My Top 10 Favourite Christmas Films Of All Time

MY TOP 10 FAVOURITE CHRISTMAS FILMS OF ALL TIME

It's here! It's finally here! After 12 long months, Christmas has finally arrived. A time for rejoicing, a time for family and a time to watch some of the greatest movies ever made. Every year, filmmakers endeavor to make the next perennial Christmas classic and while thousands fail, some directors actually manage to tap into our love, our feelings and our attitudes towards the festive season, creating some of the most timeless and beloved pictures in movie history. Everyone has there favourites as of course do I, so as the frost glistens on the window sill, as the decorations and lights brighten up your tree and as you wolf down as many mince pies and Terry's Chocolate Orange segments as is physically possible, here is my list of the top 10 films to make your yuletide merry and bright;

10) Elf (2003) - I may not be the biggest fan of Will Ferrell, but he shines here in John Favreau's hilarious fable of a young man who is bought up by Santa's elves and travels to New York to find his real father at Christmas time. Full of witty dialogue, well executed physical comedy and an infectious love for the festive season, 'Elf' is a film that should melt the coldest of hearts. After all, ''the best way to spread Christmas cheer, is singing loud for all to hear"''

9) Joyeux Noel (2005) - Now, this is a film that many people may not have even heard of, but it is a picture that really does deserve to be seen at this time of year. Telling the unbelievable true story of the Christmas day armistice, 'Joyeux Noel' recalls the time when French, Scottish and German troops laid down their arms for Christmas Eve in the trenches during the First World War; even so far as playing football and taking part in a communal midnight mass. Forming friendships that not even war could break, 'Joyeux Noel' cements our beliefs in the human spirit and shows that even during the most bloody and vicious times, Christmas can really bring out the best in people and while bullets and mines can cause fatal damage, nothing is stronger than compassion and love for your fellow man.

8) Die Hard (1988) - The movie that demonstrates that there is no such thing as a traditional Christmas film. Rather than sleigh bells, Santa and presents, all I want for Christmas this year is Alan Rickman shouting in German and Bruce Willis running around screaming 'Yippee Ki Yay Melon Farmer!' John McTiernan's pulse racing classic takes the conventional one man against the world formula and throws in for good measure 'The Towering Inferno' and the end result is a hugely entertaining thrill ride, telling the story of a bunch of terrorists taking over a tower block on Christmas Eve. Full of bullets, blood, sweat and swearing, 'Die Hard' is the definitive movie for those who like their Christmas films with a more action and not so much sentimentality and sweetness.

7) Trading Places (1983) - As everyone sadly knows, Christmas can be a time of unbelievable greed, wealth and jealousy and no film portrays this better than John Landis' brilliantly subversive comedy 'Trading Places' that shows what happens when the rich become poor and the poor become rich. Featuring career best performances from Eddie Murphy and Dan Aykroyd as well as a very strong and funny supporting cast which includes the gorgeous Jamie Lee Curtis, Denholm Elliot and Ralph Bellamy, 'Trading Places' is a very well acted and very funny romp that shows beneath the suits, mansions and facade, we all want the same things in life and there is no better time than Christmas to get them.

6) Miracle On 34th Street (1947) - While many people would go for the 1994 version of 'Miracle On 34th Street', I always turn to the classic black and white original for all of my Kris Kringle-y needs at this time of year. Telling the heartwarming tale of what happens when Santa comes to Manhattan, 'Miracle On 34th Street' is a film that can make believers out of the most stubborn of us. Edmund Gwenn is dead on perfect as the jolly man in red and his conviction and power in the central role makes this perennial classic a must see for everyone.

5) National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989) - While the film may be remembered for the slapstick and hilariously quotable dialogue, 'National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation' echoes quite beautiful the hopes and dreams that all of us have for the festive season. Trying his absolute best to pull out the stops and give his family the best Christmas possible, Clark Griswold is a man that reflects all of my desires and wishes for December 25th. He tries as hard as is humanely possible to make Christmas merry and bright and it is heartbreaking to see things not go exactly the way they planned. Yes, it may be very, very funny indeed and is of course compulsory watching every year. But beneath the pratfalls, explosions and  tearaway squirrels, 'National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation' is for me one of the most relatable and heart warming Christmas films ever made.

4) Black Christmas (1974) - As a film fan, the greatest thing about Christmas is that it has become corrupted with cult movies and films such as 'Gremlins', 'Brazil' and 'Eyes Wide Shut'; movies that  highlight the darker side of this usually joy filled time. And crowning this tower of filth and depravity is Bob Clark's unbelievably creepy 1974 proto- slasher 'Black Christmas'; the forerunner of all stalk and slash movies. Not only one of my favourite Christmas films but my all time favourite horror film, 'Black Christmas' tells the story of a group of girls who are hunted down one by one at Christmas by a crazed killer who is living in the attic of their sorority house. Creating all of the conventions and scare techniques that would be later replicated by any number of inferior films in the late 70's and early 80's, 'Black Christmas' forged the template for what would become the modern slasher. However, while many of it's contemporaries but story and characters secondary to the blood and gore, 'Black Christmas' dispenses with violence and instead creates a terrifyingly palpable air of terror and threat through ingenious camera work and an unrelenting soundtrack. Just as scary as it was in 1974, 'Black Christmas' is an absolute must see for horror fans and those who like their yuletide to have a bit more darkness. You better watch out...

3) Love Actually (2003) - Yes, it may be saccharine sweet and full of intergalactically unbelievable coincidences, but it is nigh on impossible to give into the charm and joy of Richard Curtis' 'Love Actually'. Featuring almost every popular British actor including such as Hugh Grant, Keira Knightly, Rowan Atkinson, Liam Neeson, Emma Thompson, Colin Firth, Bill Nighy, I could go on, 'Love Actually' is the ultimate British rom - com and while it may drag in certain parts, a large majority of the film is pure guilty pleasure. Hilarious, heart warming and in some moments, desperately tragic, 'Love Actually' is a romantic comedy fans dream come true and if you haven't seen it, I highly recommend this tale of love and loss.

2) The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992) - There have of course been many adaptations of Charles Dickens' classic story, but for me 'The Muppets Christmas Carol' tops them all. Telling the now world famous story of Ebenezer Scrooge, 'The Muppets Christmas Carol' mixes the narrative of the book with the same slapstick comedy that we have come to expect from the overgrown sock puppets and the end result is a hugely entertaining and sometimes quite scary fable that is for many of my friends and family members, the best Christmas movie of all time. Michael Caine is the best on screen Scrooge and while the Muppets are still as funny as ever, they blend very well into the plot and do nothing to dilute the message or the power of the original text.

1) It's A Wonderful Life (1946) - This has to have been expected. Nothing even comes close. Topping not only mine but a huge majority of the polls taken at this time of year, 'It's A Wonderful Life' is for me the greatest Christmas film of all time. Jimmy Stewart is sublime as a man driven to suicidal despair by the financial collapse of his family at Christmastime, but as he is about to kill himself an angel appears and shows him just how much of a difference he has made to the world. Yes the story may be pure schmaltz, but the power of the story and the dedication of the performances are impossible to ignore. Showing how just one innocuous person can change the world for the better, 'It's A Wonderful Life' is a life affirming, deeply moving and hugely uplifting film that should be seen by every person of every age. Ignore the black and white, ignore the now dated dialogue, ignore the sometimes over the top performances, 'It's A Wonderful Life' is an experience like no other and when all is said and done, nothing can beat it for pure Christmas magic.

Merry Christmas!