Top Ten Christmas Movies Ever!

By Pulse Life Advocates | December 18, 2025

By Tom Quiner, Board President, Pulse Life Advocates

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People look for different things in Christmas movies. Fun. Nostalgia. Romance. Jesus.

Baby Jesus movies aren’t made much this century. There are a lot of rom-coms, some that are very good. Nostalgia and fun holiday antics are popular themes, too, and again, many of them are excellent.

My list of the top ten Christmas movies touches on a number of these themes. I prefer the films that touch on Christmas (in other words, Christian) values, even if they are not overtly religious.

I leave off my list films such as Christmas Vacation and Elf which are very entertaining, but not as ‘Christmassy’ as the one’s presented below. Remember, Christmas is about Christ and peace on earth!

#10. THE NATIVITY STORY. A feature length film of the nativity story. A nice way to enjoy the Christmas drama of God’s beautiful gift to mankind: his Son.

#9. A CHRISTMAS STORY. Truly a Christmas classic. A Christmas Story tells the tale of 9 year old Ralphie Parker in a narrated flashback by the adult Ralphie. Vignettes revel in the various shenanigans of his quirky family and school buds as Christmas fast approaches. Ralph’s fervent desire? To find a Red Ryder Carbine Action 200-shot Range Model air rifle under his Christmas tree, despite his mother’s fear that he’ll shoot his eye out. What a fun ride of a movie!

#8. THE LION, THE WITCH, AND THE WARDROBE. This classic C.S. Lewis story and film isn’t typically thought of as a Christmas movie, but it is. A quartet of children are inexplicably transported to a magical land called Narnia. The evil white witch, Jadis, has banned Christmas and cursed the land with an eternal winter. Will the godlike Aslan save them?

#7. JESUS OF NAZARETH. This sprawling, epic television mini-series from 1977 tells the Jesus story from beginning to end. Although it is typically considered an Easter movie, the Annunciation, the Nativity, and Slaughter of the Innocents scenes are the best I’ve ever seen. The great Franco Zeffirelli directed this classic with a superlative artist’s touch. So if you don’t want to watch the entire 382 minute production, watch the first half hour or so. Or better yet, watch the clips I’ve posted below.

#6. THE PREACHER’S WIFE. This 1996 film is a remake of the classic “The Bishop’s Wife” from 1947. I loved both, but give the nod to the more recent version which stars Denzel Washington and Whitney Houston. Washington plays an angel sent from heaven to answer the prayers of a pastor with a struggling church. Washington and Houston have great chemistry, and hearing Whitney sing is always a treat. The plot comes to a head on Christmas.

#5. KLAUS. This is a very funny, feel-good animated feature for the entire family. It provides a fun backstory to the Santa Claus legend, set in the ‘unhappiest’ place on earth: Smeerensberg. A feckless postman, Jesper, is sent to this frigid backwater of a town where he discovers the transformative power of acts of kindness. A simply delightful movie.

#4. A CHRISTMAS CAROL. This 1999 film stars the great Patrick Stewart of Star Trek fame whose booming voice was made to play Scrooge. Well done, Picard!

#3. MUPPET CHRISTMAS CAROL. Charles Dicken’s “A Christmas Carol” is so good, so timeless, that it makes this list twice, beginning with the “The Muppet Christmas Carol.” Michael Caine joins the cast as a wonderfully grouchy Scrooge.

#2. MIRACLE ON 34TH STREET. This timeless classic tells the tale of a man hired to be a Santa Claus at Macy’s who claims to be the real Santa. Watch the original version starring 8 year old Natalie Wood, who portrays a girl who doesn’t believe in Santa. This film never grows old.

#1. IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE. Best Christmas movie ever. Best movie ever, especially in this anti-life era. It proclaims that life is worth living. The scene with a broken Jimmy Stewart praying touches everyone of us. We’ve all been there at some point in our life. Maybe right now. This is a gloriously uplifting film set during the Christmas season.