What Christmas movies have the highest ratings on Rotten Tomatoes?
Grab some peppermint hot chocolate and your favorite Christmas pajamas. Thanksgiving is over, and it’s time to snuggle up and watch some Christmas movies.
But which holiday films should you watch first? There are classics like “Elf” and “How the Grinch Stole Christmas,” but the landscape of Christmas movies includes hundreds of other options.
If you want to work your way through a list of Christmas movies vetted by reviewers at Rotten Tomatoes, look no further.
Here are the 10 highest-rated Christmas movies (rated PG-13 or lower) on Rotten Tomatoes.
1. ‘Meet Me in St. Louis’
Judy Garland stars as Esther Smith in this romantic comedy.
“In the year before the 1904 St. Louis World’s Fair, the four Smith daughters learn lessons of life and love, even as they prepare for a reluctant move to New York,” the movie’s description reads, per Letterboxd.
2. ‘The Shop Around the Corner’
Most of “The Shop Around the Corner” takes place in a general store in Budapest. Two of the employees cannot stand each other, but they each have a pen pal they are falling in love with. Little do they know that they are writing letters to each other. Margaret Sullivan and James Stewart star as the two leads in the film, which inspired the better known and more modern classic “You’ve Got Mail.”
3. ‘Miracle on 34th Street’
The movie follows a man who is portraying Santa Claus for Macy’s Department Store. He claims he’s the real Kris Kringle. To determine the truth, a court case ensues and characters have to find out the true meaning of Christmas.
4. ‘The Nightmare Before Christmas’
If you’re in the mood for a movie that helps you transition between Halloween and Christmas, “The Nightmare Before Christmas” is for you. Jake Skellington is the king of Halloweentown, but then he sees Christmastown and decides he wants to kidnap Santa Claus to take control of the heartwarming town.
5. ‘Little Women’
The March sisters, Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy, come of age when their father is off fighting the war and as their family struggles. They pinch pennies and forgo little luxuries to give generously to their neighbors and discover the strength of their relationships.
6. ‘Klaus’
Jesper is a terrible student. He struggles to find community around him, except when he spends time with a reclusive carpenter named Klaus. The two forge a friendship, and Jesper discovers there’s something special about Klaus.
7. ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’
George Bailey is bored with his life. He enters a deep depression, unable to see his purpose even as the holiday season glitters around him, bringing others happiness. A guardian angel comes into his life to show him what life would be like if he wasn’t around to help people.
8. ‘The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special’
How do you pick the perfect Christmas gift? That’s the premise of this holiday special. “But when Kraglin, the Xandarian, shares a story of a Christmas gone wrong for Peter Quill, aka the Star-Lord, Insectoid/Celestial hybrid Mantis and Drax the Destroyer embark on a time-sensitive mission to give Peter a merrier holiday memory,” per IMDb.
9. ‘Little Women’
Like the other “Little Women” adaptation on this list, this movie tells the coming-of-age story of the March sisters. The 1994 version is worth a watch alongside Greta Gerwig’s 2019 adaptation of the book by Louisa May Alcott.
10. ‘Arthur Christmas’
Santa Claus has his operation down pat. But after Santa and his army of elves deliver Christmas presents, Santa’s son Arthur discovers that one child didn’t get his presents, so he begins a mission (with a reindeer who doesn’t know what to do) to bring Christmas to the child.
