Edward Paul Chia
It’s the festive season yet again and you’re just itching for a suitable movie to satisfy that visual craving, after all with the crowds thronging the malls in search of last minute Christmas gifts, and everything at Christmas time costing a bomb, you’d rather stay home. But the trouble is you just can’t decide what movie to rent from the mammoth collection that the rental store has.
Adapting a line from the phenomenally underwhelming movie Underdog, “Netizens, there’s no need to fear! UrbanWireis here!”
We’ve decided to list our all-time favourite top 10 Christmas movies. And it’s not yet another generic cringe-worthy list filled with the usual Santa in some form or other.
UrbanWire sifted through genres seemingly un-Christmassy, spending hours rooted on the couch with popcorn, potato chips and other calorie-inducing snacks to give you a list that’s sure to keep you glued to your TV screen this Christmas season.
The Tim Burton Series
Tim Burton’s gothic and extremely quirky stories and treatment might seem totally unsuitable for Christmas, but it’s certainly refreshing in the face of all that sugar-coated Christmas cheer!
UrbanWire recommends 2 Burton films if you’re feeling indifferent this Christmas season. Be warned. With the strong moralistic undertones in these fantasy stories tugging at your heartstrings, you might need a few boxes of tissue to dab away the tears.
Arguably one of Johnny Depp’s most definitive roles, Edward Scissorhands is a tale of a human (created by an ageing inventor) with scissors for hands, who’s taken from his lonely existence in a rundown hilltop mansion and placed in a modern American suburb. Cursed to be misunderstood and manipulated by others outside his adopted family, the naïve Edward struggles to be accepted.
After all, isn’t Christmas all about acceptance?
2. The Nightmare Before Christmas
Produced by Burton, the 1993 stop-motion
animation movie follows Jack Skellington, the king of Halloween Town who’s grown bored of his monotonous lifestyle. Enamoured by the cheery and happy lifestyle led by those in Christmas Town, the skeleton-like character plots to merge Halloween and Christmas into one enticing mega holiday spectacle, but with calamitous and highly interesting consequences, with Jack acting posing as Santa Claus, Christmas just got a whole lot scarier.
The Let’s-Blow–Something-Up List
Some might argue that Christmas movies tend to be an action fan’s worst nightmare, since they run with generic happy themes. Rare as they might be, there have been Christmas-related movies which revolve around 2 words that’ll keep any adrenaline junkie satisfied- mayhem and carnage.
UrbanWire recommends 2 movies with enough destruction that’ll leave you thinking all hell just broke loose.
1. Die Hard
This 1988 action film transformed Bruce Willis from credible TV actor to international action star. Willis plays brash New York City detective John McClane who arrives in Los Angeles during the Christmas period in an attempt to reconcile with his estranged wife Holly.
When terrorists take over the building where her company is having their Christmas bash, it’s up to the wise-cracking McClane who’s also present at the party to unleash his warped version of Christmas cheer filled with gunfire, explosions and punches on the diabolical evil-doers.
The 20-year-old thriller starring Mel Gibson and
Danny Glover spawned a successful series spanning just over 10 years and 4 movies in total.
When the destructive widowed Detective Sergeant Martin Riggs (Gibson) is assigned as a partner to old-timer Detective Sergeant Roger Murtaugh (Glover), the chalk and cheese duo are tasked with investigating the alleged suicide of Murtagh’s former partner’s daughter.
Soon enough, the pair uncovers a drug-smuggling ring which serves as the catalyst for this gun-slinging adventure.
Comedy Soothes An Empty Wallet
You’re probably stuck at home because you’ve spent all your money on presents. While Christmas might be all about spreading the cheer, you’re sad because you’re simply too broke to be happy.
UrbanWirerecommends 3 movies filled with enough laughter to turn that scowl into a beaming smile.
A complex investigative movie laced with plenty of hilarious moments, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang stars Robert Downey Jr as Harry Lockhart, a small-time crook turned actor and Val Kilmer as a gay private investigator ironically named Gay Perry who are both embroiled in a series of interesting murder investigations, which includes Harry having a dead body mysteriously dumped in his toilet and him discovering it when he was peeing.
Highly praised but overlooked by mainstream audiences due to its limited screenings. According to The Internet Movie Database (IMdb), the 2005 Phoenix Film Critics Society gave the movie the award for “Most Overlooked Movie”.
2. Dr Seuss’ How The Grinch Stole Christmas
It’s probably Jim Carrey’s ugliest role to date. 
Playing the Grinch in the re-make of the book and cartoon of the same name, Carrey’s eponymous character is one grouchy, misunderstood and hairy creature who isn’t as malevolent or malicious as he appears to be. When the Grinch feels betrayed and humiliated by the local townsfolk, he plots to wreck Christmas for the entire town of Whoville.
An adaptation of the classic Charles Dickens novel A Christmas Carol, the film offers not only the highly accomplished Michael Caine aka Alfred the Butler in Batman Begins as the greedy Ebenezer Scrooge, but also plenty of your favourite, funny and lovable Muppets like Kermit the Frog and his squealing love Miss Piggy.
The “Awww… Shucks” List
At the end of the day, Christmas is about spending time with your loved ones. And there’s arguably no better time in the year to watch a family-themed movie than Christmas!
And while Santa might be a huge draw with his white beard and merry cheer, UrbanWire recommends these 3 family-themed movies that best show a person’s need for family and companionship.
1. Home Alone 1
2. Home Alone 2: Lost in New York
Macaulay Culkin’s career might have peaked a little too soon, but UrbanWire‘s not complaining. After all Home Alone 1 and 2 are always good bets for the Christmas season.
When Kevin McAllister (Culkin) is accidentally left alone at home, or in the sequel’s case misplaced in New York following a wrong flight, the highly intelligent and cunning youngster has to survive on his own and at the same time, outwit a pair of dim-witted bumbling burglars played by Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern.
It was the film that showed us that Hugh 
Grant can dance even before his portrayal as a has-been pop star in Music and Lyrics.
Intricately woven with 8 separate plots somehow interlinking with each other, Love Actually is packed with a star-studded British cast that also includes Colin Firth, Liam Neeson and Rowan Atkinson. Employing traditional Brit humour and wit, it might sound corny, but the film which spans love of almost every persuasion- gay, puppy, best friend’s wife, waning, sex-centric and across social classes and language differences, has something for everyone.