Redditor IsaidwhatIsaidSNS wanted to hear about all the best movies that make the holiday season feel merry and bright. So they asked everyone to share:
"What do you think is the number 1 Christmas movie(s) of all time?"
I love Christmas movies. All of them.
But let's pick a few favs.
Christmas Monsters
Santa Hat Christmas Movies GIF by filmeditorGiphy"I remember watching Gremlins with my daughter when she was younger. I was concerned it might be too scary, that was fine. I nearly forgot about the Santa secret reveal though! Fortunately I remembered in time and fast forwarded past that part."
Eq2me
Artistry in Clay
"'The year without Santa Claus.' I've always been a sucker for claymation."
severley_confused
"The snow/heat miser songs are amazing."
"Everyone loves this one for Snow Miser and Heat Miser. Now, I'm not going to say they aren't great, but for me they're not the reason I like this one so much."
"Santa Claus having a crisis of faith, and realizing the joy he really does bring people, is such a great and well told story. The Believe song is great, blue Christmas is great, and Mickey Rooney gives a hell of a performance."
"I always liked it for that."
Qwerty_Asdfgh_Zxcvb
Hip Hip Hooray
"National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation."
tyce2020
"My favorite Christmas movie as well. 'We’re gonna press on and we’re gonna have the hap, hap, happiest Christmas since Bing Crosby tap-danced with Danny fu**in’ Kaye. And when Santa squeezes his fat white a** down that chimney tonight, he’s gonna find the jolliest bunch of a**holes this side of the nuthouse.”
spartanscott093
A Merry Way
"Gotta have 'Jingle All the Way' in there."
dan_buh
"I always lose it and start laughing during Sinbad's rant at the toy store when they are waiting for it to opening ''I gotta pay alimony to a woman who had sex with everyone in the post office... BUT ME!!!''
"Or after the bomb goes off in the radio station ''that was really a bomb? THIS IS A SICK WORLD WE'RE LIVING IN, SICK PEOPLE!!!'"
KR_Blade
Kermit & Friends
The Muppet Christmas Carol Cheers GIF by filmeditorGiphy"Muppets Christmas Carol."
Fessir
"It’s a brilliant adaptation altogether - and Michael Caine’s performance is beautiful. He could’ve played it for jokes but his Scrooge is so genuine. I love the film so much, it’s so moving when it needs to be, and silly when it’s suitable."
kirmobak
The Muppets are always the best.
KEVIN!
Macaulay Culkin Running GIF by Home AloneGiphy"Home Alone."
Electrical_Potato_21
"It's played every year in Polish television for Christmas. Once they said they're not going to air it and people were angry. They reverted the decision. Is it also a must have in other countries?"
Vatonee
Alternatives
"Scrooged. It's a personal favorite."
forf**ksakewhatnow
"I can’t believe how far I had to come to see this. I love this movie. It is #1. It is a gem."
grrargg
"It's a crying shame. I don't know when I saw it first but it's my favorite 'Alternative' Christmas film. Despite being hugely cynical it also doesn't cheap out on the heart. Even now it doesn't feel like Christmas till I hear those credits."
GunstarGreen
"Seriously my favorite Christmas movie. I love it so much."
TwistedNJaded
You're a mean one...
"'How the Grinch Stole the Christmas' Animation movie."
haterkelol
"Assuming we're talking about the 1966 animated version... It's probably not higher on the list because it's a TV special rather than a movie. It’s not even 30 minutes long. It's great though!"
SteinyOLP
"The original has a spirit and authenticity all its own. The live-action and the animated remake are both enjoyable personally, but they’re sapped of true character. It’s like 60s soul vs modern pop music. Both can be pleasant, but one came from the source and the other is over-produced."
blonde-bandit
Thanks Netflix
"Everyone has already said the usual suspects so I wanted to give a nod to a more recent/maybe less known one:"
"'Klaus.' It's on Netflix and it about makes me cry every time. Love that one."
NyukaNyuka
"One of the best things Netflix has ever produced. It's awesome and a top 5 for me."
wronglyzorro
"Klaus is definitely the best Santa origin story."
AngusVanhookHinson
The Greatest
Classic Film Christmas Movies GIF by GIF Greeting CardsGiphy"It’s damn near 100 years old, but It’s a Wonderful Life still does it for me."
cranes_in_the_sky
"When I was younger I didn’t understand how anyone could like an old black and white movie. I was bored one day, nothing on TV, and decided to watch it. What a fantastic movie! I hated that I never even gave it a chance simply because it was old. It started me on a path of watching old movies and I have loved so many!"
no_no_sorry
I love this list. Time to get jolly.
