<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><rss xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/" xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/" xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom" version="2.0" xmlns:itunes="http://www.itunes.com/dtds/podcast-1.0.dtd" xmlns:googleplay="http://www.google.com/schemas/play-podcasts/1.0"><channel><title><![CDATA[ Retro Movie Reviews: Rankings]]></title><description><![CDATA[Who's #1? All sorts of Rankings can be found in this section.]]></description><link>https://www.rickretro.com/s/rankings</link><image><url>https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,w_256,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png</url><title> Retro Movie Reviews: Rankings</title><link>https://www.rickretro.com/s/rankings</link></image><generator>Substack</generator><lastBuildDate>Wed, 15 Apr 2026 04:27:26 GMT</lastBuildDate><atom:link href="https://www.rickretro.com/feed" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml"/><copyright><![CDATA[Rick Retro]]></copyright><language><![CDATA[en]]></language><webMaster><![CDATA[rickretro@substack.com]]></webMaster><itunes:owner><itunes:email><![CDATA[rickretro@substack.com]]></itunes:email><itunes:name><![CDATA[Rick Retro]]></itunes:name></itunes:owner><itunes:author><![CDATA[Rick Retro]]></itunes:author><googleplay:owner><![CDATA[rickretro@substack.com]]></googleplay:owner><googleplay:email><![CDATA[rickretro@substack.com]]></googleplay:email><googleplay:author><![CDATA[Rick Retro]]></googleplay:author><itunes:block><![CDATA[Yes]]></itunes:block><item><title><![CDATA[Silver and Gold]]></title><description><![CDATA[Rick Retro&#8217;s Rankings #11: Counting down #2 to #1 All-Time Best Christmas Movies (w/ Retro Reviews up to 2026-01-12)]]></description><link>https://www.rickretro.com/p/silver-and-gold</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.rickretro.com/p/silver-and-gold</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Rick Retro]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Sat, 17 Jan 2026 21:01:00 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!-YP2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fd0b3354a-0520-4544-b2a9-d43b4e413078_1248x832.png" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><strong>Rick Retro&#8217;s Rankings #11:</strong> <em>Counting down #5 to #3 All-Time Best Christmas Movies (feature length, w/ Retro Reviews up to 2026-01-12) </em></p><p><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/three-kings-of-christmas">&#11013;&#65039;Previous (all sections)</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/three-kings-of-christmas">&#11013;&#65039;Previous</a> | Next &#10145;&#65039; | Next (all sections) &#10145;&#65039;</p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!-YP2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fd0b3354a-0520-4544-b2a9-d43b4e413078_1248x832.png" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" 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class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg role="img" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><title></title><path d="M2.53001 7.81595C3.49179 4.73911 6.43281 2.5 9.91173 2.5C13.1684 2.5 15.9537 4.46214 17.0852 7.23684L17.6179 8.67647M17.6179 8.67647L18.5002 4.26471M17.6179 8.67647L13.6473 6.91176M17.4995 12.1841C16.5378 15.2609 13.5967 17.5 10.1178 17.5C6.86118 17.5 4.07589 15.5379 2.94432 12.7632L2.41165 11.3235M2.41165 11.3235L1.5293 15.7353M2.41165 11.3235L6.38224 13.0882"></path></g></svg></button><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container view-image"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 lucide-maximize-2"><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></button></div></div></div></a></figure></div><p>After completing our <strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/31-days-of-christmas-the-itinerary">2025 Christmas Tour</a></strong> and finishing the <strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/whats-that-in-the-fridge">2025 Christmas Leftovers</a></strong>, I&#8217;ve now reviewed 25 feature-length Christmas movies. Since I watched and analyzed all 25 twice in two years, <strong>I&#8217;ve Retro-actively re-graded and re-ranked a few of them</strong>, after this season&#8217;s second viewing.</p><p>The movies ranked #2 to #1 in our updated rankings of All-Time Best Christmas Movies are both superb, and to me, only slightly better than #5 to #3. For me, one seems objectively the better movie, but the other touched me more personally. I won&#8217;t say which is which, because both are objectively fantastic, and both hit me emotionally too. So your mileage may vary. Read on to see which film I&#8217;m awarding a Silver medal, and which one earns the Gold! I hope both of these films are holiday staples with you and your family! Read our Retro Reviews linked below to learn why they should be, and if you haven&#8217;t seen one or both, make plans to see them this coming Christmas!</p><p>If you want to see how #2 to #1 were graded and ranked after my <strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/2024-christmas-tour">2024 Christmas Tour</a></strong> and <strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/2024-christmas-follow-up">2024 Christmas Leftovers</a></strong>, <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-2-to-1">look here</a>.