If there is something that we should never miss at Christmas, besides the contests of eating polvorones, the speech of the King or the bad jokes of the brothers-in-law, those are the films especially created to be seen at this time of year. Although if you get the Christmas nostalgia you can always see them in August. At any time, these titles should not be forgotten, especially for new generations who have lost the habit of the family movie in favor of the hashtag of #FelizNavidad and the memes of cats wearing Santa hats. Dear millennials, please give these titles: Christmas will never be the same without them.
APPOINTMENT IN SAN LUIS (1944)
The filmmaker Vicente Minnelli signs this musical classic with a Judy Garland in a state of grace. Great songs with Christmas as a backdrop, in a story of self-improvement that reflects that Christmas spirit so classic Hollywood.
HOW BEAUTIFUL IS LIVING (1946)
Frank Capra , master of classical cinema, set out to undo his spectators in tears with this film starring James Stewart. And is that, what would be the life of yours if you were not? Capra taught us that sometimes, and especially at Christmas, you have to think about others.
OF ILLUSION ALSO ONE LIVES (1947)
Oh, Santa. What would Christmas be without you, even if you are a product of marketing. Although according to this classic film by George Seaton , man exists and is willing to replace the actors who play him in his name. There is the real magic of Christmas.
THE WIFE OF THE BISHOP (1947)
The favorite fetish of the Christmas movies are not the trees, nor the lights, nor the wool socks, but the men of little faith. In this classic film, Cary Grant plays a bishop who, blinded by his fundraising for the construction of the church, has forgotten that Christmas is a time to be with the family. In this case, not to spend monumentally of his poor woman, played by Loretta Young . If you exchange the collection for being all day in Facebook and ignoring your family, you may learn something.
WHITE CHRISTMAS (1954)
A music one! This film by Michael Curtiz tells the story of two soldiers who, before enlisting in World War II, were singers and dancers. When they return home for Christmas (like nougat) and decide to use their scenic skills to save a hotel from ruin. For lovers of the musical.
PLÁCIDO (1961)
How could Luis García Berlanga be absent from this list, in any list ? And more before the brutal criticism masked comedy that the Spanish filmmaker makes in this film to the society under the Franco dictatorship. "Feel a poor person at your table" reads the Christmas motto of a small town, where every family will invite a stranger to the Christmas Eve dinner. An unmissable masterpiece of our cinema.
THE GREAT FAMILY (1962)
In Spanish cinema we have also known how to exploit (and very well) the spirit of Christmas. In this film by Fernando Palacios from the 60s, we see how a father breaks down to take care of his large family: a total of fifteen children, to which the wife and grandfather add. The protagonist is the only one who works, and double shift, so that on Christmas day there will be bread on the table. A classic of our cinema, with an immense Pepe Isbert.
BLACK CHRISTMAS (1974)
Okay, we got it: you do not love Christmas. It makes you want to throw up the decorated trees, the sugary polvorones and any vestige of hopeful happiness. Hey, we respect it. And we propose a bloody alternative: this Canadian horror film set at Christmas time, a full-fledged 'slasher' that will make you rethink that pre-Christmas party you were preparing.
THE LIFE OF BRIAN (1979)
But why do we really celebrate Christmas? Where did everything start? You can take the New Testament and start reading, or you can learn something about the origins of this holiday thanks to the Monty Python . Well, maybe you do not learn too much, but I'm sure you'll laugh a long time. If ever the story of Jesus Christ seemed insufficient, dare to discover Brian's. It has no waste.
GREMLINS (1984)
Beware of what they give you ... it could be dangerous. And even more if you do not follow the instructions. Does not anyone learn that you always have to read the small print of the prospect? The young protagonist of this classic eighties Joe Dante does not, and what he gets is a plague of beings as fun as violent: the gremlins. These people know how to make a good Christmas.
THE GHOSTS ATTACK THE BOSS (1988)
There is no better actor to say "Paparruchas" than Bill Murray . His cynicism is exhibited in this Richard Donner film in which he plays the bitter protagonist of Charles Dickens ' 'Christmas Tale' . You already know: three ghosts, many memories and an important moral.
THE GLASS JUNGLE (1988)
It's hard not to have ever seen this legendary action movie set on Christmas Eve. John McTiernan laid the foundations for a saga that is already a living history of cinema, and gave us a fantastic alternative to the typical Christmas movies of unbreakable spirit. And if Bruce Willis celebrates Christmas like this ... we do not want to know how he celebrates the New Year
ONLY AT HOME (1990)
It seems incredible, but there are many young people who have not seen this family film classic directed by Chris Columbus. It is not necessary to crucify them: each one is a victim of his time, as all of them have been. So leave aside your magazine Ñeñeñé and teach a 'millenial' the immortal 'Solo en casa', with which Macaulay Culkin became world famous.
THE DAY OF THE BEAST (1995)
On Christmas Eve not only nougat is eaten until burst, but, according to the priest of this film by Alex de la Iglesia , the Antichrist will also be born. The normal. This Spanish blockbuster of the nineties is a hilarious adventure to the rhythm of 'heavy metal' and demonic invocations, which can be a good Christmas option for the most important members of the family.
A FATHER IN TROUBLES (1996)
Arnold Schwarzenegger stars in this great parental moral film, in which he plays a man willing to do anything to get his son's Christmas present. And it's not going to be easy, I'm telling you. An entertaining odyssey for the big city that teaches us that you should never leave things (gifts, especially) for the last moment.