Kermode Uncut: The Top Ten Alternative Christmas Movies
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- Опубликовано: 5 авг 2024
- I love It's A Wonderful Life and all those other seasonal classics but I also enjoy the darker side of Christmas cinema... Here I give you my top ten alternatives to traditional festive film fare.
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Sure it won't count as Alternative, but... Muppet Christmas Carol.
The best version of a classic tale.
Tokyo Godfathers by Satoshi Kon should be on this list
I'd love to see Mark Kermode's Top Ten Beatles Songs - presumably it might contain
10. Stairway to Heaven
9. Jumping Jack Flash
8. Heard It Through the Grapevine
7...etc
trading places!?
Lethal Weapon and Bad Santa are great suggestions. Die Hard at number 2 is definitely something i can agree with.
Oh my god ! No Eyes Wide Shut! Love you Kermode. This list was great till #1. But xmon!
Lethal Weapon is a good Christmas film too
Ah, ha-ha! I love it--'The French Connection' is on the list! But it's great to see Bob Clark's 'Black Christmas' put there as well. I agree with 'Santa Claus Conquers the Martians' (the MST3K riff version.) One that's missing? 'Better Off Dead' (1985.) Not a Christmas film, but it has a classic Christmas scene: "I'm sorry your mom blew up, Ricky."
Comfort and Joy...my must see every year!
I like the Ref, ..."I've kidnapped my parents." If all you need to qualify is that the movie be set around Christmastime, how about The Odessa File or even Enemy of the State.
Terry Pratchett's "Hogfather" should be in there. That was just so well done.
Loved Comfort & Joy. Bill Forsyth's film's are criminally overlooked. Really hard to find them on British TV for example
Jingle All the Way was obviously written as a critique of consumerism - noone who's paid any attention to the script could deny that. But at some point, it seems to have been passed into the hands of filmmakers who didn't get the critique, and decided to play it straight.
For me, it's 'On Her Majesty's Secret Service'.
I really do have to get round to seeing Brazil, I panicked when he almost spoiled it.
No Lethal Weapon??? Riggs buying coke and getting a free Christmas tree? Jingle Bell Rock? "What day is it boy?" "It's god damn Christmas!!!" Come on!
I'm surprised no one brings up Billy Wilder's The Apartment when it comes to Christmas films, it's a terrific piece of cinema, which is set over the holiday period!
Totally agree, its a masterpiece and dark and alternative...big sophisticated adult themes in there too...
Bad Santa??
Wow, calling some of these a "Christmas movie" is quite a stretch. It's like calling "The Longest Day" a beach movie.
Yes! Thank you. :)
The Apartment
I watched its a wonderful life. Right up to the last scene i was not getting why its so loved. Then i cried. Oh thats why.
Perfect
That "ho ho ho" at the beginning was scary as hell.
The City of Lost Children......... people you need this in your Christmas
A Very Merry Christmas and Happy Yuletide upon you all :)
@kermodeandmayo you might not know this Mark but recently Cate Blanchett named that as one of her favourite movies, Rare Exports, Mark.
Where's Gremlins.... I adore that movie. It's like the best B monster movie ever masquerading as a Christmas film.
I'd argue Lethal Weapon is a more deserving spot as a Christmas movie than die hard. I love die hard but I feel Lethal Weapon features more of the same themes featured in a Christmas movie. Family, redemption, new beginnings
Batman returns
Rewatched it recently and it sucks, hard. Evey bit as bad as batman forever.
+Michael O'Hare I like both but, I would say Forever is better as its dose invole Batman in the plot, in returns he dose so little that you replace him with Spiderman, Superman, Wolverine, Thor, the Flash, the Hulk or Beethoven and it be the same movie.
Perhaps you'll consider including 'Carol' next year.
My favourite alternative Christmas movie is Eyes Wide Shut.
Great list Mark, and a happy Christmas to you! Edward Scissorhands? Or is that too mainstream?
John Water's Female Trouble.