</p><p><strong>Previous Countdowns of the All-Time Best Christmas Movies </strong><em>(feature length, with Retro Reviews up to January 12, 2026)</em>:<strong><br><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/christmas-movies-our-bottom-ten">Counting down from #25 to #16</a><br><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-handful-of-christmas-classics">Counting down from #15 to #11</a><br><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-handful-of-christmas-whimsy">Counting down from #10 to #6</a><br><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/three-kings-of-christmas">Counting down from #5 to #3</a></strong></p><p><strong>Counting down from #2 to #1:</strong></p><p>I&#8217;m ranking the overall quality of movies that are widely regarded as Christmas movies, <em>not</em> how well these movies demonstrate holiday spirit or even fit a Christmas theme.</p><p><em>Reminder:</em> The arrow after a grade indicates if it is in the top third (^), middle third (&gt;), or lower third (v) of works that share the same letter grade. The icons for <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/reference-entertainment-quality-line">EQ (Entertainment Quality)</a> grades are as follows&#128077;Overall Entertainment Quality, &#128214; Story, &#128101; Characters,&#128253;&#65039; Visuals,&#127932; Soundtrack. <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/reference-my-view-line">Alignment with Judeo-Christian values</a> range from +4 <strong>&#10013;&#65039;</strong>&#10062;4&#65039;&#8419; down to -4 <strong>&#10013;&#65039;</strong>&#9940;4&#65039;&#8419;.</p><p><em>Also:</em> This post looks much better in your browser than on the Substack app, because the images in the links are not included in the version of the post that the app will show you. Go to rickretro.com in your desktop or mobile browser for the better rendition of this post.</p><h1>&#129352;#2 A+^</h1><h3>&#128077;A++ | &#128214;A+ &#128101;A+ &#128253;&#65039;A+ &#127932;A+<br>&#10013;&#65039;&#10062;4&#65039;&#8419;</h3><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;d1a31354-906a-4ad5-9767-ab13221497f1&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;It&#8217;s a Wonderful Life (1946) &#8212; The Frank Capra&#8211;James Stewart all-time Christmas classic that blesses viewers every holiday season.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;It&#8217;s a Wonderful Life (1946)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-06T16:15:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F42b57359-cbef-48fe-8022-4e75a8bff592_1010x622.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/its-a-wonderful-life-1946&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:157139380,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:1,&quot;comment_count&quot;:1,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>&#129351;#1 A+^</h1><h3>&#128077;A++ | &#128214;A+ &#128101;A+ &#128253;&#65039;A+ &#127932;A+<br>&#10013;&#65039;&#10062;2&#65039;&#8419;</h3><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;d6788098-e597-4aaf-b33e-f9cf10231fbe&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;A Christmas Story (1983) &#8212; Could this be the best Christmas Dark Whimsy since Dickens?&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;A Christmas Story (1983)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-13T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!6jjQ!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff40b62d8-c910-425c-9726-7e0a606914c7_3500x1969.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-christmas-story-1983&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:181477587,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:2,&quot;comment_count&quot;:1,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><p>Now it&#8217;s time for your thoughts. Which of my Top 5 is your #1 Christmas Movie? We&#8217;d love to hear <em>why</em> it&#8217;s your favorite in the comments!</p><div class="poll-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;id&quot;:434647}" data-component-name="PollToDOM"></div><p class="button-wrapper" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/silver-and-gold/comments&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Leave a comment&quot;,&quot;action&quot;:null,&quot;class&quot;:null}" data-component-name="ButtonCreateButton"><a class="button primary" href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/silver-and-gold/comments"><span>Leave a comment</span></a></p><p>If your #1 Christmas Movie is not represented in the poll above, tell us which holiday film is your favorite in the comments. Also, let us know which Christmas movies I should review at the end of 2026 so that they can be included on next year&#8217;s list. I have a few in mind, but I want your input!</p><p class="button-wrapper" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/silver-and-gold/comments&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Leave a comment&quot;,&quot;action&quot;:null,&quot;class&quot;:null}" data-component-name="ButtonCreateButton"><a class="button primary" href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/silver-and-gold/comments"><span>Leave a comment</span></a></p><p>Thanks for joining us on our in-depth 2025 look at Christmas films since the start of December!  