As the jingling of the bells toll ever louder and the stream of festive celebrations approaches, one thing becomes clear. It is Christmas time. And with Christmas comes the time-tested tradition of the Christmas movie; a film which carries the joys, atmosphere, or spirit of the festive time.

From The Night Before Christmas (1905) to Silent Night (2023), Christmas movies have not only withstood the test of time, but cover a variety of genres. This is the testament of the variety of the Christmas movie, while the stereotype exists in the form of the feel good family film, the genre of ‘Christmas’ can extend to cover nearly anything. As much as “Die Hard is a Christmas movie” is pictured as a joke, the setting being at Christmas does allow it to be viewed as such. Likewise Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone features an emotional and heartwarming scene set at Christmas, so the argument for a fantasy wizard film, that rejects all of the typical ideals of Christianity, being a Christmas film can be made.

And this is what makes the Christmas film more enticing than anything else. For the range of styles, genres, and characters that they embody, they come back to the same core every time. The cosiness, and ‘feel good’ nature of Christmas movies is what makes them so appealing. At the time of year that is horribly cold, dark, and wretched, the Christmas movie rolls around to make it better. The escapism of a ‘white Christmas’ where any cold can be defeated by a bobble hat, is one that many people chase, to lose themselves in a 90 minute blanket of warmth, to forget the winter-woes.

A Christmas Carol (take your pick) teaches us that the scourge of capitalism can be dismantled by Christmas cheer (and three ghosts). Nightmare Before Christmas shows the ways in which Christmas is capable of bringing people together no matter their backgrounds. The concept of peace, love and kindness conquering any differences and any evil is one that permeates consistently throughout the Christmas genre while, unfortunately, being completely separate from our reality. Yet it is one that is endlessly returned to for the hope that, even if just for one day, a Christmas miracle can occur, to have a day void of any bleakness in the world.

On a cosmic scale the Christmas movie represents something more than just Christmas. In its purest form the genre is the embodiment of hope. Hope that prejudice can be overcome, hope that good will always triumph, and hope that time can be spent with loved ones. Which is why the genre is returned to year after year by people far and wide, and why the genre has been co-opted by larger studios. In essence, Christmas films sell, they make money, using the aesthetic of Christmas to sell films to a general audience makes sense for big studios, even if they lose the heart of the traditional Christmas film. 

Sometimes this works, with the film being within the realm of Christmas, such as Red, White, and Royal Blue being a film about love crossing borders, between nations and class, to overcome the prejudice of others. The use of Christmas in that film works well to convey the idea of love, therefore prescribes to the Christmas genre’s theming. However, there are times when a film is completely ignorant of the typical theming of Christmas making the use of it jarring at best. Silent Night (2012) for instance never uses its Christmas aesthetic past a cheap gimmick; a murder mystery that co-opts the ideals of Christmas to produce a film that does nothing relevant with it thematically or plot wise. 

Fundamentally, the Christmas movie holds power. It is a genre that is easily adaptable, and easy to convey positive messaging through hope. However, as with anything powerful it requires skill and know-how in order to wield properly. For every genuinely brilliant Christmas movie that incorporates the ideals of Christmas into its plot, there are a dozen lame entries that ignore the potent messaging they are capable of. Being an oversaturated genre, it is one that needs judicious selection of what film to pick for viewing, but one that justifies its existence for the gems and joy it is capable of producing.  

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