Holiday Inn (‘42): The “White Christmas” precursor. Irving Berlin wrote the script and music. Guess which is better. Home Alone (‘90): Remind yourself how cute and unweird Macaulay Culkin used to be. Scrooge (‘51): The very best version of the Dickens classic. (What, you thought we’d pick the one starring Mickey Mouse?) A Christmas Story (‘83): For the lovable Ralphie, nothing says Christmas quite like firearms. Die Hard (‘88): A worse-than-usual office Christmas party. This one’s crashed by bad guys. Nightmare Before Christmas (‘93): Halloween meets Christmas in Tim Burton’s twisted fable. The Bishop’s Wife (‘47): Cary Grant as an angel who’s a devil of a flirt. Or see the equally charming Denzel in “The Preacher’s Wife.” Trading Places (‘83): Dan Aykroyd and Eddie Murphy corner the market on comedy–and O.J. The Hudsucker Proxy (‘94): About a Hula Hoop? Trust us, it’s the perfect New Year’s rental. Meet Me in St. Louis (‘44): Get past that blasted “Trolley Song” for Judy Garland’s heartbreaking rendition of “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.”
