While the 2010s were lacking in major Christmas movies, the 2020s have more than made up for it. While 2020 and 2021 delivered some standout holiday films, 2022 was filled with them. Some are originals from streaming services like Netflix and Amazon Prime Video, while others were unique holiday tales that hit the big screen. It made for a diverse selection of films to rewatch every December.
The back end of 2022 has seen the release of a ton of holiday movies, even outside the dozens of Hallmark-like festive releases. Whether it’s a legacy sequel to A Christmas Story, a very R-rated beer-guzzling Santa, or a Will Ferrell and Ryan Reynolds musical, there was so much festive goodness released in 2022. A look back at the year really hammers home just how great 2022 was for Christmas movies.
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10 Scrooge: A Christmas Carol (2022)
An Animated Take On A Classic Story
Charles Dickens’s classic Christmas novella has been told so many times, and everyone knows the story of Ebenezer Scrooge being visited by the three Christmas ghosts at this point. There has been every kind of A Christmas Carol adaptation, whether it’s a Muppets version, a technologically advanced motion-capture version, or a very modern Bill Murray update of the classic tale.
However, that still hasn’t stopped Netflix from making its own version, and this time, Scrooge: A Christmas Carol is completely animated. The film didn’t get great reviews due to the basic-looking animation and the music, but it’s a great introduction to the classic tale for young children, and the likes of Luke Evans and Olivia Colman put their all into the voice performances.
Watch on Netflix
9 The Noel Diary (2022)
Netflix’s Take On A Hallmark Style Holiday Movie
While 2022 was a surprisingly great year for major Christmas movies, there are still so many festive Hallmark films that viewers love cozying up to. And streaming platforms have taken inspiration from Hallmark, as the likes of Amazon Prime Video and Netflix are now littered with them too.
The Noel Diary is one of Netflix’s forays into the festive rom-com genre, and though Hallmark-style holiday releases usually hover around mediocre at best reviews, this one had a better reception. The film follows a best-selling author who returns home for the holiday season and embarks on an adventure to learn about his past. While it doesn’t do anything extraordinarily different from the other holiday romantic comedies, The Noel Diary is certainly one of the most engaging.
Watch on Netflix
8 The 12 Days Of Christmas Eve (2022)
A Lifetime Christmas Movie
The 12 Days of Christmas Eve is a Lifetime movie that has managed to get a lot more attention than its peers due to Kelsey Grammer in the starring role. Typically well-spoken, charismatic, and entertaining, Grammer totally carries the film, and the movie wouldn’t be half as entertaining if any lesser actor was in his shoes. The film follows a businessman (Grammer) who is killed in a car crash on Christmas Eve, and he’s given 12 chances to re-do the day and mend his broken relationships so that the same disaster doesn’t occur. It’s an interesting take on a time loop, and it makes for a fascinating mix between Groundhog Day and It’s a Wonderful Life.
Watch on Hoopla
7 Something From Tiffany’s (2022)
A Charming Holiday Rom-Com
Though most Christmas movies are materialistic, they usually end with a fitting moral that Christmas is about more than gifts. However, that isn’t quite the case in Something from Tiffany’s, which is about a woman who traces an engagement ring that was wrongfully sent to her back to its rightful owner. That leads to the two of them falling in love, and it’s impossible to ignore the fact that the catalyst is a sparkly ring.
The materialistic nature of the film almost makes it the rom-com answer to Jingle All the Way. Nevertheless, there are still a lot of laughs to be had, and there’s a ton of chemistry between the talented Zoey Deutch and Kendrick Sampson. The film didn’t blow audiences away but it was praised for being a charming, easy watch with a lot of heart to it.
Watch on Amazon Prime Video
6 Your Christmas Or Mine? (2022)
A Twist On A Fish Out Of Water Movie
Your Christmas or Mine? is a great festive offering from Amazon Prime Video for the holiday season, and unlike other direct-to-streaming Christmas rom-coms of its ilk, the movie has some recognizable faces. It stars Asa Butterfield as a naive and in-love youth, and in that respect, it’s a lot like his character from Sex Education, only with less sharp wit and more sentimentality.
