Ho ho ho! It's that time of year again! You know, the time where families all around Australia get together to eat, drink, be merry, open presents and suffer through the sweltering summer heat while watching winter-set Christmas movies!
Now, thanks to the magic of streaming, it's possible to watch a number of classic holiday movies on demand – right from the air-conditioned comfort of your living room. It's a Christmas miracle!
To make this the most holly jolly Xmas ever, we've taken the liberty of browsing Netflix, Stan, Amazon Prime Video and Foxtel Now in order to curate the perfect list of seasonal films to watch these holidays. Without further ado, here are the best Christmas-themed movies currently streaming in Australia.
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Every year around this time, people continue to ask the very easy to answer question: is Die Hard a Christmas movie? The answer, obviously, is yes. Bruce Willis stars as John McClane, a New York cop who travels over to Los Angeles to spend Christmas with the family he's separated from. While visiting his wife's Christmas party in the Nakatomi Plaza, a group of terrorists take the building under siege, and now, it's up to John to save everybody. A definitive action classic, Die Hard sits alongside Lethal Weapon as one of the best holiday-set action movies ever made.
Die Hard is available on Foxtel Now
Will Ferrell is delightful as Buddy, a human raised by Elves who travels from the North Pole to New York in an effort to reunite with his biological father, played here by James Caan. It's also from director Jon Favreau (Iron Man, The Jungle Book), so this isn't your usual throwaway Christmas comedy. Both silly and moving, Elf is the kind of Christmas movie that everyone in the family can enjoy.
Billy Bob Thornton isn't your ordinary Santa. In fact, the guy he plays here is a total scumbag in pretty much every sense of the word – which is what makes him so hilarious when dealing with impressionable children! Things start to change (slightly) when he meets a troubled kid who could do with a role model. Crass and not for the easily offended, Bad Santa is the perfect Christmas movie for people who hate Christmas movies.
Bad Santa is available on Netflix
The film that (briefly) made Macaulay Culkin a star, Home Alone is one of the most fun and inventive Christmas movies ever made. When the McCallister family accidentally leaves him at home for the Christmas holidays, Kevin (Culkin) thinks his wishes have come true. Though he initially loves that his annoying family isn't around, that joy is short-lived – a pair of burglars called the Wet Bandits have plans on robbing his home, and now Kevin must get creative and booby trap his entire home in order to keep them out.
Home Alone is available on Foxtel Now
Starring the legendary entertainer Bing Crosby, you'd be forgiven for thinking that his classic song, White Christmas, was made for this film. In fact, that song was released 12 years earlier, showing just how much of a last impact the song has enjoyed since its release in 1942. A wonderful musical comedy for the whole family, White Christmas is the very definition of a classic Xmas movie.
White Christmas is available on Netflix
Considered one of the greatest films ever made, Frank Capra's It's a Wonderful Life is perhaps the most beloved Christmas movie of all. James Stewart plays a depressed businessman who wishes he'd never been born at all. An angel hears his wish, and decides to show him what life would be like for his family and friends if he'd never existed at all. At once terribly sad and then tremendously heartwarming, It's a Wonderful Life is impossible to dislike.
It's a Wonderful Life is available on Amazon Prime Video
Loosely based on Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol, Scrooged sees Bill Murray do what he does best: play a hilarious jerk who eventually learns how to be a good person. While not immediately loved at the time of its release (a large part is due to its humour being quite silly), it has since developed a bit of a following, with people realising that Bill Murray is simply great at this kind of thing. Funny and touching.
Scrooged is available on Netflix
The Brits are great at Christmas-set romantic comedies (see The Holiday), but their best and most memorable is arguably Love Actually, which is from the makers of Four Weddings and a Funeral and Notting Hill. The film follows eight different couples living in London in the lead up to Christmas, each with their own love-based entanglements to deal with. A hilarious and sweet Christmas flick. Watch it with someone you love.
Love Actually is available on Stan
Not every Christmas movie is a jolly ol' time! On the contrary, some people want their holiday movies tinged with horror. For those unfamiliar with the folkloric figure known as Krampus, this half-goat, half-demon is like the opposite of Santa Claus, in that he punishes naughty children by eating them. Starring Adam Scott (Parks and Recreation) and Toni Collette (Muriel's Wedding), Krampus does have a slight comedic tone at times, but don't be fooled – this is one scary flick with a killer ending. Maybe send the kids to bed before watching this one!
Krampus is available on Netflix
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The stories of Dr Seuss hold a special places in the hearts of many generations, and this adaptation of How the Grinch Stole Christmas is a spot-on take on this classic material. As the titular Grinch, Jim Carrey gives one of his most memorable performances under an enormous amount of makeup and in a huge furry green costume. Though the Grinch spends his time trying to make the citizens of Whoville miserable, a young girl (Taylor Momsen) attempts to befriend this monster to melt his frozen heart. A fantastic and family-friendly Christmas movie.
Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas is available on Amazon Prime Video
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