For the ones who thought they deserved better, Redditor Jalb101222 asked strangers on the internet:
"What's the worst Christmas present you have received?"
Family members just don't have a clue.
The Thought Didn't Count
"Every year my aunt gives our family 'Thrift Santa' gifts, like a bunch, from thrift stores. The thing is, nothing relates to anything. The worst I've gotten are among a Kama Sutra book when I was 13/14 (awkward), and a New York Yankees baby onesie. I don't have kids, I don't watch baseball."
– Yippee614
Worse For Wear
"When the tomagotchi craze was in full swing my siblings and I asked for one."
"My sisters both got one, and I got a jacket because mine was torn up and small."
"When I asked my dad why I didn't get one and if Santa thought I did something bad that year. He told me I was too old for Santa and needed to learn life isn't fair."
"I was 8. My sisters were 7 and 5."
"From that point forward I only ever received clothing."
– dariusz2k
For A Prospective Forensic Scientist
"My mum is notorious for bad presents, I've had such delights as toothpaste and vitamin pills wrapped up for me at Christmas."
"But one that stands out was a car crash kit. It had a disposable camera for recording the scene, a form for both parties to fill out, a tape measure for measuring... I dunno stuff and some chalk, for what I assume was for marking out where the dead bodies landed, or something, I dunno."
– X-cessiveDreamer
A Traumatic Experience
"My great grandma gave my cousin a jock strap from goodwill. Her mental health was bad at this time. 1992ish? He started crying. He was 9."
– mistahmarbles
Grandma's Taste In Fashion
"My grandmother was terrible at picking out clothes. When I was around 13, she got me a shirt with a puffy panel on the chest with a zipper to, I guess, store things in."
"She gave it to me Christmas Eve, and I had to make sure I wore it Christmas Day when she came around. Like the bulk of the clothes she bought for holidays or birthdays, it was worn once or twice, then promptly stuck in the back of the closet for a year or two until I outgrew it and had to throw it away."
– wetwater
Budget Gourmet
"A box of top ramen. Just a standard grocery box of ramen bags. It was wrapped up with a nice bow too, and it was not gifted as a joke. My family knew I was having financial troubles and was only eating one meal a day, they honestly thought they were helping me out."
– The_Quicktrigger
You can't always get what you want. Worse, you get what you don't even need.
They Must've Been On The Naughty List
"My husbands step mother gave me, a 36 year old at the time, a kindergarten size back pack and when I opened it she said, 'I actually bought that for ——- (a child) a few years ago and she hated it so I threw it in a closet and I saw it and thought you'd like it. None of us did, we all think it's ugly.'"
"That same year they gave my 3 kids gifts totaling all together $15 with the clearance stickers on them while her biological granddaughter opened a $300 unicorn. Which they made sure we knew cost $300, and then they pointed out to everyone our clearance stickers and what great deals they were (they weren't), and then they made my kids leave the room so the grand daughter could take pics alone with her unicorn."
"It was the last Christmas we visited them. lol"
– simplysufficiant
Because Homewares
"A dishtowel.. I was 8 years old."
"Oh, yeah. That was very common in my country until recently. Especially the older members of the family would give household gifts to the children, especially the girls."
"It's based on the tradition of the couple moving into the same household after marriage. Usually the women would bring the household furnishings to the marriage. So from a young age, girls receive gifts like this and gradually build up this equipment so that families don't have to buy it all at once."
"This was especially common among less affluent families."
"An elementary school teacher of mine once told us the story of how she received a set of towels from her grandmother for Christmas when she was about eight (this was in the 1940's). From her grandmother's point of view, it was a generous gift that she had carefully chosen and had to save money for all year."
"But it was a terrible disappointment for an eight-year-old girl, and she didn't hide it. She said she later regretted her reaction, which is obvious because she still remembered it even at seventy. (She told us this story to teach us a lesson about gratitude)."
– NeutralWitch
A Musical Hint
"Since my dad isn't on Reddit I will share his story for him. When he was young he was hell bent on becoming a drummer. He would make full drum kits out of my grandmothers pots and pans and whatever he could find. Very detailed set ups. After months and months of building drum sets and drumming on anything he could find he woke up Christmas morning…to an acoustic guitar and guitar lessons."
"He told me he took a few lessons and would always end up flipping the guitar over in the class with the other students and just play it like bongos."
– Swarhammer
People Explain Activities They've Added To Their Post-Pandemic Bucket List | George Takei’s Oh Myyy
While we've all been cooped up for the better part of two years, many of us have been dreaming up exciting plans for the future. Maybe it's finally time to s...They Cut So Deep
"A set of miniature butter knives with ceramic fruit and vegetables as the handles. From an aunt who said that I was 'So hard to shop for.'"
