhat elusive, Jeff Daniels does an excellent job portraying one of the most important people in American history. He conveys the difficult decisions encountered by the steady leader.

Even though you know how the story ends, the film will still draw you into the tense tale, seeing the men battle against the odds. The Crossing does a good job of portraying the challenges, including the cold weather and Washington’s realization that it is impossible to encounter the Hessians before daybreak.

Conclusion? While The Crossing has little Christmas cheer, it is a great way to remember an important event in American history that occurred on the night of December 25 into the morning of December 26. Watching The Crossing, one cannot help but think how American history may have gone differently — or never existed at all. What if George Washington made a different decision or if the outcome was different on that Christmas night more than two hundred years ago?

Other Reviews Because Why Should You Trust Me? Rotten Tomatoes provides no critics rating for the TV movie, but it gives a disappointing audience score of 53%. I suspect some may have had high expectations for the film and were disappointed because they expected a movie theater film on the life of George Washington. But others appreciate the film for what it is: a short dramatization of the important events over a short time period. By contrast, GJ’s Closet called The Crossing “the greatest American Revolutionary War film ever made and an ideal history lesson.” The film won a Peabody Award in 2000.

Painting photo via public domain.

What is your favorite movie set during Christmas that is not about Christmas? Leave your two cents in the comments.

What Song Did George Bailey Sing?: A Quiz on Christmas Songs on the Screen

Second-Tier But Fun Christmas Movies

Mahalia Jackson: “Silent Night”

‘Fairytale of New York’ at Shane MacGowan’s funeral

With Glowing Hearts: “O Holy Night” By John Denver

There Will Be Another Christmas

(Some related Chimesfreedom posts.)

What Song Did George Bailey Sing?: A Quiz on Christmas Songs on the Screen

Test your knowledge of the classic songs appearing in movies and holiday television specials with these ten questions (plus a bonus question). How well do you know your Christmas music? Answers and videos of all the songs appear at the end with your score.