Every December we set aside time to have family movie nights. Actually we do this all year round, but even more so during the holiday season. This year I thought it would be fun to add to the anticipation of Christmas movie night (plus my kids always like to know what’s coming, they’re funny like that) so I created a few printables to help you bring a little a lot more holiday magic to movie night. I also have some fun ideas and recipes to help you jumpstart your own movie night tradition, plus a list of the top 25 best Christmas movies! Whew, that’s a lot of stuff!
How to Plan a Family Christmas Movie Night
Christmas movies are abundant this time of year, all you have to do is turn on your TV and you’ll see Christmas movies galore starting December 1. I was worried with ABC Family switching to Freeform that we’d lose the 25 Days of Christmas, thankfully I was wrong! You can find the complete schedule of movies HERE.
We always set aside time to watch a few of these movies and shows, but it’s much more fun to watch them commercial free, and straight from Netflix or a Blu-Ray. You can find holiday movies in abundance this time of year in any bix box store.
Which takes us to Step One in starting a Christmas movie night tradition.
1. THE MOVIES.
My personal favorites are Elf, A Christmas Story, The Polar Express, Christmas with the Kranks and A Charlie Brown Christmas. We make sure and watch these every year, but this year I’m thinking we need to add to that list.
Here are some of more of our favorites:
Links are affiliate links to Amazon where you can buy the movies.
Christmas Movie for the Family
Elf
The Santa Clause
The Polar Express
Arthur Christmas
A Charlie Brown Christmas
Prep & Landing
Mickey’s Christmas Carol
The Muppets Christmas Carol
Rise of the Guardians
Home Alone
National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation
How the Grinch Stole Christmas
The Grinch (Jim Carrey)
Santa Buddies
A Christmas Story
Jingle All the Way
Christmas With the Kranks
The Family Man
Scrooged
The Christmas Shoes
Prancer
Jack Frost
The Nightmare Before Christmas
Miracle on 34th Street (2009)
Yes, Virginia (2010)
Christmas Movie Classics
It’s a Wonderful Life
Frosty the Snowman
White Christmas
Miracle on 34th Street
Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer
Christmas Movies for Grown-Ups
Love Actually
While You Were Sleeping
The Family Stone
The Holiday
Ok, so yes, that’s 30 movies. Once I had my list I couldn’t decide what to cut so you get a few bonus selections!
Use this handy Free Printable Christmas Movie Checklist to select the movies your family really wants to watch. Most of the movies you see above are included, plus there is space to write in even more. To print, click on the image, then right click and save to your computer.
Alright, so you’ve got your movies, now it’s time to figure out where you’re going to watch them.
2. THE LOCATION
It might seem a little silly, but location might actually be a tough choice. I mean, you might want to snuggle up in bed and watch a sweet movie like A Charlie Brown Christmas, or pile up the blankets and pillows in the living room and watch a comedy like Elf. If you’re in California, like me, or any other warmer location, you might even consider having a movie night under the stars with a big blow up screen and a backyard bonfire. Whatever you choose, make sure that you have enough space for everyone to spread out and get comfy.
3. THE FOOD
Every good party revolves around the food, right? Plan ahead and make some extra special goodies to set the mood. You can plan around the movie, like Peppermint Patty Brownies, or Grinch Oreo Pops, or just have some seasonal favorites on hand. Whether you’re planning a special stay up late movie night, or a whole evening of movie fun, having fun snacks and drinks on hand is a must.
Try some of these:
Peppermint Cookie Butter Blossoms | Snowball Cookies | Hot Chocolate Bar (with Free Printables) | Chocolate Peppermint Popcorn Munch | Peppermint White Chocolate Sandwich Cookies | M & M Kissed Pretzels | Ice Cream Cone Santa and Reindeer | Ornament Popcorn Balls | Rocky Road Fudge | String Cheese Snowman | Reindeer Root Beer | White Chocolate Peppermint Bark | Peppermint Cheesecake Brownie Parfaits
Want even more ideas? Try this list of 25 Easy Holiday Treats, or these 50+ Christmas Cookies.
To get you on your way to planning the perfect Christmas movie night, I’m including some fun free printables. To print, click on the image, then right click and save to your computer.
Need some ideas for using the printable Movie Night Invitation?
- Place the invite on your family’s pillows as a late night movie night surprise. Have them bring their pillow and blankets and meet you in the family room.
- Pin the invite onto the family bulletin board so everyone can anticipate what’s coming, and be on their best behavior!
- Tape an invite to a neighbors front door inviting them over for a fun get-together.
- Mail to friends or family inviting them over for a special movie night Christmas party.
- Tuck an invite into your spouse’s pocket inviting them for a special romantic movie night.
I hope these ideas help you to get started planning your own Christmas movie night tradition with your family and friends!
For more family friendly holiday ideas:
35 Inexpensive Gift Ideas for Friends & Neighbors
Gift Ideas for HERE for every budget
Free Printable Christmas Gift Card Envelope
Love these ideas! Movie nights with special treats are SO FUN, and Christmas movies are the highlight of my year! Check out my list of fav Christmas movies here. I think we love some of the same!
I used your printables for a hot chocolate bar I set up, at our lake house, for the winter. Everyone that sees it comments how cute it is. I have referred several people to the Yellow Bliss Road. I can’t wait to do a lemonade bar this summer using your printables. Thank you so much for your taking the time to offer free printables!
Love this movie list! Thank you for sharing the printables! Can’t wait to snuggle up and watch these with my family!
Hi:-)
I came across this post via Pinterest and I really appreciate all of the detail you put into it. If I may, I would love to add one more movie to the “Movies for Grown-ups” list, and that is “The Family Man”. It has a couple of scenes that would be inappropriate for children, strictly speaking. For example, a scene where the main female character is taking a shower and it shows her, in silhouette, but nonetheless in a provocative way. One of the overall messages, though, (spoiler alert….) is about finding the true meaning of success, through the ‘humdrum’ of marital and family devotion. It’s a great movie that I highly recommend, starring Nicholas Cage, Tea Leone, and etc. Merry Christmas and God Bless!
Enjoyed reading your post! Thank you so much for the list of movies and the free printables. I’ve seen most of the movies but there were a couple that I had not seen and have jotted down.
Santa Clause is Coming to Town
That’s one of my favorites. “Put one foot in front of the other and so you’ll be walking out the doo-oo-oor”
How about “Trapped In Paradise” with Nicholas Cage, Jon Lovett and Dana Carvey?
Love love love, Christmas in Connecticut, a great one to add to the “classics” list!
All great ideas! Love the movie picks 🙂
I will be sharing my favorite holiday movies next week!!
– Seri
http://www.Serisblog.com
Please check out Truman Capote’s “A Christmas Story.” This is a heartwarming tale that is very autobiographical, about a young boy living with relatives, all of whom are cold-hearted except for an elderly woman of limited intellect. It’s very beautiful and moving, and was made into a great TV movie with Geraldine Page. Not sure of the date, probably in the 70’s.
I would recommend adding “The Little Drummer Boy” for the kids’s movies and “The Holiday” for adult movies.
Ohh great movies!!