I leave you with the final list of <strong>The All-Time Best Christmas Movies #1-25 </strong><em>(feature length, with Retro Reviews up to January 12, 2026)</em>:</p><ol><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-christmas-story-1983">A Christmas Story</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-christmas-story-1983"> (1983)</a></strong> <strong>A+^</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/its-a-wonderful-life-1946">It&#8217;s a Wonderful Life</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/its-a-wonderful-life-1946"> (1946)</a></strong> <strong>A+^</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/die-hard-1988">Die Hard</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/die-hard-1988"> (1988)</a></strong> <strong>A+^</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/elf-2003">Elf</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/elf-2003"> (2003)</a></strong> <strong>A+^</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/the-muppet-christmas-carol-1992">The Muppet Christmas Carol</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/the-muppet-christmas-carol-1992"> (1992)</a></strong> <strong>A+^</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/edward-scissorhands-1990">Edward Scissorhands</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/edward-scissorhands-1990"> (1990)</a></strong> <strong>A+^</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/youve-got-mail-1998">You&#8217;ve Got Mail</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/youve-got-mail-1998"> (1998)</a></strong> <strong>A+^</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/the-nightmare-before-christmas-1993">The Nightmare Before Christmas</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/the-nightmare-before-christmas-1993"> (1993)</a></strong> <strong>A+&gt;</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/gremlins-1984">Gremlins</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/gremlins-1984"> (1984)</a></strong> <strong>A+v</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/national-lampoons-christmas-vacation">National Lampoon&#8217;s Christmas Vacation</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/national-lampoons-christmas-vacation"> (1989)</a></strong> <strong>A+v</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-christmas-carol-1938">A Christmas Carol</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-christmas-carol-1938"> (1938)</a></strong> <strong>A+v</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/christmas-in-connecticut-1945">Christmas in Connecticut</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/christmas-in-connecticut-1945"> (1945)</a></strong> <strong>A ^</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/the-shop-around-the-corner-1940">The Shop Around the Corner</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/the-shop-around-the-corner-1940"> (1940)</a></strong> <strong>A ^</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/white-christmas-1954">White Christmas</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/white-christmas-1954"> (1954)</a></strong> <strong>A ^</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/miracle-on-34th-street-1947">Miracle on 34th Street</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/miracle-on-34th-street-1947"> (1947)</a></strong> <strong>A ^</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/scrooge-1935">Scrooge</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/scrooge-1935"> (1935)</a></strong> <strong>A ^</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/home-alone-1990">Home Alone</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/home-alone-1990"> (1990)</a></strong> <strong>A-v</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/in-the-good-old-summertime-1949">In the Good Old Summertime</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/in-the-good-old-summertime-1949"> (1949)</a></strong> <strong>B+^</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/babes-in-toyland-1934-aka-march-of">Babes in Toyland</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/babes-in-toyland-1934-aka-march-of"> (1934) (aka </a></strong><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/babes-in-toyland-1934-aka-march-of">March of the Wooden Soldiers</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/babes-in-toyland-1934-aka-march-of">)</a></strong> <strong>B+&gt;</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/the-santa-clause-1994">The Santa Clause</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/the-santa-clause-1994"> (1994)</a></strong> <strong>B+v</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/love-actually-2003">Love Actually</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/love-actually-2003"> (2003)</a></strong> <strong>B ^</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/trading-places-1983">Trading Places</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/trading-places-1983"> (1983)</a></strong> <strong>B ^</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/scrooged-1988">Scrooged</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/scrooged-1988"> (1988)</a></strong> <strong>C ^</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/black-christmas-1974">Black Christmas</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/black-christmas-1974"> (1974)</a></strong> <strong>D+&gt;</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/bad-santa-2003">Bad Santa</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/bad-santa-2003"> (2003)</a></strong> <strong>D ^</strong></p></li></ol><div class="subscription-widget-wrap-editor" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/subscribe?&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Subscribe&quot;,&quot;language&quot;:&quot;en&quot;}" data-component-name="SubscribeWidgetToDOM"><div class="subscription-widget show-subscribe"><div class="preamble"><p class="cta-caption">More Retro Rankings will be on the way. Subscribe to have them delivered free to your in-box, and join our debates!