Three Days of the Condor?
The finale of The Proposition takes place on Christmas Day. Would that count?
Yes Bad Santa is up there, Mark was wearing his tinsel tinted glasses during this review
The Wild Geese.
@PompamooseMagique Totally forgot about that one.... classic flick!
Tragedy of Joyce Vincent gave us good movie and best album of 2015.
Rare Exports was great but I was disappointed by the ending - you always blow up the bomb.
Brazil! Eff yeah!
leathel weapon must have place in this list
Bit surprised The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo didn't make this list.
jingle all the way should have been way higher but glad to see it in!
Catch me if you can and L.A. Confidential are my favourite alternative christmas films.
Glad Die Hard was in :)
What about it happened on 5th avenue (1949)
Particularly fond of the Hogfather
love mr kermode brazil and love and death two of my favourite movies ever, tho hate the exocist and mary poppins., we might get on
Trading Places - Eddie and Dan on top form......never realised that it is also a Christmas film amongst other things
What about Silent Night Deadly Night?
@Gadget3440 Haha, yes, awesome Christmas movie.
@NorthSea0il ...was set during Thanksgiving. Not Xmas.
There is only one - Bad Santa!
Planes, trains and automobiles:)
What about the french horror Inside (À l'intérieur). Set on Christmas Eve, pregnant lady and lots of red!
Jingle all the way is awesome
L.A. confidential, Bloody Christmas.
woh! rare exports looks amazing, ... Jean Pierre Juenet and Marc Caro's The City of Lost Children is the finest alternative christmas movie ever made, its opening creepy multiple Santa nightmare scene alone should secure a spot at the top. If you havent seen it, SEE IT!!!
THE CITY OF LOST CHILDREN
THE CITY OF LOST CHILDREN
THE CITY OF LOST CHILDREN
Would have been nice to see the Dutch comedy horror film "Sint" (Saint) mentioned.
Resident evil 4 remake looking fire
Where has he spoken about Gremlins?
The Hunt?
Jingle all the Way is a classic 90's film!.
@Reilavac Damn! I thought of that, then saw your comment. Beat me.
Wake in fright was a good Christmas film
Where was Bad Santa?
my christmas movies are scrooged, bad santa and the ref
@NorthSea0il Its about Thanksgiving, not Christmas.
Go by Doug Liman
I was going to declare you insane if you didn't include Die Hard.
Eyes Wide Shut.
EYES WIDE SHUT!!!
Oh Mark, you've missed a trick there. The real alternative (and least 'Christmasy') Christmas film is The Proposition. Ray Winstone gives Guy Pearce until Christmas Day to turn his brother in. And [SPOILER] there's a rape, what could be more Christamasy than that?
Mean Girls. Three words: Jingle Bell Rocks.
Trading Places!
In Bruges
Eyes Wide Shut. The Shining. Scarface remake ; cocaine buys lots of gift. Doctor Zhivago. Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence. A.I. The Godfather. Mr. Arkadin. Wicker Park. L'Appartement. Twilight saga. The Thing. McCabe and Mrs. Miller.
Batman Returns?
Phil Hartman is funny in Jingle All The Way.
ok...
bad santa is by far the best christmas movie.
Edward Scissorhands!
Le père Noel est une ordure, a french comedy, is in my opinion the best alternative Christmas movie of all time, it deals with suicide, murder and it's hillariously absurd.
No Gremlins? O.o
Batman Returns
The Silent Partner 1978
Nice list, but it needs Batman Returns
Silent Partner, 1978
trains planes and automobiles
The Godfather takes place during Christmas at the beginning....
you should* always blow up the bomb.
SCROOGED?
L.A Confidential!
p2
Wake in Fright
Tokyo Godfathers!
Child's Play
A young boy gets a good guy doll as a Christmas present from his mum during the snowy season. Only his present just so happens to be possessed by a voodoo-worshipping serial killer. Ho ho ho indeed. :P
L.A.Confidential