Saturday, November 28, 2020

Working Christmas Films Advent Calendar


 
 
Working Christmas Films Advent Calendar

Compiled by Ray Rojas, Christmas Carols Blog, editor

Updated November 12, 2024

Date for beginning of The Apartment put at Nov. 2.

South Pacific added for Thanksgiving

White Christmas added.

Date added for National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation.

A Christmas Story moved to Dec. 21.

The Holiday moved to Dec. 17 based on date on Blackberry.

While You Were Sleeping moved to Christmas Eve.

I'll be seeing you moved to Dec. 23 and New Years.

Start of Almost Christmas set at Dec. 21-23.

Family Stone set at Dec. 23.


One of our off-topic posts. We've tried to create an Advent Calendar of when about these holiday movies start so you can watch these films on those specific dates. For example, While You Were Sleeping begin on Christmas Day, It's a Wonderful Life on Christmas Eve, etc. We admit we have not seen all of them so we need your help. 

Methodology: We've watched tons of Christmas movies and what we call "Around-Christmas-Time Films" to date when about the film's plot begins. 

Some we've had to count the nights before Christmas Eve to try to date it. For others, we've placed them in our "week-before" category or "just before" category. In these two categories', we my need the Christmas fandom's help in dating them.

We've included Christmas movies using the standard of the "Linus Moment." This is the key moment in a film when someone discovers the "true meaning of Christmas." Although it was purported that Tim Babb of the "Can't Wait for Christmas Podcast" who came up with "Linus Moment," he corrected us and credits Brian from Captain Slinky’s Weird Lamps (https://m.twitch.tv/captainslinkysweirdlamps). Babb emailed us and stated that the first discussion of the "Linus Moment" occurred in episode 35 of his podcast about 26 minutes in: https://cantwaitforchristmaspod.com/2017/06/25/cwfc-025-jesus-birthday-and-warm-weather-christmas-songs/. Babb says it came about from the year-long debate on whether Die Hard was a Christmas movie.


However, we did not want to be that limiting because we know we'd get recommendations for Die Hard and Lethal Weapon, so we created another category of "Christmas Adjacent Films." (1).

We also played with some dates or listed a film twice. For example, We placed "Rocky IV" in the "Just Before" category but also on "Christmas Day." Why? Because we must commemorate beginning of the end of the Cold War and fall of the Iron Curtain by honoring Rocky Balboa defeating Ivan Drago on Christmas Day in Moscow, Russia (yea, if you think Reagan's speech at the Berlin Wall started this but you're years off). 

Last on methodology, we only included films that had a theatrical release (sorry Hallmark and Lifetime). It would just be too much to include TV-releases. 

However, we did include some films that may have been meant for theatric release but due to the COVID-19 pandemic were released to a streaming service. 

We made some exceptions for some made-for-TV films that are high quality or have "made into the canon."

Also, we included some so-called "Thanksgiving Films," or "Thanksgiving Adjacent Films."

WE NEED YOUR HELP

It's impossible to watch every "Christmas" film out there and Christmas fans know some are unbearable to watch. However, if you see one on our list that you can date or tie to a specific date mas o menos, or that we got wrong, please contact us at christmascarolblog@gmail.com. You can also comment in the comments section.


Halloween (about)

Meet Me in St. Louis (1944)

(Starts in March but way to far way for our purposes, so we'll go with Halloween scenes.)

