Christmas movies are a vital part of the holiday season. December is all about building traditions and celebrating them every year, and the comfort of a good Christmas film has always been a trademark of a winter celebration worth participating in. While there are a lot of people who own their favorite holiday movies on DVD, newer fans and those who stick to streaming could use a guide on where to find that classic flick they’ve been waiting to watch all year.
The best Christmas movies on Amazon Prime range from older stories from the 1950s to more recent hits with famous actors like Liam Neeson and Ben Affleck. It’s time to check out the most cheerful and fun festive movies on Prime Video that are fit for watching over and over again this Christmas.
National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989)
Christmas with the Kranks (2004)
Tim Allen is no stranger to the Christmas movie scene. From celebrating the holiday better than any other sitcom dad on Home Improvement to his days as Saint Nick in The Santa Clause franchise, you would be forgiven for not remembering this adaptation of the John Grisham novel Skipping Christmas. Christmas With the Kranks follows a couple who decide to forgo the stresses of the holiday season when their daughter won’t be with them during the month of December. When their neighbors don’t take kindly to their grouchiness, and they find out their daughter is headed back home with an engagement announcement at the last minute, they must adapt and quickly buy into Christmas again.
White Christmas (1954)
What’s more magical than a Christmas movie musical? White Christmas is the beloved song-and-dance film featuring Bing Crosby that has been passed down and watched for generations. The singers in the film use their musical talents to raise money for a former World War II general. While a product of its time, White Christmas utilizes the universal charm of the season to enchant new fans each season.
Jingle All the Way (1996)
Arnold Schwarzenegger started to step away from the action movie genre and get into the family film business in the mid-1990s. Jingle All the Way is a hilarious story of a dad who will do whatever it takes to get a special toy for his son on Christmas Eve, even if it means battling another desperate father and compromising himself in the process. Arnie is excellent in the comedic world here and showed fans that he could do a lot more than just shoot a gun for James Cameron in The Terminator.
The Flight Before Christmas (2015)
The Flight Before Christmas is one of the most recent Christmas movies on this list so it won’t have the type of longstanding fanfare of a classic, but it’s a corny good time nonetheless. Mayim Bialik of The Big Bang Theory and Ryan McPartlin start to fall for each other after their flight gets stuck in the snow. The movie follows their romance as it checks off all the basic romance movie tropes, and it’s a fun watch for the whole family.
It's a Wonderful Life (1946)
It’s a Wonderful Life stars James Stewart in the timeless tale of a suicidal man who sees himself in a new light after a guardian angel visits him. While the subject matter may seem a little depressing for a Christmas movie, the film actually advocates for the triumph of the human spirit and the impact each individual has on a community, even if that person doesn’t believe they are doing anything special. The story cuts to the core of the holidays and how selflessness cures so many societal problems.
Almost Christmas (2016)
Danny Glover and Gabrielle Union are the biggest names in this ensemble film about a family who shows love through dysfunction and fighting. The story deals with the grief of the family in the fallout of their mother’s death and the ways each person copes with their trauma individually and in the family setting. If you’re looking for a Christmas movie that features a non-white family and a diverse cast, look no further than Almost Christmas.
Love Actually (2003)
Love Actually is one of the best holiday romance films you can watch because it uses Christmas as a perfect complimentary component to the love and relationship storylines throughout the story. Liam Neeson, Alan Rickman, Emma Thompson, and a young, pre-The Walking Dead Andrew Lincoln are just some of the big stars in this massive interconnected film about several different lovebirds whose paths cross and intertwine throughout the winter. The movie does a great job of creatively telling a love story that would otherwise feel ordinary.
Surviving Christmas (2004)
Surviving Christmas is the type of movie that is so bad that it’s good. Ben Affleck plays a rich man who pays a family to allow him to spend Christmas with them because he’s lonely with no spouse, parents, or children to tend to his loneliness. James Gandolfini of The Sopranos and Catherine O’Hara of Home Alone fame are funny in supporting roles.
