Peter Billingsley as Ralphie before getting pushed down the mall Santa's slide in A Christmas StoryImage via MGM
By
Chris Williams
Published 38 minutes ago
Chris Williams is a writer with more than 20 years of experience writing about film.
He began his career working as a reporter for the Advisor and Source Newspapers in Shelby Township, Michigan, where he also served as the resident film critic. He has also written for Patheos and CinemaNerdz. Since 2020, Chris has written the Chrisicisms newsletter, which features reviews of recent film releases and thoughts on a variety of subjects.
Chris holds a B.A. in communications and an emphasis in journalism and an M.A. in communications with an emphasis on media arts and studies, both from Wayne State University in Detroit.
He lives in the Detroit area with his wife and his son and daughter.
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The 1980s were chaotic, charming, and weird, and the Christmas movies of that time were no exception. The 1980s holiday films could vary from old-fashioned sentiment to wild and anarchic genre fare, willing to mix in monsters, explosions, and Jim Varney. There was something for everyone, from older audiences looking for adaptations of traditional tales to new film lovers who wanted a fresh approach to the holidays.
The decade produced an unexpectedly rich collection of Christmas classics that range from quiet family dramas to action epics, and from animated gems to offbeat comedies. Each captures a different facet of the season, whether it’s generosity and nostalgia or a willingness to make the yuletide a bit dark. Here are 10 of the movies that defined Christmas for a generation and still light up the holidays decades later.
10 ‘One Magic Christmas’ (1985)
Photo courtesy of Walt Disney Studios
One Magic Christmas is a quietly affecting Christmas film in which Mary Steenburgen plays an exhausted mother struggling through a difficult winter full of financial pressure, long hours, and a creeping sense that joy has quietly drained from her life. The film treats its premise with unusual gravity, exploring adult anxieties with an honesty that Christmas films, particularly ones from Disney, rarely attempt. It’s a story about the difficulty of staying hopeful in hard times, which makes the moments of magic hit harder than expected.
The film’s emotional anchor is Harry Dean Stanton as Gideon, an angel whose calm presence reframes the season as something bigger than presents or platitudes. One Magic Christmas doesn’t chase laughs or spectacle; its magic is quieter, which makes it hit harder. Its mix of hardship, underplayed whimsy, and redemption gives it a timeless quality that’s less flashy than its contemporaries but richer in soul. For anyone who gravitates toward Christmas movies with genuine emotional weight, it remains an underrated treasure.
9 ‘Scrooged’ (1988)
Bill Murray as Frank Cross in ScroogedImage via Paramount Pictures
There will be several variations on Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol on this list, and this is one of the biggest swings. Richard Donner’s dark comedy modernizes the story, placing Bill Murray in the role of a miserly TV exec who has a change of heart after being visited by several ghosts one Christmas Eve. Murray, who returned to the screen for the first time in several years for the film, has a blast chewing the scenery as a greedy jerk, and Donner mines laughs both from a slapstick Ghost of Christmas Present played by Carol Kane, as well as from the mix of dark humor and Murray’s snide cutdowns.
Scrooged can be a bit of a tonal mess, careening from big-budget scares to down-the-middle laughs, but the script by Mitch Glazer and Michael O’Donoghue remains genuinely interested in what a modern redemption story might look like. The early glimpses of a soured romance between Murray and Karen Allen are sweet and affecting, and the third act gains a chaotic energy from Bobcat Goldthwait. The film’s final minutes, when Murray’s character has his change of heart, are its most engaging, as the character goes off script, sings, and talks to the audience, bringing his character’s newfound joy to palpable life.
8 ‘Lethal Weapon’ (1987)
Mel Gibson as 'Riggs' pointing a gun while Christmas lines sparkle in the background in Lethal WeaponImage via Warner Bros.
Shane Black is famous for mixing Christmas and action, and it started with his script for Lethal Weapon, the franchise-launching buddy movie that pairs Mel Gibson’s loose cannon detective with Danny Glover’s mild-mannered family man as they try to solve a murder in Los Angeles. Richard Donner, just one year before Scrooged, delivers several adrenaline-pumping action scenes, leavened by the wry humor of Black’s script and his stars’ chemistry.
The film takes place at Christmastime, opening with a death set to “Jingle Bell Rock,” and its themes fit nicely with the holiday setting. Gibson’s Riggs is grieving and lonely, paired with Glover’s Murtaugh, who’s counting the days until retirement and just wants to enjoy family life. The holiday background enhances the film’s themes of friendship and found family, culminating in Riggs attending Christmas dinner at the Murtaugh house. It’s still one of the best buddy cop movies ever made, laced with a warmth that powered the series through four films.