Nov. 2

The Apartment (1960)


Nov. 22

Love Actually (2003)

Dutch (1991)


Thanksgiving

Addams Family Values (1993)

Alice’s Restaurant (1969)

Beethoven (1992)

The Blind Side (2009)

The Big Chill (1983)

Broadway Danny Rose (1984)

Down and Out in Beverly Hills (1986)

Grumpy Old Men (1993)

Hannah and Her Sisters (1986)

Holidate (2020)

Miracle on 34th Street (1947)(1994)

My blue Heaven (1990)

Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles (1987)

Primary Colors (1998)

Rocky (1976)

Rocky II (1979)

Scent of a Woman (1992)

South Pacific (1958, 2021)

Spider Man (2002)

You’ve Got Mail (1998)


Sunday after Thanksgiving

Christmas with the Kranks (2004)


December 13

National Lampoons Christmas Vacation (1989)

1941 (1979)


Just Before

All I want for Christmas (1991)

Bad Moms Christmas (2017)

Bells of St. Mary’s (1945)

Black Nativity (2013)

Carol (2015)

The Christmas Candle (2013)

The Christmas Chronicles (2018)

Deck the Halls (2006)

Elf (2003)

Ernest Saves Christmas (1988)

Fred Claus (2007)

Gremlins (1984)

The Great Rupert (A Christmas With)(1950)

The Green Book (2018)

I’ll be Home for Christmas (1998)

Jingle All the Way (1996)

Just Friends (2005)

Jurassic World (2015)

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005)

Lady in the Lake (1947)

Less then Zero (1987)

Lethal Weapon (1987)

A Madea Christmas (2013)

Office Christmas Party (2016)

Prancer (1989)

Shazam! (2019)

Trading Places (1983)

3 Godfathers (1948)


December 15

It Happened on 5th Avenue (1947)(film opens Nov. 3, but main plot begins in and around Dec. 15)

December 17

The Holiday (2006)


Week Before

Batman Returns (1992)

A Christmas Story Christmas (2022)

Elf (2003)

Grumpy Old Men (1993)

The Holy and the Ivy (1952)

The Lemon Drop Kid (1951)

Love the Coopers (2015)

Noelle (2019)

Nothing Like the Holidays (2008)


December 20

White Christmas (1954)(we tried dating this because about 5 nights pass with the fifth being Christmas Eve)


December 21

Almost Christmas (2011)

December 22

Almost Christmas (2011)

The Bishop's Wife (1947)

Christmas in Connecticut (1945)

Home Alone (1990)


December 21

A Christmas Story (1983)

December 23

Four Christmases (2008)

Holiday Affair (1949)

Home Alone: Lost in New York (1992)

I’ll be seeing you (1944)

Joyeux Noël (2005)

The Family Stone (2005)

One Magic Christmas (1985)

Surviving Christmas (2018)

This Christmas (2007)


Christmas Eve

Nutcracker Adaptions

Bad Santa (2003)

Bad Santa 2 (2016)

Christmas Chronicles (2018) Netflix

Dicken’s Christmas Carol Adaptions

Die Hard (1988)

Die Hard 2 (1990)

Exit Speed (2008)

Fitzwilly (1967)

Friday after Next (2002)

The Great Rupert (A Christmas Gift)

The Ice Harvest (2005)

It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)

Love the Coopers (2015)

Margie Claus (2019)

Merry Friggin Christmas (2014)

Noel (2004)

Period of Adjustment (1962)

The Polar Express (2004)

The Ref (1994)

Rent (2005)

The Santa Clause (1994)

Santa Clause: The Movie (1985)

Serendipity (2001)

Susan Slept here (1954)

While You Were Sleeping (1995)

White Christmas (1954)(films starts on Christmas Eve 1944)


Christmas Day

Arthur Christmas (2011)

The Family Man (2000)

Mixed Nuts

Rocky IV (1985)

Trapped in Paradise (1994)


New Years Eve

The Apartment (1960) - ending begins on New Years Eve

New Years

The Apartment (1960) - ends just past 12:00 A.M.

I've placed films in this category that span the New Year.

I’ll be seeing you (1944)

Trading Places

While You Were Sleeping (1995)


Undated

Jack Frost (1998)

Pocket Full of Miracles (1961)

Santa Claus: The Movie (1985)

Santa with Muscle (1996)

Trading Places (1983)

Why Him (2016)


Notes:

1. We retired the term "Around Christmas Movies" in November 2024 and replaced it with "Christmas Adjacent" as that seem to be the term being used on the Christmas podcasts.

 

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