"I was 7."
– vodkaenthusiast89
Worst Surprise Ever
"A comic book that was laying around the house for several months which I read twice in this period. I didn't know it was supposed to be my surprise present."
– Cheap_Stay2750
Premature Grooming Delight
"My dad, his first christmas divorced and living alone, first time ever shopping for us clearly lmao because my mom did all the shopping before, got me a nose hair trimmer..."
"I was 12."
"And definitely did not understand why I got that gift."
– ThisSorrowfulLife
That Stinks
"When I was 5, I had gotten a sephora gift card from my grandma. My mom ended up using it."
– Miranda9091
Gift comparisons were made, and these Redditors got the short end of the stick.
Put To Use
"When I was 10 years old my grandparents gave me an unwrapped suitcase for Christmas. In the interests of convenience, they used that suitcase for the wrapped presents for my sisters."
– ragedandobtused
"Misplaced" Gifts
"The time I was really into Green Day and the emerging 'alternative' music of the mid 90s. And my mom bought me a few CDs (back when CDs were something stupid like $20 each). Wow! Awesome gift! Except the CDs were Toni Braxton and Mariah Carey and something else I've completely forgotten."
"Or the Christmases when my brother would get a pile of presents or something pretty expensive (foosball table, air hockey table, etc), and I'd get a couple books and lipgloss. I love those things, so the gifts themselves weren't bad, but I was clearly not the favored child."
"In the aftermath of gift opening, mom would look at the pile my brother got and the few gifts I got, then make a big show of stomping around the house claiming she knows she got more for me, she must have misplaced all the other gifts! Without fail, for several years in a row, she 'misplaced' my gifts. Because she realized in the moment that she spent waaaaay more on my brother than me. Never once did she find these 'misplaced' gifts."
"And to make it worse, my birthday is shortly after Christmas, so I never got much for my birthday because the budget was blown on Christmas. My brother claims he remembers me getting sh**ty birthday gifts and I was always jealous of his. I don't have any memory of that, but it very well could be. (The worst birthday was the year I only got a Bible with my name stamped on the front in gold lettering. That's a birthday I remember quite clearly.)"
– daughtcahm
How One Becomes An Ex
"The year I gave my ex husband a Tag Heuer watch he gave me a $19.99 Walmart blender. We already had 3 blenders."
– tealgrayone
Why Lamborghinis Suck
"A Lamborghini calender. My brother got a guitar and amp. My two sisters got a bike each. F'k i hate Lamborghinis now."
– Stickmag
The Punishment
"When I was 12 I bought myself a kindle. Me and my sister spent an entire summer working for our grandpa and stepdad to save up for them, each of us spending about 200$. My mom got all 3 of my brothers a kindle for Christmas and I got some Clothes from old navy."
"I was livid and when I talked to my mom about it she told me that my sister and I had been excluding our brothers from hanging out while we played videogames and it was unfair. She never apologized or saw anything wrong with what she did, and I honestly still haven't forgiven her almost a decade later."
– BlueButterflies139
Walmart Finds
"On my 10th birthday that my parents kept making a big deal about (double digit age i can legally babysit now) my dad went to walmart the day before and came back with 2 wallets and a ipod that my sister started asking for a week before my bday."
"I get a wallet and my younger brother got the same wallet and he gave my sister the ipod. I felt so depressed after that and my grandparents took me to walmart with $20 to spend for my bday. When we were checking out i saw the wallets by the candy where the cashiers are and they were $1. I got reminded of it and went to look at the ipod my sister got and it was either $250 or $350 bucks...we ate frozen corndogs and ramen everyday so it seriously hurt to see that."
"Edit: there were alot of other f'ked up things my parents did, but my sister was my dads fav (middle child) and younger brother was my moms (youngest)."
"When i turned 16 i wanted to test to see if they would even notice if i stopped talking, eating, and leaving my rooms..a year and a half later they finally said something, if i wasnt at school i just went in my room and slept and didnt eat their food. Met my wife and as soon as i turned 18 her gma let me move in and i havent spoken to my parents in almost a decade."
– AutomaticRisk3464
A Sibling Scores
"I got a bunch of combs and a cheap children's chemistry set that I already had three of. My brother got some DS games and a lego Star destroyer."
– cobalt_phantom
It's funny how our tastes evolve from when we were kids.
My parents' friends typically bought me clothes, which I never appreciated because I always wanted TOYS.
One Christmas–I think I was around 12—I was given black and red Nike high-tops from a family friend, and I scoffed at the reveal after anticipating something more exciting, like, I dunno, the Star Wars Power of the Force Hoth Battle Playset made by Kenner?