7 ‘Ernest Saves Christmas’ (1988)
ernest-saves-christmas-social-featureImage via Buena Vista Pictures
Ernest P. Worrell’s brand of humor is an acquired taste, but for fans, Ernest Saves Christmas is one of the character’s finest outings. Jim Varney, who created the character for regional commercials, brings an infectious sincerity to Ernest, who’s goofy, clumsy, and endlessly enthusiastic as he stumbles into a plot involving Santa searching for his successor. The story balances slapstick comedy with an unexpectedly sweet message about belief and purpose. Varney’s charm gives the film a warmth and humor, making it one of the era’s most nostalgic family holiday viewing experiences.
There’s no cynicism; just wide-eyed joy, hijinks, and a sincere love of Christmas lore. Varney’s physical comedy is at its peak, but beneath the jokes is a genuinely affectionate character who always wants to help. Ernest Saves Christmas won’t appeal to everyone, but for those who grew up with Ernest tapes stacked beside the VCR, it’s an essential part of the season’s rotation: silly, comforting, and surprisingly heartfelt.
6 ‘Gremlins’ (1984)
The gremlins go Christmas caroling in Gremlins.Image via Warner Bros.
The Christmas setting is far from a coincidence in Joe Dante’s classic horror-comedy; it’s key to the film’s gleeful blend of monster mayhem and dark humor. The Steven Spielberg production wonders what would happen if monsters ran amok in a town pulled from a Norman Rockwell painting. The film opens with snow-swept streets, Christmas tunes, and holiday decorations. It ends with the town in shambles at the hands of its Gremlins and the theater destroyed in a fireball. In the middle, there’s one of the most unhinged speeches about a family Santa ever put to film. The movie is scary and funny at the same time, rightfully pulled back from Chris Columbus' darker script, and the titular beasties are a glorious mix of stop-motion effects and cartoon logic.
There’s a case to be made that Gremlins is a cautionary tale about parents buying their kids a holiday pet they’re in no way ready to care for. And despite its silly antics and lore-setting rules, it’s also a sharp satire of commercialism, sentimentality, and the pressures of the season. It’s a movie that embraces both the dark and the delightful sides of Christmas, a perfect watch for those who prefer their eggnog spiked.
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"You see, George, you've really had a wonderful life."
Posts By Maximilian Leunig Nov 13, 20255 ‘Mickey’s Christmas Carol’ (1983)
Image via Disney
Mickey’s Christmas Carol is a charmingly compact adaptation of Dickens’ tale. It might seem like a cheat to give a story that’s barely 20 minutes long a place on this list, but it premiered in theaters alongside the 1983 re-issue of The Rescuers before becoming a TV staple. Inserting Scrooge McDuck as Ebenezer Scrooge is obvious, but it works, and the film cleverly uses beloved Disney characters — including Mickey as Bob Cratchit, Goofy as Jacob Marley, and Jiminy Cricket as the Ghost of Christmas Past — to create instant familiarity. Despite its brevity, it hits all the essential emotional beats with surprising potency.
The animation blends classic Disney warmth with a slight edge and emotional depth appropriate to the story’s darker moments. The Ghost of Christmas Future sequence, in particular, remains surprisingly intense for a family short, even if the film softens the impact by revealing that it’s cigar-chomping Pete under the cloak. The film is a gentle and funny introduction to the Dickens classic; it was many viewers’ first exposure to A Christmas Carol, and the film remains a delightful mix of nostalgia, craftsmanship, and holiday spirit.
4 ‘National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation’ (1989)
Clark Griswold wearing a Santa hat and looking intently in National Lampoon's Christmas VacationImage via Warner Bros.
For all its slapstick chaos and absurd escalation, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation captures something painfully real about the holiday season: expectations rarely meet reality. All Clark Griswold (Chevy Chase) wants is the perfect “good old-fashioned family Christmas" — the perfect tree, the perfect lights, the perfect dinner. But everything that can go wrong does, quite spectacularly. The film’s humor comes from the collision between Clark’s fantasies and the Griswold family’s barely controlled holiday meltdown, making it one of the most memorable Vacation films.
'National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation' captures something painfully real about the holiday season: expectations rarely meet reality.
