Christmastime is here. For our first time ever, we have a Christmas-themed Retrospective Roundtable to share with you. Keep reading to bring the holidays to life and read our thoughts on a number of our favorite Christmas classics. Merry Christmas!

It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)

Frank Capra’s 1946 classic It’s a Wonderful Life didn’t always have the prestige and fond memories associated with the movie. Released the year following World War II, the same season as The Best Years of Our Lives, It’s a Wonderful Life did not live up to critical expectations for a Frank Capra film and The Best Years of Our Life ultimately came away with the victor’s spoils come awards season. It wasn’t until 1974, when the copyright for It’s a Wonderful Life expired, that the film became a part of Christmas traditions and broadcasted annually for audiences to fall in love with.

It’s a Wonderful Life tells the story of a man, George Bailey (James Stewart). He lives in Bedford Falls, which isn’t where George Bailey wanted to be as an adult. After George’s father died, George decided to take over the family business, Bailey Brothers Building and Loan. He did this to save the business from being dissolved which was the preference of Henry Potter (Lionel Barrymore), an aggressive board member of the town. 

Now living in Bedford Falls, George rekindles a relationship with Mary Hatch (Donna Reed), who ultimately becomes the love of his life. Seeing the pair in scenes together is heartwarming. After they get married, a run on the bank occurs and Bailey decides to use their honeymoon savings to keep the Building and Loan afloat. Potter has gradually been buying local businesses and developing overpriced housing to profit from Bedford Falls residents and their daily lives. George becomes frustrated with Potter’s strengthening grip on the city and resolves to provide for Bedford Falls residents by developing his own, affordable housing development. George has a heart of gold, and must do all he can to avoid Potter taking control of the town. At the same time, George and Mary start a family and George is under increasing stress and challenges. This isn’t how he imagined he would be spending his life.

Though It’s a Wonderful Life is broadly acclaimed amongst today’s audiences, the film represents cinema’s equivalent of a Rorschach test. Many audiences are sympathetic to George, many also believe he reaps what he sows, and so forth (the FBI even considered the film to be communist propaganda during the Second Red Scare). Watching the film each year tells you more about yourself and your values than you might think. As such, It’s a Wonderful Life isn’t just one of the greatest Christmas stories put to film – it’s something more. The film affirms the value of treating others as we would ourselves, and offers one of cinema’s most subtle yet meaningful quotes: “no man is a failure who has friends.” – Alex Sitaras

The Snowman (1982)

Although The Snowman is a short film, it is arguably one of the most well-known shorts because of its Christmas setting. Based on the book by the late Raymond Briggs, The Snowman follows a young boy who builds a snowman that comes to life during the night on Christmas Eve.

Even after over forty years, The Snowman still draws newer and younger audiences whose parents remember watching the film as a child. Its animation is beautifully hand-drawn and wonderfully captures the mood of the festive season in twenty-six minutes, though perhaps leaving the audience upset. My wife is still moved to tears to this day at the end because of the beautiful music composed by Howard Blake, which includes the memorable song, ‘Walking in The Air’, famously sung by Aled Jones, but by Peter Auty in the film. I will certainly be showing it to my child each festive season. – Ian Floodgate

Die Hard (1988)

There is an argument about whether Die Hard is a Christmas film, as its initial US release was in July 1988. However, I am very much on the side that it is a Christmas film, as it takes place on Christmas Eve and includes many seasonal references, including the line, “Ho Ho Ho, I have a machine gun now.” It follows John McClane (Bruce Willis), a New York City cop, visiting his wife (Bonnie Bedelia) in Los Angeles after she transferred there for work earlier in the year. Unfortunately, at the party celebrations hosted in the office skyscraper, a group of terrorists led by Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman) hold people hostage.