</p></div><form class="subscription-widget-subscribe"><input type="email" class="email-input" name="email" placeholder="Type your email&#8230;" tabindex="-1"><input type="submit" class="button primary" value="Subscribe"><div class="fake-input-wrapper"><div class="fake-input"></div><div class="fake-button"></div></div></form></div></div><div><hr></div><p><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/three-kings-of-christmas">&#11013;&#65039;Previous (all sections)</a> | Next (all sections) &#10145;&#65039;</p><h6>Last updated 2026-01-16</h6>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[Three Kings of Christmas]]></title><description><![CDATA[Rick Retro&#8217;s Rankings #10: Counting down #5 to #3 All-Time Best Christmas Movies (w/ Retro Reviews up to 2026-01-12)]]></description><link>https://www.rickretro.com/p/three-kings-of-christmas</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.rickretro.com/p/three-kings-of-christmas</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Rick Retro]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Fri, 16 Jan 2026 21:01:15 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!GZHO!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F52923480-967b-4766-975a-1d540600e8bb_1248x832.png" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><strong>Rick Retro&#8217;s Rankings #10:</strong> <em>Counting down #5 to #3 All-Time Best Christmas Movies (feature length, w/ Retro Reviews up to 2026-01-12) </em></p><p><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-handful-of-christmas-whimsy">&#11013;&#65039;Previous (all sections)</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-handful-of-christmas-whimsy">&#11013;&#65039;Previous</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/silver-and-gold">Next &#10145;&#65039;</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/silver-and-gold">Next (all sections) &#10145;&#65039;</a></p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!GZHO!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F52923480-967b-4766-975a-1d540600e8bb_1248x832.png" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!GZHO!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F52923480-967b-4766-975a-1d540600e8bb_1248x832.png 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!GZHO!,w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F52923480-967b-4766-975a-1d540600e8bb_1248x832.png 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!GZHO!,w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F52923480-967b-4766-975a-1d540600e8bb_1248x832.png 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!GZHO!,w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F52923480-967b-4766-975a-1d540600e8bb_1248x832.png 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!GZHO!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F52923480-967b-4766-975a-1d540600e8bb_1248x832.png" width="450" height="300" data-attrs="{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/52923480-967b-4766-975a-1d540600e8bb_1248x832.png&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:null,&quot;imageSize&quot;:null,&quot;height&quot;:832,&quot;width&quot;:1248,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:450,&quot;bytes&quot;:184907,&quot;alt&quot;:null,&quot;title&quot;:null,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;image/png&quot;,&quot;href&quot;:null,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:false,&quot;topImage&quot;:true,&quot;internalRedirect&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/i/184794276?img=https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F52923480-967b-4766-975a-1d540600e8bb_1248x832.png&quot;,&quot;isProcessing&quot;:false,&quot;align&quot;:null,&quot;offset&quot;:false}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!GZHO!,w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F52923480-967b-4766-975a-1d540600e8bb_1248x832.png 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!GZHO!,w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F52923480-967b-4766-975a-1d540600e8bb_1248x832.png 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!GZHO!,w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F52923480-967b-4766-975a-1d540600e8bb_1248x832.png 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!GZHO!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F52923480-967b-4766-975a-1d540600e8bb_1248x832.png 1456w" sizes="100vw" fetchpriority="high"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><div class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg role="img" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><title></title><path d="M2.53001 7.81595C3.49179 4.73911 6.43281 2.5 9.91173 2.5C13.1684 2.5 15.9537 4.46214 17.0852 7.23684L17.6179 8.67647M17.6179 8.67647L18.5002 4.26471M17.6179 8.67647L13.6473 6.91176M17.4995 12.1841C16.5378 15.2609 13.5967 17.5 10.1178 17.5C6.86118 17.5 4.07589 15.5379 2.94432 12.7632L2.41165 11.3235M2.41165 11.3235L1.5293 15.7353M2.41165 11.3235L6.38224 13.0882"></path></g></svg></button><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container view-image"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 lucide-maximize-2"><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></button></div></div></div></a></figure></div><p>After completing our <strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/31-days-of-christmas-the-itinerary">2025 Christmas Tour</a></strong> and finishing the <strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/whats-that-in-the-fridge">2025 Christmas Leftovers</a></strong>, I&#8217;ve now reviewed 25 feature-length Christmas movies. Since I watched and analyzed all 25 twice in two years, <strong>I&#8217;ve Retro-actively re-graded and re-ranked a few of them</strong>, after this season&#8217;s second viewing.