With the holiday season quickly approaching, we at SweetwaterNOW asked our employees to share some of their favorite Christmas movies with our readers.

Once you’re done reading our favorite Christmas movies and why, we encourage you to share your favorites with us on our social page. We may even share a few of them.

A Christmas Story ~ Stephanie Thompson

It’s hard to pick my favorite Christmas movie because there are so many good ones that my favorites have changed over the years. However, I always go back to one I can watch with my family and laugh just as hard as the first time I watched it and that’s A Christmas Story. For those who haven’t watch it yet, this is your spoiler alert. Who wouldn’t laugh at Ralphie when he is forced to wear the dreaded pink bunny PJ’s clearly made for someone else or the “major award” disguised as a lamp, which “was accidentally broken?” You’ve probably seen the lamp in stores because it has recently made a comeback.

Who can forget how Ralphie Parker attempts to convince everyone he knows, even Santa Claus, that the Red Ryder Range 200 Shot BB gun really is the perfect Christmas gift for him or the typical school-yard bully and the frozen pole incident at the playground? There’s so many scenes that really stand out, I could go on and on. So, just watch it. If you’ve already seen it, watch it again. I know I will be.

The Nightmare Before Christmas & A Christmas Story ~ Olivia Kennah

Let me start off by saying, I’m indecisive. One of my favorite Christmas movies is The Nightmare Before Christmas because I love the macabre elements. I also enjoy the slight contention over whether it’s a Christmas movie or a Halloween movie… (it’s both). But I also love A Christmas Story. Partly because the movie is a classic, but mostly because my family has watched it every Christmas Eve for as long as I can remember. Nothing says Christmas quite like the family halting their lively conversations for a moment to catch their favorite parts of the movie. And there’s something very warm and cozy in the way my grandpa will laugh at the funniest scenes and look over his chair at me to make sure I’m laughing too. You know a movie is good when it’s more than just a film. For me, A Christmas Story carries the weight of tradition and family. 

The Sure Thing ~ Dave Arambel

While The Sure Thing isn’t exactly a Christmas story per say, it takes place over a Christmas break cross country road trip between two college freshman.

This was John Cusack’s first legitimate shot as a leading man, and his female counterpart is played by Daphne Zuniga.

The premise is that Cusack keeps striking out with girls on his east coast campus, so when his high school pal Anthony Edwards arranges “a sure thing” for him at his California college, Walter “Gib” Gibson just can’t say no. Alison Bradbury (Zuniga) is a classmate at his college that also needs to travel to the same west coast school to spend Christmas with her boyfriend. The two unknowingly hitch a ride with the same family to start the trip, and what unfolds is a hilarious road trip/buddy/romantic comedy.

This was the second feature film directed by Rob Reiner right after he did This Is Spinal Tap. It was made in 1985 so Cusack, Zuniga, Edwards and supporting cast members Tim Robbins and Nicolette Sheridan weren’t really even on the map yet.

But this movie is a lot of fun, and there’s good laughs in just about every scene. So if you can find it streaming anywhere and you have 90 minutes to kill, I’d highly recommend this little holiday(ish) flick.

(Side note…not really related…Cusack’s next film was Better Off Dead that also has some holiday elements. Another hidden gem!)

National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation ~ Brayden Flack

Despite what my coworkers will try and convince you of, I’m here to set the record straight with the best Christmas movie of all time. How can one top National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, starring Chevy Chase as Clark Griswold. It’s a classic comedy that my family watches each and every Christmas Eve along with A Christmas Story. If you’re looking for a movie filled with laughs, this movie won’t dissapoint. In fact, it might just give you the “hap, hap, happiest Christmas since Bing Crosby tap-danced with Danny —– Kaye.”

How the Grinch Stole Christmas ~ Lindsay Yerkovich

I remember being 8 or 9 when this came out and going to see it in theaters, so this film will always have an air of nostalgia for me. The scene that’s set in the movie is also just absolute peak-Christmas-vibes and Jim Carrey in the 90’s… c’mon.

The original Grinch is wonderful too. It’s a classic story with a great moral that reminds us of the true meaning of Christmas.

“It came without ribbons, it came without tags. It came without packages, boxes, or bags … Maybe Christmas he thought doesn’t come from a store, maybe Christmas perhaps means a little bit more.”

Christmas can be empty and stressful or it can be incredibly meaningful. If we keep our focus on connection and gratitude for all things big and small, it can have a truly positive impact for us and our loved ones. This film helps to remind me of that.

Jack Frost ~ Kaylee Hughes

I’m not a fan of choosing a “favorite” anything but the first Christmas movie that comes to mind is Jack Frost. Not the terrible horror movie or the cartoon – the one with Michael Keaton and Kelly Preston that was made in the 90’s. The soundtrack is great and so is the cast.

It was a classic in my family when I was growing up. The plot is a bit wild. It’s about a 12-year-old kiddo that loses his dad in a car accident on Christmas Day and a year later his dad comes back to life as a snowman… As off the wall and as sad as it sounds, it’s actually an incredibly touching movie that tells the truth about the grief that sometimes coincides with the holidays. But it’s also hopeful and hilarious. It focuses on how a meaningful Christmas, or life for that matter, is all about the people you spend it with. This movie will have you crying one minute and laughing the next and that’s typically what the holidays are like anyways, right?