12 Days of Not So Christmas Movies

There are dozens of lists about which movies make the Christmas list and which take place during Christmas.  The problem with these lists is that they are almost all the same.  Sure, there are a few repeats in here, but I wanted to share with you my choices for movies that take place during Christmas time, but are not actually Holiday movies.  Here we go in no particular order:

1: Harry Potter – Why did I not mention which Harry Potter movie?  The answer is that a few of the films take place during the Holiday season, so therefore the whole franchise gets thrown in the lot.  These are perfect for the kids and family.

2: When Harry Met Sally – Who hasn’t seen this movie?  It’s one of the best romantic comedies of all time in my opinion.  Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan deliver a perfect date night movie that will never get “oh, oh oh…..” old.

3: Die Hard 1 & 2 – Okay, so the second installment was basically the same as the first, but with a different location and terrorists, but it still fits in as a kick ass movie.  Any action fan will be saying “Yippie Kayay, Mister Falcon” after watching the TV edited version.

4: Batman Returns – Michael Keaton suits up for the second time as the Dark Knight in this slightly campy, but dark movie.  When better to fight the Penguin and kiss Catwoman under the mistletoe, than during the holidays.

5: Gremlins – For the horror fan.  Okay, it’s not super horror because it’s got that cute little Gizmo, but it falls into the scary category, and will never get old despite the practical effects.  Just don’t eat popcorn after midnight if you’re still up watching it.

6: Rocky 4 – Stallone brings in another emotion grabbing chapter of the Philadelphia boxing franchise.  This time you get to watch as faces off against Dolph Lundgren.  Make sure to have your presents wrapped in time though or Ivan “Must break you.”

7: Trading Places – Ah, Eddie Murphy and Dan Aykroyd  at their finest.  Comedy used to be so witty and smart instead of over the top shock humor.  This is no exception to the intelligence behind the writing.  I wish I could switch places with a millionaire for a day (at least my bank account does).

8: Lethal Weapon – What?  You think I’d put Die Hard in here and not Lethal Weapon?  Please.  This may actually be my favorite non-Christmas Christmas movie of all time.  Every time I hear “Jingle Bell Rock” I immediately think of the opening scene to this great action movie.

9: Friday After Next – As a huge fan of the Friday movies (yes I can actually quote most of the first movie), I feel the need to go back and watch this one.  All I remember is that it involved Ice Cube hunting down a thief who was dressed as Santa.  This makes me still hold out hope for a “Final Friday” sequel.

10: Nightmare Before Christmas – I struggled with putting this one in here as it technically can be a Christmas movie, but in reality it revolves mostly around the characters from Halloweentown, so While Jack Skellington may be trying to take Santa’s place, he will always in my mind be someone who belongs in the month of October.

11: Ironman 3 – There are many things wrong with this movie, but the few things it got right make me enjoy rewatching it on occasion.  Plus it takes place during the holidays, so you have to love seeing Tony Stark get the best gift of all… the hole in his chest repaired.

12: Just Friends – This is probably one of the most underrated Ryan Reynolds movies ever, but I don’t get the distaste for it.  It’s a funny movie about a kid who was not everyone’s picture perfect person, who grew up to prove them all wrong.

* (Runner up) – Star Wars Holiday Special – This didn’t make the list of 12 because well, it never came out in the theater, and George Lucas still denies its existence to a certain level.  But what we have here is a classic WTF moment in film making.  Okay it was a TV special, but who cares.  It was the first Star Wars show during Christmas time, and man is it terrible.  If you’re a fan of Star Wars, then you MUST give it a watch, or at least try to.  The original cast reprise their roles in a thin plot with bad everything.  I mean beyond bad.  So bad it’s good?  No!  It’s very very bad.  But you HAVE to watch it at least once to get an idea for how bad it is.  It’s like George Lucas is Santa Clause and he crapped coal into your VCR while you were amped to tape this from TV when it aired.

There you have it!  My list for the 12 days.  What are some of your favorites?  Do you have any non-Christmas holiday movies that you think should be on this list?  Comment below.