The 14 best Christmas movies on Max

Between Christmas classics and new festive favorites, there's plenty of holiday content to choose from on the streamer.

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas! Once you have the stockings hung and the house fully decorated, there’s only one thing missing: the perfect Christmas movie on the television.

Max has plenty of great options throughout the year, and now that the holidays are here, the streamer has you covered when it comes to Yuletide classics. Ready to stream festive holiday hits for your whole family? Keep reading to discover the 14 best Christmas movies on Max right now.

“A Christmas Story” (1983)

National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation arguably thrived as a holiday comedy because A Christmas Story first blazed the trail. This Bob Clark movie adapts Jean Shepherd’s writing into a beloved film about a young boy (Peter Billingsley) who must navigate the peer pressures of school life and the barely-controlled chaos of his home life. Like all kids around the holidays, though, his dreams of future Christmas gifts keep him going, especially the coveted Red Ryder BB gun. If that sounds like a thin setup for a feature-length film, it is, but thanks to the fiercely funny narration and over-the-top performances, each scene is an unforgettable Yuletide vignette unto itself. Just be warned: After your kids see it for the first time, they’ll start recognizing the truth of Ralphie’s sad revelation (“A crummy commercial? Son of a b—h!”) everywhere they look.

Where to watch A Christmas Story: Max

Director: Bob Clark

Cast: Melinda Dillon, Darren McGavin, Peter Billingsley

Related content: A Christmas Story cast: Where are they now?

“A Christmas Story Christmas” (2022)

While it’s not the first follow-up to the iconic original film, A Christmas Story Christmas is the definitive sequel to A Christmas Story. Here, a grown-up Ralphie (Peter Billingsley reprising his role) brings his own family to the childhood homestead after his irascible father has passed away. We get the familiar beats, including reunions with his mother (Melinda Dillon) and with old friends, plus a few new surprises. How does the grown-up Ralphie fare against a grown-up Scut Farkus? What’s more, has he become a better or worse father than his old man (originally played by the late Darren McGavin)? There’s only one way to find out!

Where to watch A Christmas Story Christmas: Max

Director: Clay Kaytis

Cast: Peter Billingsley, Erinn Hayes, Scott Schwartz, R. D. Robb, Zack Ward, Julie Hagerty

Related content: Why a grown-up Ralphie decided to make a sequel to A Christmas Story

“Arthur Christmas” (2011)

Christmas movies that try to please adults and children alike usually end up being either too dark or too schmaltzy. But Arthur Christmas finds a satisfying middle ground by portraying Santa Claus’ annual miracle of delivering presents to be as technological as it is magical. When Santa’s system causes one child to miss out on his gifts, it’s up to his son Arthur (James McAvoy) to remedy the matter. Along the way, he must contend with the dangerous challenges of the world and the hilarious hurdles of his family (voiced perfectly by the likes of Hugh Laurie and Billy Nighy). As EW’s critic wrote in their review, “The resulting adventure…is more clever than outright funny, but it’s also genuinely sweet, and the complicated relations among Santa’s clan are surprisingly believable.”

Where to watch Arthur Christmas: Max

EW grade: B+ (read the review)

Director: Sarah Smith

Cast: James McAvoy, Hugh Laurie, Bill Nighy, Jim Broadbent, Imelda Staunton

Related content: The 30 best Christmas movies for kids

“Christmas in Connecticut” (1945)

Older holiday films are often wholesome, but the slightly cynical core at the heart of Christmas in Connecticut is what makes it so great. The story follows a single city-dwelling magazine writer (Barbara Stanwyck) who fabricates a column about her fictitious homestead life and non-existent family. But when an injured veteran (Dennis Morgan) becomes fascinated with her work, the publisher insists she host a dinner for him at her scenic dwelling, meaning she’ll have to think on her feet to craft a farm-to-table Christmas feast he’ll never forget. Obviously, this movie was made well before our modern age, but its crunchy questions about identity and emotion seem perhaps more resonant now than they ever have before.

