A Seasonal Celebration: Discovering Underrated Yuletide Films

One thing that annoys me about a lot of present-day seasonal features is their insistent meta-commentary – the over-the-top decor, the predictable score selections, and the clichéd dialogue about the true meaning of the season. It could be because the genre was not ossified into formula, pictures from the 1940s often tackle Christmas from increasingly inventive and less obsessive perspectives.

The Affair on Fifth Avenue

One delightful find from sifting through 1940s Christmas fare is It Happened on Fifth Avenue, a 1947 romantic farce with a brilliant hook: a happy-go-lucky hobo winters in a empty luxurious townhouse each year. That season, he invites new acquaintances to reside with him, including a former GI and a teenager who is secretly the heiress of the property's rich owner. Filmmaker Roy Del Ruth imbues the picture with a surrogate family warmth that many contemporary holiday films have to labor to attain. It expertly occupies the space between a class-conscious narrative on shelter and a charming urban fairytale.

The Tokyo Godfathers

Satoshi Kon's 2003 feature Tokyo Godfathers is a fun, poignant, and profound take on the holiday tale. Drawing from a classic Hollywood picture, it tells the story of a trio of homeless souls – an alcoholic, a trans woman, and a adolescent throwaway – who come across an discarded infant on a snowy December night. Their journey to reunite the child's mother sets off a series of hijinks involving gangsters, newcomers, and seemingly serendipitous connections. The animation doubles down on the enchantment of chance often found in seasonal tales, presenting it with a cool-toned animation that sidesteps cloying sentiment.

Meet John Doe

Although Frank Capra's It's a Wonderful Life rightly receives much attention, his lesser-known work Meet John Doe is a powerful seasonal tale in its own right. With Gary Cooper as a handsome "forgotten man" and Barbara Stanwyck as a resourceful writer, the film kicks off with a fake letter from a man vowing to fall from a rooftop on December 24th in despair. The public's embrace leads the reporter to recruit a man to impersonate the mythical "John Doe," who later becomes a country-wide symbol for neighborliness. The movie functions as both an heartwarming story and a pointed skewering of ultra-rich publishers trying to exploit grassroots goodwill for personal gain.

A Silent Partner

While holiday horror movies are now a dime a dozen, the Christmas thriller remains a somewhat underpopulated style. This makes the 1978 gem The Silent Partner a unique surprise. Featuring a superbly menacing Christopher Plummer as a bank-robbing Santa Claus and Elliott Gould as a clever bank teller, the film pits two varieties of opportunistic oddballs against each other in a stylish and surprising tale. Mostly ignored upon its first release, it merits rediscovery for those who like their festive stories with a chilling edge.

Christmas Almost

For those who like their family reunions messy, Almost Christmas is a riot. With a star-studded ensemble that includes Danny Glover, Mo'Nique, and JB Smoove, the film examines the tensions of a household forced to spend five days under one home during the Christmas season. Hidden problems come to the forefront, resulting in situations of high comedy, such as a dinner where a firearm is pulled out. Naturally, the film finds a satisfying ending, providing all the entertainment of a holiday disaster without any of the personal cleanup.

Go

Doug Liman's 1999 movie Go is a Christmas-set tale that functions as a youthful take on woven stories. While some of its humor may feel dated upon rewatch, the film nonetheless offers several things to savor. These are a engaging turn from Sarah Polley to a standout performance by Timothy Olyphant as a laid-back drug dealer who appropriately sports a Santa hat. It captures a particular brand of fin-de-siècle film energy set against a holiday backdrop.

Miracle at Morgan's Creek

The satirist's wartime comedy The Miracle of Morgan's Creek forgoes conventional holiday cheer in favor for bawdy fun. The film follows Betty Hutton's character, who discovers she is expecting after a drunken night but cannot remember the soldier involved. The bulk of the fun stems from her predicament and the efforts of Eddie Bracken's simping Norval Jones to marry her. While not obviously a Christmas film at the start, the narrative winds up on the holiday, revealing that Sturges has crafted a satirical version of the Christmas story, filled with his characteristic witty style.

The Film Better Off Dead

This 1985 teen movie with John Cusack, Better Off Dead, is a quintessential artifact of its decade. Cusack's