4 h. ago ‘A festive tour de force’: Guardian writers on their favorite underrated Christmas movies

From a John Cusack 80s teen comedy to the other Frank Capra Christmas crowd-pleaser, here are some seasonal picks you might not have seenSomething that bugs me about a lot of contemporary Christmas movies is how insistently self-conscious they are about the whole production – the ostentatious decorations, checklist of soundtrack chestnuts, the dialogue about the true meaning of the holidays that sounds canned even when the movie is trying to acknowledge its various stressors. Maybe because the idea of a holiday movie hadn’t yet ossified into routine, I’ve found that the versions of these films that came out in the 1940s tend to approach Christmas from more inventive, less neurotically obsessive angles. One of my favorite discoveries in sifting through 1940s Christmas comedies is It Happened on Fifth Avenue, a 1947 semi-romantic farce with a great starting hook: a cheerful vagrant Aloysius T McKeever (Victor Moore) winters in New York every year, because he knows a way into a particu...

Politics

1 week ago 'Wholesome' Christmas film free to watch today but fans must be quick

The 1996 Christmas film has been described as an "underrated" classic that's become a festive "ritual" for many families

Politics

1 week ago 'Underrated' Christmas film that is a 'classic' free to watch on TV today

Fans must be quick if they want to watch the "Christmas classic" on TV today

Culture

1 week ago 5 underrated Christmas films to watch this year including Netflix 'tearjerker'

If you're looking for a heartwarming festive film that's a little less talked about, I've got you covered

Politics

1 week ago This is officially the most underrated Christmas market in London for the 2025 festive season

This is officially the most underrated Christmas market in London for the 2025 festive season  Time Out Worldwide

Politics

1 week ago This chic festive fair with real reindeer is the most underrated Christmas market in London

This chic festive fair with real reindeer is the most underrated Christmas market in London  Time Out Worldwide

Politics

1 week ago This capital city could be Europe’s most underrated Christmas destination

The capital of Estonia is complete with a Christmas market, plenty of history, and incredible food

Politics

2 w. ago PartyPoker Tour lands in London for 7 festive days next month

PartyPoker Tour lands in London for 7 festive days next month  Poker.org

Society

2 w. ago I've found the ‘most underrated Christmas market’ in London with next level food

I've found the ‘most underrated Christmas market’ in London with next level food  The Sun

Politics

3 w. ago Underrated UK town surrounded by waterfalls is perfect for Christmas shopping

A charming town that's perfect for a weekend break, with independent shops, great places to eat and drink, and stunning hikes on its doorstep

Economics

3 w. ago ‘A Thanksgiving classic’: why Stuck in Love is my feelgood movie

The latest in our series of writers highlighting their all-time favorite comfort films is a 2012 indie romcom that begins and ends on the November holidayI’ve watched this movie almost every November for about the last 10 years. It’s something of a rarity, a film about Thanksgiving, celebrating the awkward in-between holiday in a sea of clearcut Halloween and Christmas classics. Stuck in Love is an indie romcom from 2012, the directorial debut of writer-director Josh Boone, who would later go on to make The Fault in Our Stars. It boasts a stacked cast featuring Greg Kinnear, Lily Collins, Nat Wolff, Jennifer Connelly and Logan Lerman (and smaller roles for Kristen Bell, Patrick Schwarzenegger, Glen Powell, as well as a cameo from author Stephen King).The movie follows Bill Borgens (Kinnear), an unhappily divorced novelist who fosters his two teenage children’s literary ambitions by encouraging them to write – though he hasn’t written in years since becoming a divorcee – while he obs...

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