The film features one of Chase’s best performances, particularly as Clark gets more tightly wound and then memorably snaps. Randy Quaid’s return as Cousin Eddie is the film’s secret weapon, with his slovenly intrusion on the family constantly a pine needle in Clark’s side. It’s one of the funniest and most quotable holiday comedies ever, but what keeps it in rotation is the underlying warmth beneath the catastrophe. Amid the fires, the electrical mishaps, the squirrel attacks, and kidnappings, the film celebrates imperfect family gatherings with clear affection. It’s messy, loud, and occasionally unhinged, but so are many real holidays. It’s a perennial favorite, and proof that even the most disastrous Christmas can be memorable in all the right ways.
3 ‘Die Hard’ (1988)
Bruce Willis, playing John McClane, crawls through a duct with a lighter in Die Hard.Image via 20th Century Studios
The debate about whether Die Hard is a Christmas movie has long been settled, and the John McTiernan action masterpiece is now accepted by most as a yuletide staple. Beyond its setting at a holiday office party, the film leans heavily into seasonal imagery: wrapping paper, Christmas music, and the story of a man trying to reunite with his wife. The movie’s structure is a holiday parable peppered with one-liners and gunfights, the story of someone determined to reconnect with the people he loves, even as everything around him explodes.
Of course, it helps that Die Hard is one of the greatest action movies ever made. Bruce Willis brings vulnerability and humor to John McClane, while Alan Rickman delivers a villainous performance for the ages that’s nearly as memorable. The Christmas backdrop intensifies the stakes, coloring the film with a sense of contrast: violence set against celebration, loneliness set against joy. Whether watched as an action classic or a holiday staple, Die Hard has earned its place in seasonal pop culture.
2 ‘A Christmas Carol’ (1984)
George C. Scott as Ebenezer Scrooge looking shocked in A Christmas Carol (1984).Image via CBS
Among the countless adaptations of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, the 1984 version starring George C. Scott stands as perhaps the definitive rendition. Scott’s Scrooge isn’t cartoonishly cruel or icy; he’s grounded and complex, making his transformation thoughtful rather than exaggerated. Scott's performance gives the story a dramatic heft that resonates across generations. The film’s period detail, somber tone, and unflinching depiction of Victorian hardship also distinguish it from lighter versions, restoring some of Dickens’ original edge. The adaptation is one of the rare Christmas Carols to feature the appearance of Ignorance and Want, one of the most chilling parts of the original story.
The ghosts play a large role in why this version endures. The three spirits are memorable without relying on modern effects, and their scenes, particularly the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come, deliver a sense of dread that shapes Scrooge’s arc with real force. Scott’s final moments of redemption are all the more satisfying because the journey feels so human. This adaptation remains a holiday mainstay not because it reinvents the wheel, but because it understands the depth of Dickens’ message and presents it with clarity, artistry, and unforgettable performances.
1 ‘A Christmas Story’ (1983)
Peter Billingsley as Ralphie and Jeff Gillen as Santa Claus in A Christmas Story.Image via MGM
Few Christmas films capture the nostalgic glow of childhood as vividly as A Christmas Story. Set in the 1940s, the film follows young Ralphie Parker’s quest for a Red Ryder BB gun. Every scene, from the department store Santa to the frozen flagpole to the fragile leg lamp, has become an instantly recognizable piece of holiday iconography. It’s not a kids’ story, but the story of looking back on childhood, and the film’s episodic structure, mimics the way memories work: fragments of chaos, excitement, embarrassment, and joy that collectively shape a child’s sense of the season.
What makes A Christmas Story so enduring is a tone that’s warm, wry, and affectionate without drifting into excessive sweetness. Jean Shepherd’s narration adds a literary flair, constantly making what’s on the screen even funnier. It’s funny without being broad, sentimental without being cloying, and nostalgic without being dishonest. Peter Billingsley gives one of the great child performances of the ‘80s, but on return visits, it’s Darren McGavin and Melinda Dillon, who supply the film’s heart as Ralphie’s parents. More than any other Christmas movie of the decade, it captures the magic of remembering what the holidays felt like when the world was still a little too big and Christmas morning felt impossibly bright.
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A Christmas Story
Like Follow Followed PG Family Comedy Release Date November 18, 1983 Runtime 94 minutes Director Bob Clark Writers Jean Shepherd, Bob Clark, Leigh Brown Sequel(s) A Christmas Story 2, It Runs in the FamilyCast
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