• Home
  • about
  • contact
Subscribe: Posts | Comments | E-mail
  • etc.
  • projects
  • scripts
  • stories
WRITERMAN

WRITERMAN

does whatever a writer can


Warning: Use of undefined constant woothemes - assumed 'woothemes' (this will throw an Error in a future version of PHP) in /home/customer/www/writerman.com/public_html/wp-content/themes/papercut/archive.php on line 17
Posts Tagged ‘christmas’



Warning: Use of undefined constant woothemes - assumed 'woothemes' (this will throw an Error in a future version of PHP) in /home/customer/www/writerman.com/public_html/wp-content/themes/papercut/archive.php on line 34
Posted on December 28, 2011 - by writerman

Top 10 Christmas Movies

The mall is a madhouse, the house smells like pine needles, the fridge is packed with leftovers and I’m full of turkey and pie, so it must be time to count down the Top 10 Christmas Movies of All Time…

10. The Muppet Christmas Carol (1993)

I’ll admit this isn’t the strongest outing from the Henson Company (for my money, that’s got to be the one with Richard Prior), but it’s The Muppets, so I had to put it on the list, right?1

9. We’re No Angels (1955)

No, not the shitty remake with De Niro, Sean Penn and that girl from Blame it on Rio. Number nine on my list goes to the original, featuring Bogie and Peter Ustinov as a couple of escaped cons from Devil’s Island who may or may not be angelic.

l_48801_f1c5594c

8. A Christmas Story (1983)

Because you gotta respect a kid who knows exactly what he wants for Christmas:

“A Red Ryder carbine-action, two hundred shot Range Model air rifle with a compass in the stock and a thing which tells time.”

7. Die Hard (1988)

You probably forgot that this 80’s gem takes place on Christmas Eve, what with all the gun fights and explosions and Alan Rickman’s groovy accent. But if John McClane’s dirty undershirt is good enough for the Smithsonian, then this movie is good enough for the Top 10 Project.

6. Catch Me If You Can (2002)

Certainly not Spielberg’s finest work, but definitely one of his most fun. Though only marginally related to Christmas, this based-on-a-true story caper has loads of style and charm to burn, making it a perfect holiday treat.

Plus, Tom Hanks tells the greatest knock-knock joke in history:

5. It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)

The first time I saw this classic was the first year I brought a girl home to spend the holidays with my family. In honor of her family’s tradition, we sat down and watched It’s a Wonderful Life (her very favorite movie) all together. By the time George Bailey stood on the bridge, my mom was banging around in the kitchen, my dad was snoring, two of my brothers had left to do something “less boring” and I had perfected my Jimmy Stewart impersonation. She didn’t speak to me for two days.

In that girl’s defense, since our awkward holiday screening, I’ve become a real fan of the movie. Sure, it gets a little syrupy now and then, but Jimmy Stewart is fantastic, Mr. Potter exudes pure evil as a classic movie villain, and between you and me, Donna Reed is a fox.

4. A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965)

This one beats you over the head with the Bible a little harder than I usually enjoy, but the righteous dance party, the little tree that could, and Vince Guaraldi’s Second Greatest Christmas Soundtrack of All Time2 more than make up for the Sunday School flashbacks.

3. Elf (2003)

Fifty years from now, when everyone has forgotten about Ricky Bobby and Ron Burgundy, this is the role Will Ferrell will be remembered for. And I don’t mean that as a dig – he is magically naive and innocent and hilarious in this movie. Also, high fives to Jon Favreau for casting James Caan as his dad and writing a scene where my girlfriend gets to sing in the shower.

2. Bad Santa (2003)

This movie is full of a hundred fucking genius moments, but this one has a special place in my heart:

 WILLIE                               (mumble)
                         What the fuck is it?

 KID                          A wooden pickle.

               Willie stares at it.

 WILLIE                          Why'd you paint it brown?

 KID                          Not paint. It's blood from when I
                         cut my hand when I was making it for
                         you.

1. How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (1966)3

Technically a TV special, for my money this is the best Christmas movie ever made.

Thanks Dr. Seuss!

Related Posts with Thumbnails
  1. The woman in my life may never forgive me for excluding Emmet Otter from this list, but I had to go with Gonzo and Fozzy. [↩]
  2. Listen to Mr. Presley sing Number One right here. [↩]
  3. We don’t talk about the Jim Carrey remake. [↩]


Warning: Use of undefined constant woothemes - assumed 'woothemes' (this will throw an Error in a future version of PHP) in /home/customer/www/writerman.com/public_html/wp-content/themes/papercut/archive.php on line 49

  • Who is the Writerman?

    Tony Nichols is a Los Angeles-based screenwriter with an old car and a new obsession with fried rice.

  • Recent Posts

    • The Math of Medicine
    • Party time, excellent
    • That time America shit its pants
    • Fly Kicks
    • Top 10 Robin Williams Movies
  • Tag Cloud

    • Africa AMC Pacer America braces bullet time california girls canada cheeseburgers Chuck Taylors cupcakes dad business Don't you forget about me first dates First Day fishnets fucking awesome grandfathers haters hazmat suits high school inspiration jealous junior high lies los angeles movies music for writing Nanu Nanu noir pep rally potty training punched in the face road trip rock and roll safety not guaranteed shameless self-promotion Shawshank surf talking shit The Funniest Man in The World time travel Top 10 Project totally sweet true love TV spec
  • flickr

© 2023 WRITERMAN - does whatever a writer can