Where to watch Christmas in Connecticut: Max

Director: Peter Godfrey

Cast: Barbara Stanwyck, Dennis Morgan, Sydney Greenstreet

Related content: 13 classic Christmas films to watch with their modern counterparts

“Elf” (2003)

While Will Ferrell comedies can be hit or miss, his wholesome performance in Elf has become a Christmas staple for a good reason. The film is fun for the young and the young-hearted, and director Jon Favreau knows how to make the most of the star’s manic energy. Ferrell plays Buddy, a human raised by Santa’s elves who travels to New York City on a quest to find his biological father. Seeing the real world through Buddy’s perspective is a true holiday treat, as he views the mundane parts of urban living and corporate work with wide-eyed wonder. Ferrell is a jolly live wire, bouncing off both the cast (including delightful performances from a grouchy James Caan and a reserved Zooey Deschanel) as well as the decor (you’ll see him throw down with a Christmas tree by the time this is over).

Where to watch Elf: Max

Director: Jon Favreau

Cast: Will Ferrell, James Caan, Zooey Deschanel, Mary Steenburgen, Ed Asner, Bob Newhart

Related content: Behind the scenes of Elf with Will Ferrell

“Four Christmases” (2008)

If you’ve ever said that you hate Christmas movies, then Four Christmases may ironically be the holiday film for you. The plot follows a couple (Vince Vaughn and Reese Witherspoon) who plan an unconventional holiday trip to Fiji, but a canceled flight forces them to spend Christmas at the four different homes of their separated parents. The humor is razor-sharp and may cut deep for children of divorce, but the real gift to unwrap here is the cast’s chemistry. Witherspoon is charmingly game and Jon Favreau is raucously funny as her brother-in-law, while EW’s critic writes, “It’s a pleasure to see Vaughn play an actual character — a nervous motormouth who speaks in loop-the-loop sentences he uses to talk himself into things.”

Where to watch Four Christmases: Max

EW grade: B (read the review)

Director: Seth Gordon

Cast: Vince Vaughn, Reese Witherspoon, Robert Duvall, Jon Favreau

Related content: In defense of Four Christmases

“Holiday Affair” (1949)

Holiday Affair remains an oddly engaging bit of Christmas Americana even decades later. It’s an unconventional love story: Robert Mitchum’s character catches Janet Leigh defrauding his store, but his pity toward her plight as a single mother ends up getting him fired. From there, he becomes a close friend, leaving her in the unenviable position of choosing between the safe (albeit boring) suitor and the handsome stranger who has already risked it all for her. We find ourselves captivated a bit more with each viewing, because watching a holiday romance untethered from modern film cliches feels like taking a breath of air fresher than Clark Griswold’s Christmas tree.

Where to watch Holiday Affair: Max

Director: Don Hartman

Cast: Robert Mitchum, Janet Leigh, Wendell Corey

Related content: 12 must-watch classic Christmas movies

“A Hollywood Christmas” (2022)

If you’re tired of all the familiar holiday movie tropes, A Hollywood Christmas may be the light-hearted meta-commentary you’ve been craving. It stars Jessika Van as a filmmaker who made a name for herself with a string of Yuletide hits, but when a handsome executive shows up and threatens her latest production, she’s struck by the ultimate irony: She’s no longer making a Christmas movie — she’s living in one. It’s a plot as airy as the frosting on cupcakes, but that doesn’t make the film any less sweet. And even if it’s not nearly as clever as director Alex Ranarivelo would like, it’s a fine alternative to another Lifetime marathon.

Where to watch A Hollywood Christmas: Max

Director: Alex Ranarivelo

Cast: Jessika Van, Josh Swickard, Anissa Borrego

“Holiday Harmony” (2022)

Holiday Harmony is certainly a modern Christmas movie in both its plot and its potential appeal to younger viewers. The story of a singer (Annelise Cepero) trying to win an iHeartRadio Christmas Eve competition is certainly engaging, and the misfit children who join her crazy road trip to glory will certainly entertain kids more than the adults (the latter’s interest is instead piqued by Brooke Shields). There’s enough here for grown-ups to dig, too, but make no mistake: With its emphasis on performance, competition, and the potential for instant fame, this is a Christmas movie for the generation raised as much by TikTok and YouTube as their parents. And it might just serve as a perfect holiday bridge between streamer-obsessed children and parents who don’t know a content creator from a Vocaloid.