The film alone is arguably one of the best action films of all time, partly due to the performances of Willis and Rickman. Willis, as McClane, plays a rough and ready cop who is not afraid to get dirty and bend the rules to take down villains. Rickman, as Gruber, is perhaps one of the most iconic villains the audience loves because of his villainous charm. It’s not one for the whole family, but it gets you into a good spirit and is thoroughly enjoyable. – Ian Floodgate

Home Alone (1990)

Home Alone is arguably the perfect Christmas film for all the family to enjoy. It follows Kevin McCallister (Macaulay Culkin), a tempestuous eight-year-old who is accidentally left at home alone before Christmas by his family that flies to Paris. While Kevin is left home alone, he has to fend off burglars Harry (Joe Pesci) and Marv’s (Daniel Stern) repeated attempts to loot his house.

Home Alone features excellent performances with a comedic tone, and also has lovely original music from the great John Williams, along with traditional Christmas hits and hymns. Despite many golden comedic moments, it does not forget to encompass the Christmas spirit with a heartwarming climax that has brought a tear to my eye. – Ian Floodgate

The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)

I am not one of these Scrooges who would prefer to cancel Christmas. My rule is that the festivities can begin as soon as my birthday has passed in late October, and as Halloween follows it, what better way to let the build-up start with The Nightmare Before Christmas. The film follows Jack Skellington (Chris Sarandon), The Pumpkin King, who is sad over having to wait 365 days for each celebration in Halloween Town and, by accident, decides to take on Christmas to extinguish this lull.

The stop-motion animation is exceptional, embracing the world that these people or creatures live in, which computer-generated work would not achieve at the time, and I think, would be less for it anyway. The music is fantastic and memorable, and I would love to see the film staged in a theatre, but I do not know how that would work for some elements which actually are perfectly suited for animation.

If you’re like me and like to get the festive spirit started as soon as evenings draw in and need a film to accompany it, then look no further than The Nightmare Before Christmas. – Ian Floodgate

Arthur’s Perfect Christmas (2000)

Arthur’s Perfect Christmas is an underrated gem. A staple of my childhood each Christmas season, the film portrays Arthur characters and the different ways they celebrate Christmas and reconcile when the holiday doesn’t go exactly as planned. Arthur’s Perfect Christmas shows that there isn’t just one “perfect” way to celebrate Christmas and recognizes that the holidays can be a stressful time of year. Each of the Arthur characters experiences some Christmastime-related challenge, some more serious than others – preparing Christmas for a son as a single mother, difficulty in finding the perfect gift, unable to attend a friend’s Christmas party given conflicting scheduled family & religious events, not receiving a desirable present on Christmas, ‘ruining’ Christmas for the family, and more. Ultimately, each of the Arthur characters manages to resolve their challenges to have the titular perfect Christmas even if it’s different from what they had in mind. What should make Arthur’s Perfect Christmas a Christmastime staple in your household is that the film recognizes what is most significant about Christmas – family – and time shared together. – Alex Sitaras

Arthur’s Perfect Christmas can be seen in full on PBS’ YouTube channel.

Love Actually (2003)

Love Actually is a lot of things. It’s 10 interconnected love stories, it’s the ensemble film of ensemble films with a loaded cast, and it’s a Christmas movie. The ten love stories told are each unique, some resulting in a happy ending, others not, and each has their appeal to a different kind of audience. There’s a lot to like in Love Actually, whether it’s Daniel (Liam Neeson) helping his ten-year-old stepson Sam (Thomas Sangster) declare his love for Joanna (Olivia Olson), or the cynical rock and roll singer Billy Mack (Bill Nighy) deciding to celebrate Christmas with his longtime manager Joe (Gregor Fisher), the one person in the music industry who actually cares about him. And the film isn’t without its fair share of scenes that have been meme’d by fans over the years. Love Actually celebrates its 20 year anniversary this year with a theatrical re-release, and while the film is beginning to show its age, it’s hard not to be swept up in the Christmas spirit. To director Richard Curtis, Christmas is a time for love and Love Actually shows just that. – Alex Sitaras