Relive the Magic of Christmas Past With These Classic Films

The holiday season is upon us. Christmas decorations are going up along the streets, Christmas trees are being put up, and people are making plans for Christmas eve. A good way to get into the right mood for the holidays is to watch a good Christmas movie and the best kind are classic Hollywood pictures that can take you right back to what Christmas felt like when you were a kid.

Miracle on 34th Street (1947)

The movie is a Christmas classic in the US and elsewhere. It tells the story of an old man who accidentally takes Santa's seat at the local department store and ends up believing he is Santa Claus for real. His kindness and sincerity help numerous children until a psychiatrist turns up, suspecting the old man is bonkers. It's a great Christmas tale to watch as a family.

The Shop Around the Corner (1940)

This classic 1940s Hollywood Christmas romcom has entertained several generations of viewers. 80 years after its release, it still clicks with audiences thanks to its great story. A gift shop clerk falls in love with a pen pal he has never met in person. All sorts of misadventures and mistakes ensue but it all ends well.

Christmas in Connecticut (1945)

Christmas in Connecticut is a 1945 American romantic comedy film directed by Peter Godfrey and starring Barbara Stanwyck, Dennis Morgan, and Sydney Greenstreet. The film follows a successful food columnist named Elizabeth Lane (played by Stanwyck) who writes a column about her idyllic life as a farmer and housewife in Connecticut. However, her columns are all lies and she is actually a single, career woman living in New York City.

When the editor of the magazine she writes for decides to have her host a Christmas dinner at her "farm" in Connecticut, Elizabeth has to scramble to find a farm and a man to pose as her husband for the holidays. The situation gets even more complicated when a guest at the Christmas dinner turns out to be a sailor Elizabeth fell in love with during World War II.

Holiday Inn (1942)

This Hollywood musical follows a singer/dancer who quits show business to become a farmer. But he finds life on the farm unbearably boring so he creates a country club that numerous guests gather at for the holidays.

It Happened on 5th Avenue (1947)

This comedy follows a homeless man who spends cold winters in expensive seasonal mansions whose owners are away. He is attracted to houses that belong to local millionaires and offer all sorts of luxuries. One day he meets another homeless man and an 18-year-old runaway who escaped from her despotic father and invites them in. The only trouble is they don't know who the main character really is.