Now that my Honorable Mentions are out of the way, here’s the first half of my Top 10. So again grab your fuzzy socks, your favorite holiday beverage, and maybe a cookie or twelve, because about to deep-dive into the movies that define my festive season.

* warning – light spoilers may occur *

10. Love Actually (2003)

Cast: Hugh Grant, Emma Thompson, Liam Neeson, Colin Firth, Keira Knightley, Alan Rickman, Laura Linney, Chiwetel, Ejiofor, Martin Freeman, Thomas Sangster

This movie is gonna hit different this year. Like I might be watching this under five different cozy blankets with a mug filled with something A LOT stronger than hot chocolate. But she stays in the Top 10 because she’s nine mini rom-coms duct taped together with Christmas spirit, British chaos, and questionable decisions. It’s heartbreaking, messy, hilarious, unhinged, and nonsensical, but I love it.

The Colin Firth storyline? ICONIC ABSURDITY. They exchange maybe eight words total, he proposes, and somehow it’s romantic. Would this work in real life? No. Do we question it? Also no.

Now. Alan Rickman, rest his beautiful soul…but his character in this movie? Needs to be stabbed with a sharpened candy cane. Every time Emma Thompson opens that box thinking it’s a necklace but it’s that stupid CD…it’s like a punch to the gut.

9. Elf (2003)

Cast: Will Ferrell, Zooey Deschanel, Bob Newhart, Ed Asner

A modern Christmas classic so chaotic and earnest it feels like watching a 6’3″ toddler discover the world in real time. We’ve got spaghetti with syrup, a department store Santa rumble, and Will Ferrell committing fully to the bit as a grown man who approaches the world with the vibes of a golden retriever on a triple espresso. I honestly used to hate this movie with a passion. Like, turn-it-off-immediately hate. But adulthood does something to you. Buddy’s optimism feels less annoying and more like the emotional support you didn’t know you needed. At the end of the day, this is comfort cinema. This is pure, unfiltered “I’M IN A STORE AND I’M SINGINGGGGG!!!” energy.

8. The Polar Express (2004)

Cast: Tom Hanks, Nona Gaye, Daryl Sabara, Eddie Deezen

Alright, let’s address the elephant in the room:

The animation is strange. The characters are walking that fine line between “childlike wonder” and “creatures who might ask you riddles before crossing a bridge.” And yet? I eat this movie up every year, especially on Christmas Eve.

This film is pure holiday alchemy:

• a train appearing at midnight like it’s on a quest to collect your childhood wonder
• a bell that only rings if you truly believe
• snow swirling in that “you’re about to learn a magical lesson” way
• and “When Christmas Comes to Town?” – the duet is so gentle and heartfelt it could thaw the Grinch before he gets his character development

But the real magic is the theme:

Faith.

Not just the religious kind, but the soft, inner kind. Faith in yourself. Faith in unseen things. Faith in magic, hope, and possibility – especially when life tries to turn you into a cynical adult who only believes in bills and back pain.

The Polar Express came out when I was 14 – the age where childhood innocence is starting to slip away and life starts handing you midterms, your first heartbreak, and so much more. Watching it felt like someone saying, “Hey, don’t let go of the part of you that believes in good things. Even if the world tries to sand that down.”

This movie isn’t perfect but it doesn’t need to be.

An absolute seasonal staple.

7. Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey (2020)

Cast: Forest Whitaker, Keegan-Michael Key, Anika Noni Rose, Madalen Mills, Phylicia Rashad

When this movie dropped in late 2020, the world was on its last emotional thread. Most of us were still on lock-down and everyone was tired, stressed, doomscrolling, baking sourdough bread, and questioning the meaning of life. And then suddenly, Netflix said, “Hi, would you like some Black joy, stunning visuals, and banger vocals?”

We said, “Yes, thank you. Thank you very much.”

The aesthetics? Outrageously good.

The whole movie is a treat: it’s gorgeously, unapologetically Black, from the hairstyles to the wardrobe to the Afrobeats and the way magic is woven into invention, family, and legacy. It’s also steampunk-coded, which somehow no one thought to combine with Christmas until this film came along and did it better than anyone could have imagined.

And the choreography?

Babe.

They were DANCING like rent was due

And then there’s the STEM representation…in a Christmas movie?! – Black inventors, Black mathematicians, Black kids being brilliant, curious, and creative. It’s revolutionary in a soft, powerful, gentle way. It shows a little Black girl doing calculus for fun and made STEM look magical.

The soundtrack is another level. “The Square Root of Possible” is a spiritual experience. The moment Madalen Mills starts singing this song? Tears. Immediate tears. Ugh. The lyrics, “Don’t go underestimate me/I don’t need a hero to come and save me/Just cause I’m small don’t mean that I can’t kiss the clouds….It’s a TED Talk with vocals. The kind of song your inner child listens to and whispers, “I still believe in me…”

This isn’t just a good Christmas movie.

It’s a cultural reset.

A holiday masterpiece.

The Christmas film we should’ve had decades ago, but thank God we have it now.

6. The Nativity Story (2006)

Cast: Keisha Castle-Hughes, Oscar Isaac, Ciaran Hinds, Shohreh Aghdashloo

The Nativity Story is the definition of quiet power. No flash, no cheap dramatics, no-over-the-top Hollywood sheen – just a tender, deeply human retelling of the most significant story in the Christian faith. It’s reverent without feeling preachy, emotional without being melodramatic, and intimate in a way that makes you feel like you’ve stepped directly into history.

Keisha Castle-Hughes brings such a grounded softness to Mary – a young girl suddenly tasked with something unfathomable. She navigates fear, confusion, responsibility, and faith in real time. She plays her as a teenager with trembling hands and a brave heart.

And then there’s Oscar Isaac as Joseph, which was many people’s first introduction to the man, the myth, the cheekbones. (Okay, I’ll stop thirsting.) His Joseph is gentle, steady, protective, and so achingly human. The moment he decides to stay with Mary despite the gossip, judgment, and danger? It’s unbelievably tender.

Their chemistry is subtle – no grand declarations of love, but just glances and a growing sense of partnership made through hardship. It shows love can bloom quietly, respectfully, and bravely.

The cinematography is warm and earthy – the palette full of golds, browns, and sunlit tones. You can feel the dust of the roads, the heaviness of travel.

It’s a beautifully quiet Christmas film with soul, reverence, and full of the reason for the season.

Well, there you have it. The first half of my Top 10 Favorite Christmas movies…Join me tomorrow for my top 5!

Keep being festive!