Every year, the holiday movie season rolls around, bringing with it the perennial joy of rewatching classics like Elf and A Christmas Story. But it also brings the fiercest debate in cinema: What truly qualifies as a Christmas movie?
Is it about theme, or simply setting? Must Santa make an appearance, or is a single snowy rooftop enough?
We’ve rounded up the eight most controversial contenders, the movies set at Christmas, or with key holiday themes, that purists argue don’t belong on your festive watchlist. Prepare to have your mind changed… or your holiday cheer ruined!
8. Edward Scissorhands (1990)
The final, bittersweet climax of Tim Burton’s gothic fairytale takes place right in the middle of a picturesque, suburban Christmas.
- The Case for Christmas: The film’s iconic image—Edward creating beautiful, temporary snowfall by carving ice sculptures on Christmas Eve—is one of the most beautiful winter scenes in cinema. It’s a fable about accepting outsiders and the fleeting nature of holiday magic.
- The Case Against: It’s a dark, melancholic tragedy that focuses on social alienation and suburban cruelty. The “Christmas” part is just the setting for the inevitable heartbreak.
7. Trading Places (1983)
This classic Eddie Murphy and Dan Aykroyd comedy-satire follows a rich snob and a street hustler who swap lives thanks to a cruel bet by two wealthy brothers.
- The Case for Christmas: The film kicks off and culminates during the Christmas and New Year’s Eve season. The climax, which sees the protagonists enacting their revenge, takes place at a lavish corporate Christmas party. Plus, the core theme is a twist on a Christmas Carol-style redemption/justice.
- The Case Against: The plot “a high-stakes financial swindle” isn’t inherently festive. It’s a comedy of manners and a social commentary that just happens to be set during the holidays.
6. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (2001)
The start of a beloved franchise that introduced millions to the wonder of the Wizarding World. Its Christmas scenes are surprisingly pivotal.
- The Case for Christmas: The first Christmas at Hogwarts is one of the film’s coziest and most heartwarming sections. It’s when Harry receives his most important early gift, his father’s Invisibility Cloak and learns about the parents he never knew. It solidifies the idea of Hogwarts as a home for him.
- The Case Against: Take out the brief holiday interlude and the rest of the plot, the quest for the Stone remains completely intact. It’s a key school break, not a central theme.
5. The Long Kiss Goodnight (1996)
From the same screenwriter as Lethal Weapon and Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (Shane Black, who loves setting his action flicks at Christmas!), this is a gritty action thriller starring Geena Davis.
- The Case for Christmas: It’s explicitly set during the holiday season, complete with snowy, festive backdrops and Christmas songs on the soundtrack. Shane Black has famously stated he views the holiday setting as a time when disparate characters come together.
- The Case Against: It’s a bloody, R-rated espionage movie about an amnesiac assassin trying to uncover her past. It has zero “holiday spirit” and the plot would work just as well in July.
4. Gremlins (1984)
The quirky horror-comedy that gifted us the unforgettable Mogwai, Gizmo, while simultaneously unleashing tiny, scaly mayhem on a small town.
- The Case for Christmas: The central inciting incident is a Christmas gift! Billy’s dad purchases the Mogwai as a last-minute present. The plot revolves around the “three rules” of caring for the creature, which, when broken, ruin Christmas for the whole town.
- The Case Against: It’s a monster movie with genuinely scary moments and a high body count. It’s definitely not a traditional feel-good family flick. While the setting is Christmas, the genre is pure horror-comedy.
3. Batman Returns (1992)
Tim Burton’s gothic sequel plunges Gotham into a deeply cynical, snow-covered holiday season, featuring three lonely outcasts.
- The Case for Christmas: It begins and ends on Christmas Eve, features the massive Gotham Christmas tree lighting ceremony as a key plot point, and has a climactic moment under the mistletoe between Batman and Catwoman. It’s an anti-consumerist fable with themes of finding family, even if they’re fellow misfits.
- The Case Against: It’s a dark, violent, and deeply weird superhero movie. The festive setting is used purely for visual contrast to the darkness of the villains (Penguin and Catwoman) and the isolation of Bruce Wayne.
2. The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)
Tim Burton sure has a lot of movies on this list and his stop-motion masterpiece is surprisinly here mainly because it is still fiercely debated over which holiday it truly belongs to.
- The Case for Christmas: The entire plot involves Jack Skellington’s obsession with, and disastrous attempt to take over, Christmas. The climax takes place on Christmas Eve, with Jack restoring Santa’s sleigh and receiving a form of Christmas redemption.
- The Case Against: The movie literally starts in Halloween Town. It’s steeped in gothic, spooky aesthetics and features ghouls, witches, and the Oogie Boogie Man. Director Henry Selick himself has called it a Halloween movie.
1. Die Hard (1988)
The undisputed heavyweight champion of the “Is it a Christmas movie?” debate. NYPD officer John McClane’s battle against terrorists in Nakatomi Plaza has divided families for generations.
- The Case for Christmas: The event is a Christmas Eve office party. John McClane is in Los Angeles to reconcile with his estranged wife for the holidays. Hans Gruber’s entire plan utilises the holiday as cover. The first song on the soundtrack is “Christmas in Hollis.” Yippee-ki-yay, indeed!
- The Case Against: It’s an action movie, plain and simple. It doesn’t feature themes of giving, family togetherness (until the very end), or holiday magic. It’s an action movie set during Christmas, not a Christmas action movie.
So, where does that leave us?
The truth is, defining a “Christmas movie” is less about meeting a strict checklist and more about finding a film that resonates with the feeling of the holidays, be it the magic, the melancholy, the necessity of family, or simply the chaos.
These eight films may not all feature carols or elves, but they all utilise Christmas Eve, the Christmas setting, or the themes of redemption and goodwill to propel their narratives. They succeed by giving us a thrilling, unconventional taste of holiday cheer.
Perhaps the real question isn’t whether they qualify as Christmas movies, but whether they qualify for your Christmas watchlist. And after seeing the compelling evidence for these blockbusters, it might be time to expand your holiday repertoire well beyond the classics.
This year, break the rules. Grab your favourite beverage, switch on the fairy lights, and let the debate continue in your own living room. Happy viewing!