The film is about a couple, James (Butterfield) and Hayley (Cora Kirk), who have the same idea to surprise each other at their respective homes in the UK, but that leads to them spending Christmas with their families and without each other. It’s a fun premise that leads to a lot of fish-out-of-water comedy given that the families are so different.
Watch on Amazon Prime Video
5 A Christmas Story Christmas (2022)
The Legacy Sequel For All Holidays
The last film anybody would have expected a legacy sequel to is 1983’s A Christmas Story, and even though it isn’t remotely necessary, A Christmas Story Christmas hit HBO Max a whole 39 years later. But what’s more impressive than the time gap is that it’s actually a worthy sequel to the Christmas classic.
The 2022 movie honors the original, doesn’t rely on fan service, and amazingly brings almost all the original cast back after nearly 40 years. Though some longtime viewers of the original movie think A Christmas Story Christmas is terrible, it even adds layers to the series, as it’s way more heartfelt than its predecessor, and the ending expertly ties into the first film in a way that nobody would have predicted.
Watch on Max
4 Three Wise Men And A Baby (2022)
Shockingly, one of the best Christmas movies of the year was delivered to audiences by Hallmark, as the TV movie Three Wise Men and a Baby received strong reviews. In fact, it stands as not only one of the better-reviewed Hallmark movies ever but also received more major reviews than the majority of the network’s sometimes forgettable releases.
However, that might be due to the fact that it has a derivative name and premise of the famous ’80s comedy, Three Men and a Baby. But even if viewers tuned in because they thought it was some kind of sequel or remake, that doesn’t detract from the fact that they still really enjoyed the film. With a Three Men and a Baby remake currently in development, it has some surprising competition.
Watch on Apple TV
3 The Guardians Of The Galaxy Holiday Special (2022)
Marvel’s Christmas Special
Though The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special might not exactly be a feature-length movie, the Disney+ release undoubtedly had a budget bigger than most of the Christmas movies released in 2022, and it was a lot more festive too. Few releases in 2022 embraced the spirit of Christmas more than the holiday special, as it was all about family and trying to make the season special for loved ones.
The special is surprisingly free of any materialism, and it’s even able to stay away from the darker humor that writer-director James Gunn is known for too. There isn’t a more positive Christmas movie to watch from 2022 than the Marvel release, and the Guardians holiday special was massively revealing in the grand scheme of the MCU too, as it’s a must-watch before seeing Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.
Watch on Disney Plus
2 Spirited (2022)
Ryan Reynolds & Will Ferrell Sing
Will Ferrell fans desperately want a sequel to the Christmas classic Elf, but as that won’t happen, especially given that Ferrell turned down $28 million to star in a follow-up, a new, original Christmas movie starring the comedy actor is the next best thing. Spirited is yet another adaptation of Dickens’ story, but its star power and production turn it into way more of a spectacle.
The film delivers exactly what viewers want to see, as it’s an entertaining enough Christmas movie with a handful of fun musical numbers and starring two of the biggest movie stars working today, along with Oscar winner Octavia Spencer. To top it off, the high-energy musical numbers steal the show and are written by the duo behind The Greatest Showman and La La Land.
Watch on Apple TV+
1 Violent Night (2022)
What If Santa Was An Action Star?
Violent Night is the only Christmas movie that was theatrically released in 2022, but there was no better festive release to watch on the big screen than the John Wick-influenced film. But, interestingly, while most R-rated Christmas comedies are about mall Santas, Violent Night actually features a real magical Santa (David Harbour). The film has already become one of David Harbour’s best movies, as he’s perfectly cast as a beer-guzzling, trigger-happy Kris Kringle. The movie is a mix between Home Alone, any recent gun-fu flick, and Black Widow, as Harbour’s depiction of Santa features hints of the just-as-hilarious Red Guardian.
Watch on Amazon Prime Video
