12 Best Christmas Movies That Aren’t Christmas Movies

Phantom Thread was released on Christmas, and it’s not hard to see why. While the film isn’t overtly about the yuletide spirit, it emanates a lush, wintery aura that fits in perfectly with the holiday. Yes, one of the film’s most memorable scenes happens during a New Year’s Eve party, but it really does feel Christmas-y.

Christmas in Europe just hits different. Christmas in Europe with two sociopathic killers hits really different. 

In Bruges is a cult classic, and for good reason. Martin McDonough’s knife-sharp dialogue is on full display, and perfectly delivered by Colin Ferrell and Brendan Gleeson. The duo bounce off of each other so well that they teamed up with McDonough again for The Banshees of Inisherin.

Watching Ray and Ken bicker as they wander through the gorgeous streets of Christmastime Bruges is a delight. It’s an ever-green December watch.

Batman Begins is arguably the best entry of the Keaton leg of the franchise. It’s a bit campier than Batman but more serious than the Joel Schumacher sequels which would follow it. Plus, it boasts two of the greatest Batman villain performances ever, with Danny DeVito as the Penguin and Michelle Pfeiffer as Catwoman.

A Christmas movie doesn’t have to be snowy. Tangerine, a high-octane dramedy that takes place on Christmas Eve in Los Angeles, is a case in point. It rebukes your traditional Christmas aesthetic, with its orange color palette and iPhone image quality.

What gets you more in the Christmas spirit than a hard-boiled mystery involving tabloids, blackmail, corruption, and murder? L.A. Confidential is a quintessential work of noir, made fifty years after the genre’s heyday. Based on James Ellroy’s novel, the film examines the seedy underbelly of La La Land, covering the unseemly sides of both Hollywood and the LAPD.

It may not seem exactly like great Christmas material from this description, but the film largely takes place during the holiday season, complete with colorful string lights and an initial line of dialogue that compares one of the protagonists to Santa Claus.

This is probably the biggest stretch on our list, since Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone really doesn’t have much to do with Christmas at all. But there’s a reason channels will often run Harry Potter marathons near the holidays — it really is a great series to watch around Christmastime.

It’s hard to nail down a definite reason why this is the case, but it likely has something to do with the cozy atmosphere the first films in particular create. Hogwarts is warm and inviting, filled with lovable (and lovably hate-able) characters at every turn. Watching the movie is a bit like seeing extended family around the holidays. It’s good to check in.

Plus, there is a Christmas scene in many of these movies. For our money, the first, with all its Christopher Columbus gentleness, is the most Christmas-y.

On paper, The Nice Guys seems similar to L.A. Confidential, following two guys (one of whom is also played by Russell Crowe) tracking a mystery that gets them deeper and deeper into the Los Angeles underground.

But the similarities end there. The Nice Guys is hilarious, a classic Shane Black formula that moves at breakneck speed with a bickering duo along for the ride. And, as is often the case with Shane Black material, the film involves the holiday season, ending on Christmas Eve.

Todd Haynes is an enigma. He is at once a director with an inimitable style and also one who is chameleonic, adapting his approach dramatically depending on the material.

Carol finds Haynes at his most restrained. It’s a story told through the minutia — glances, postures, intonation. It is a smoldering romance hidden beneath layers of winter ice. This is because of the story Haynes is telling, which follows a clandestine lesbian affair in 1950s America. It is a forbidden, and forlorn, love story, doomed because of when and where it takes place.

Eyes Wide Shut features the greatest use of Christmas lights in cinema history. There’s no one particular scene which secures this highly coveted award (though the opening gala is close). Christmas lights permeate the entirety of the film. They are everywhere — small and golden, bulbous and multi-colored, all of your favorite Christmas lights are somewhere in this film.

Of course, that’s not the only reason Eyes Wide Shut tops our list. Its depiction of Christmas in New York is second to none, but its screenplay, performances, score, and direction (shocker) are also top-notch. All elements work together to create a dream-like atmosphere that slowly devolves into a nightmare.

The plot of Eyes Wide Shut is remarkably simple: a wife tells her husband that she sometimes fantasizes about other men, and said husband proceeds to spiral into near-insanity. We may be over-simplifying slightly, but this apparent simplicity is what makes Eyes Wide Shut so effective. Upon each rewatch, you’ll notice new elements. It’s a never-ending cipher that continues to reveal itself.

Up Next

Best Christmas Movies Ever

If Eyes Wide Shut isn’t winning the popular vote at the Xmas dinner table, perhaps you’d like to check out our list of the best Christmas movies of all time. There’s no debate about these– they’re for and about Yuletide. Check them out.

Up Next: Best Christmas Movies →