I ended up asking to have the sneaks sent back and lying that the shoe size was inaccurate as the reason.
Man, I wish I had those AWESOME high-tops now! Actually, I would appreciate them now. Because I still want the Star Wars playset, TBH.
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My list seems to get shorter every year. This means I'm focusing more on my needs and not just wants.
Not that I don't appreciate a ton of frivolous holiday loot.
So let's start gathering up ideas on how to make this Christmas the best one yet. How are we gonna fill those stockings?
A secret Redditor wanted to hear all about our Christmas wishes this year. They asked:
What do you want for Christmas?
After they asked, they deleted their Reddit name. Santa... is that you?
I want money. Is that bad? I don't care if you think so. Just give me the cash and I'll do the shopping myself. Oh, and Adele tickets.
Oh yeah... and of course, world peace.
Sing Out
adele hello GIFGiphy"I want concert tickets for a New Year's Eve event and to meet a friend." ~ esquiteconchile
What is Necessary?
"I can't think of anything. I'm good." ~ Trapped_In_A_Blur
"You just made my day. I really do wish people didn't "need" anything for a holiday-made-silly by gift-giving… we all need a lot of things, regardless of what season it is. These are (often) things that aren't tangible objects to begin with… so, thanks for commenting. Love and light, y'all." ~ YoureACloudAirry
Essential Tools
"A new spatula and a nap." ~ indecisive_ly
"Go to Spatula City." ~ new-username-2017
"Before investing in a spatula, consider this one and their other accessories. Cut down my stuff draw by about 80%." ~ StabbyInc
Upgrading Crafts
"I want a PC upgrade, but I'd rather my wife get all the yarn she wants for all her projects." ~ nyle2
"Literally this. Last year I want to buy a new motor but wife wants to save for our dream house. And now we are focusing on building it. I guess a good choice to make." ~ Shot-Investigator-90
"Okay. You sell your PC to buy her a bunch of yarn, and she can sell her knitting needles to buy you that upgrade she knows you really want." ~ SoullessDad
Pain Relief
Massage GIF by CompexGiphy"One of those back massager guns." ~ Ultra_Maxwell
"I would want one of those except I don't have anyone to use it on or to use it on me. I just want the world to be free of addiction tbh." ~ MummaGoose
I love those massage guns. I HAVE to get one, thanks for reminding me. And I always want another nap, they are definitely a gift. Spatulas? Meh.
Comfort
Teddy Bear Hug GIFGiphy"A hug." ~ Correct-Revenue2900
"I need one too. So lets hug 8 times, apparently its the no of hugs one needs to get thru the day. But it would be weird 2 strangers hugging each other 8 times in a row so I guess it's off the table. I guess I'm just refused myself lol." ~ ChutkiJoTuneMariHai
Easy on Me
"My mom died in April, it will be very different for all of us this year. My wish is that it won't be too hard on the kids, or my wife. She has really struggled with her loss." ~ mustang-and-a-truck
"The first anniversaries, birthdays and holidays are the worst by far. I'm not going to tell you it gets easier with time because doesn't. Ten years from now you'll still remember that day like it was yesterday because to your heart it was yesterday."
"What does get easier are the days and moving forward with your life without them. Remembering them won't hurt as much and one day you'll find that it makes you happy to remember and not shed a tear. The memory of them keeps them alive so long as someone is around to remember them. So long as you're around, they're never really gone." ~ 19GamerGhost95
Happy Feet
"Socks. Literally I love socks. Simple." ~ TheVines2002EVOLVED
"You know growing up I used to get pissed when I opened a gift and it was socks. Now as an adult I actually add it to my Christmas list every year." ~ throwawaymeplease45
"Exactly my evolution as well. Anything that separates you from the ground is a blessing not to be taken lightly. Shoes, socks, a good mattress, etc." ~ TheVines2002EVOLVED
the end
"I want the pandemic to end." ~ Lildebeest
"I also wish for this. I'm getting REALLY sick of not living life normally just for the cases in my city to continuously go up and up. People. Are. Idiots." ~ xnightwolflivesx
"Same, it's my wife's 30th in January and I have booked us an epic holiday months ago, it's really getting my anxieties going as the cases stay high here :( 😞." ~ T0ddBarker
Happy Holidays!
All I Want For Christmas Is You GIF by Mariah CareyGiphy"I want all the wishes of the people commenting to come true. It's been a rough year for everybody, so I wish you all have a nice Christmas." ~ improbablynotahuman
Get those credit cards ready, and get those lists together. But start shopping now because this supply chain issue could leave us all empty-handed on Christmas morning.
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