Welcome to my favorite time of the year! Autumn may be my favorite season, but Christmas is my favorite holiday. It’s the lights, the smell of evergreen trees, the Christmas carols… Commercialism aside, there’s just something in the air around this time of year that makes everything feel magical. One of my favorite things to do is to watch holiday movies with my family. That includes (gasp!) romantic comedies that take place around Christmas.
So I present to you 10 movies to watch this season if you love Christmas or just the holidays in general. I’ll warn you right now, you won’t find Love Actually on this list. I think, at this point, everyone expects it to be a must-watch, and it’s not really in my top ten at all, anyway. So, with that being said, enjoy!
01. Bridget Jones’s Diary (2001)
I’m including BJD because it begins at Christmas and ends there, chronicling Bridget’s life throughout the year and her journey to finding true love. Bridget donned the ugly holiday sweaters before they became a Thing, *and* she and Mark Darcy smooching in the swirls of snow is one of the most romantic rom-com kisses of all time.
02. The Holiday (2006)
Kate Winslet and Cameron Diaz are two heartbroken women who swap homes across the ocean and find love and friendship in the process. You not only get Christmas with snow and heavy scarves but with sunshine and palm trees as well. Come for Jude Law’s smile and stay for Jack Black’s charm.
03. While You Were Sleeping (1995)
Want to watch two wonderfully sweet people fall in love over the course of a week and a half? Then this is the movie for you. Hilarious and heartfelt, WYWS is also about the importance of family. Fun fact: It’s the first of two films where Bullock stops a quickie wedding to confess her misdeeds.
04. The Best Man Holiday (2013)
We revisit the friends from The Best Man as they gather for the holidays after years apart. With the entire original cast back again under the direction of Malcolm D. Lee, TBMH easily surpasses the original. It’s festive and romantic but will also tug at your heartstrings. Make sure to grab a box of tissues.
05. The Family Stone (2005)
What is Christmas without dysfunctional family dynamics? Especially those of your future in-laws. Add in some swapping of love interests, and honestly, what else could you possibly want in a holiday rom-com? Diane Keaton and Craig T. Nelson are the quintessential parental pairing here.
06. Serendipity (2001)
Can two soulmates beat the odds and find one another again after years apart without knowing each other beyond their first names? Of course, they can. This movie will make you believe in destiny, no matter how illogical it may seem.
07. Elf (2003)
Perhaps not a conventional rom-com, Elf is still heavy on the comedy with a dash of romance, and there is nothing sweeter than watching Buddy the Elf attempt to ask Jovie out for food (“you know, the code.”). If you don’t get misty-eyed when Jovie leads a crowd in song to power Santa’s sleigh, there is something wrong with you.
08. The Shop Around the Corner (1940)
As Christmas approaches, two co-workers constantly at odds slowly fall in love as anonymous pen pals. James Stewart and Margaret Sullavan have biting chemistry in this festive, feel-good film with a witty, romantic script.
09. The Family Man (2000)
A sorely underrated holiday movie, Jack Campbell discovers what his life could have been like had he not left his college sweetheart for corporate success. Think It’s A Wonderful Life, only with adorable kids and Don Cheadle as a guardian angel.
10. It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)
Okay, bear with me – I know It’s A Wonderful Life is not a textbook romantic comedy. It has its humorous moments, but with themes of resentment, failure, and suicide, it cannot be labeled a comedy at all. But at its core is a beautiful love story and a message of hope, empathy, and human kindness.