Where to watch Holiday Harmony: Max

Director: Shaun Paul Piccinino

Cast: Annelise Cepero, Lauren Swickard, Jeremy Sumpter, Brooke Shields

Related content: Widows, meteorologists, and bad Santas: The biggest trends in new Christmas movies

“Jack Frost” (1998)

Like dad’s smoked turkey or mom’s special dressing, Christmas movies are sometimes better when you know exactly what to expect. Jack Frost is a good example: This story of Michael Keaton as a distant dad who dies and comes back as a not-so-frosty snowman and learns how to better love his family is a paint-by-the-numbers plot. But watching the picture come together can be as relaxing as sipping your favorite cocoa, and the visuals can keep you entertained during even the slowest scenes.

Where to watch Jack Frost: Max

EW grade: N/A (read the review)

Director: Troy Miller

Cast: Michael Keaton, Kelly Preston, Mark Addy, Joseph Cross

Related content: The evolution of Michael Keaton

“National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation” (1989)

In retrospect, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation seems like a truly unexpected gift from Santa Claus himself. It effortlessly transforms the picaresque adventures of the Griswold clan (led by Chevy Chase and Beverly D’Angelo) into a holiday romp with strange adventures and stranger adventurers (especially Randy Quaid). The result is a rare Christmas movie that balances warm light and black-as-coal comedy. Chase’s Clark Griswold is still a petty, sarcastic mess, but his Herculean efforts to gift his family the perfect Christmas are almost painfully relatable. Thankfully, the plot hides the poignant messages beneath the wrapping of hilariously off-color schemes.

Where to watch National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation: Max

Director: Jeremiah S. Chechik

Cast: Chevy Chase, Beverly D'Angelo, Randy Quaid

Related content: National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation cast: Where are they now?

“Nothing Like the Holidays” (2008)

Nothing Like the Holidays takes a page out of the National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation playbook. It certainly follows the same formula of getting legendary comedic performers together (including Luis Guzmán and John Leguizamo) in one house and letting the festive feuds (sometimes hilarious, sometimes tragic) unfold. There are some major family secrets laid bare, especially between an estranged couple played by Elizabeth Peña and Alfred Molina. But like the best Christmas movies, all of the drama propels a warming message about keeping your family close and appreciating them in the moment.

Where to watch Nothing Like the Holidays: Max

Director: Alfredo De Villa

Cast: Luis Guzmán, John Leguizamo, Debra Messing, Alfred Molina

“The Polar Express” (2004)

The tracks on this Robert Zemeckis film seem familiar: A young boy must catch a mystical train to a faraway land where an even more mystical man resides. It’s Christmas by way of Hogwarts, and while our protagonist is aiming to see Santa rather than Dumbledore, it’s no less magical. Tom Hanks holds the narrative together in a kind of motion capture tour-de-force. As EW’s critic noted in their review, this film offers an “intricate, exploratory, indefinably askew interpretation” of the original book while “Hanks provides voice and body movement (morphed by intricate ‘performance capture’ technology into digital animation) to five roles.”

Where to watch The Polar Express: Max

EW grade: N/A (read the review)

Director: Robert Zemeckis

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

Related content: Ross Family Movie Challenge: Polar Express vs. It's a Wonderful Life

“Santa Camp” (2022)

Documentaries may not come to mind when you think of Christmas movies, but Santa Camp should be the exception. This film by Nick Sweeney centers on the titular Santa Camp where actors in New Hampshire must learn how to bring roles such as Mrs. Claus, the elves, and Old Saint Nick himself to life. What sets the movie apart is its focus on adding diversity to the Santa mythos: We follow a disabled Santa, a trans Santa, and a Black Santa as they learn how to channel the holiday spirit in their own ways. This full spectrum of stories feels especially important in an age of endless culture wars, and its nudging for better actor’s pay serves as an unintentional (but oddly perfect) precursor to the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike.

Where to watch Santa Camp: Max

Director: Nick Sweeney

Cast: Dan Greenleaf

Read the original article on Entertainment Weekly.