All Christmas movies are not created equal, and there are so many variances in the genre. Let's face it: If you are feeling nostalgic, a modern Christmas movie just isn't going to cut it. So, as a gift to our readers, we are happy to recommend holiday movies for every mood. Each of these festive films is currently available on Hulu.
Slightly Spooky: FX’s A Christmas Carol – In the mood for something that will give you the chills? Check out the 2019 version that was shown on FX. A Christmas Carol has always been a spooky tale – I mean, it features at least four ghosts, and particularly, the scenes of Christmas yet to come are pretty horrifying.
However, in the version created by Stephen Knight (who also created Peaky Blinders), the thrills and chills are taken to the next level, and some very dark deeds never alluded to in Dickens’s original novel are presented. The story even depicts Scrooge as having been sexually molested by the headmaster of his school.
Guy Pearce portrays Ebenezer Scrooge as barely deserving the redemption the spirits are willing to give him, and this may well be the darkest version of A Christmas Carol ever depicted.
Romantic: Happiest Season – For a modern romantic comedy, you can’t ask for much more than this Hulu original. Kristin Stewart heads up the cast, joined by the likes of Mackenzie Davis, Aubrey Plaza, Victor Garber, and Mary Steenburgen.
Stewart is Abby, who has been dating their girlfriend, Harper, for almost a year. Knowing that Abby is a Scrooge when it comes to holiday cheer (her parents are dead), Harper invites her to spend Christmas with her family, and Abby agrees, secretly planning to propose on Christmas morning.
But Harper has not come out to her family. As the two navigate a family holiday with such a huge secret, there are fights, tears, drama, and, ultimately, a happy ending.
Family-Friendly: Frosty the Snowman – I have often said that I feel sorry for kids nowadays. When I was a child, we could only watch those television Christmas specials once a year, and we really looked forward to it.
Now, kids can watch any movie on demand, so it’s not really so special. But you can’t go wrong with good old Frosty the Snowman. It’s got it all – a goofy snowman, kids, a dastardly bad guy, and holiday cheer to spare.
So if it’s been awhile since you have really watched Frosty, do what we used to do. Make some hot chocolate and popcorn, turn on the tree lights, and settle down with the whole family (sans phones and distractions) to watch the story of how his friends try to save Frosty from melting.
Background Cheer: A White Elephant Puppy Party – Instead of watching one of those boring old Yule log videos on the TV while opening presents, try this one on for size. You might find yourself actually paying attention to it.
A pack of cute puppies romp around in a festive living room, opening presents. That’s really the gist of it, but really, it’s perfection. Because…puppies! And the puppies are opening presents! It's Christmas cuteness overload.
Charming and funny: A Christmas Movie Christmas – I already wrote a review for this, one of my favorite Christmas movie spoofs, but it bears repeating.
Particularly if you are fond of Hallmark-type Christmas movies, with their familiar, predictable plots, you will really enjoy A Christmas Movie Christmas. Two sisters struggling to get by run into Santa and make wishes. One of them wishes that her Christmas would be just like the ones in those comforting movies, and she gets her wish.
The two wake up in a small town obsessed with the holiday, they magically have a cookie-baking, cheerful Grandmother, and they meet potential boyfriends (bonus: one is the town baker). It’s a sweet, funny flick, guaranteed to put you in a holiday mood.