</p><p>The movies ranked #5 to #3 in our updated rankings of All-Time Best Christmas Movies are all great cinematic triumphs, truly Kings of Christmas as far as film history goes. I would not disagree with anyone who had one of these three films at number one on their list! For me, ranking the Top Five is very difficult and could easily change with future viewings, depending on a lot of factors. But for now these three rank #5, #4 and #3 on my list. By all means if you have missed any of these, read our no-spoilers Retro Reviews below and then be sure to put them on <em>your</em> list for next Christmas!</p><p>If you want to see how #5 to #3 were graded and ranked after my <strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/2024-christmas-tour">2024 Christmas Tour</a></strong> and <strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/2024-christmas-follow-up">2024 Christmas Leftovers</a></strong>, <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-5-to-3">look here</a>.</p><p><strong>Previous Countdowns of the All-Time Best Christmas Movies </strong><em>(feature length, with Retro Reviews up to January 12, 2026)</em>:<strong><br><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/christmas-movies-our-bottom-ten">Counting down from #25 to #16</a><br><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-handful-of-christmas-classics">Counting down from #15 to #11</a><br><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-handful-of-christmas-whimsy">Counting down from #10 to #6</a></strong></p><p><strong>Counting down from #5 to #3:</strong></p><p>I&#8217;m ranking the overall quality of movies that are widely regarded as Christmas movies, <em>not</em> how well these movies demonstrate holiday spirit or even fit a Christmas theme.</p><p><em>Reminder:</em> The arrow after a grade indicates if it is in the top third (^), middle third (&gt;), or lower third (v) of works that share the same letter grade. The icons for <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/reference-entertainment-quality-line">EQ (Entertainment Quality)</a> grades are as follows&#128077;Overall Entertainment Quality, &#128214; Story, &#128101; Characters,&#128253;&#65039; Visuals,&#127932; Soundtrack. <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/reference-my-view-line">Alignment with Judeo-Christian values</a> range from +4 <strong>&#10013;&#65039;</strong>&#10062;4&#65039;&#8419; down to -4 <strong>&#10013;&#65039;</strong>&#9940;4&#65039;&#8419;.</p><p><em>Also:</em> This post looks much better in your browser than on the Substack app, because the images in the links are not included in the version of the post that the app will show you. Go to rickretro.com in your desktop or mobile browser for the better rendition of this post.</p><h1>#5 A+^</h1><h3>&#128077;A+ | &#128214;A+ &#128101;A+ &#128253;&#65039;A+ &#127932;A-<br>&#10013;&#65039;&#10062;2&#65039;&#8419;</h3><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;a3bdced4-6e60-4d9d-8600-181fdf06236a&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992) &#8212; Kermit and friends deliver delightful Dickensian Dark Whimsy.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-19T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!cqJq!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F06f80a98-ff38-4be4-ae26-e8a1cce1a795_1920x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/the-muppet-christmas-carol-1992&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:182098645,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:5,&quot;comment_count&quot;:9,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#4 A+^</h1><h3>&#128077;A+ | &#128214;A+ &#128101;A+ &#128253;&#65039;A+ &#127932;A<br>&#10013;&#65039;&#10062;1&#65039;&#8419;</h3><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;f6d34fd3-15c9-4562-a58e-e44004aeba3d&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;Elf (2003) &#8212; The early frontrunner for best Christmas movie of the 21st century delivers non-stop laughs.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;Elf (2003)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-23T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/af7062c4-7f25-49f2-b4a7-e79543ee1471_3000x1688.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/elf-2003&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:182464303,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:3,&quot;comment_count&quot;:1,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#3 A+^</h1><h3>&#128077;A++ | &#128214;A+ &#128101;A+ &#128253;&#65039;A+ &#127932;A+<br>&#10013;&#65039;&#10062;3&#65039;&#8419;</h3><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;71510ac9-3721-45fb-bab4-9b611c6e5a08&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;Die Hard (1988) &#8212; Would you like to debate whether or not it&#8217;s a Christmas movie?&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;Die Hard (1988)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-15T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!NiRn!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F94089036-9584-477c-8687-a87636ed5f87_2311x1300.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/die-hard-1988&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:181650310,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:2,&quot;comment_count&quot;:5,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><div class="subscription-widget-wrap-editor" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/subscribe?&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Subscribe&quot;,&quot;language&quot;:&quot;en&quot;}" data-component-name="SubscribeWidgetToDOM"><div class="subscription-widget show-subscribe"><div class="preamble"><p class="cta-caption">More Retro Rankings will be on the way. Subscribe to have them delivered free to your in-box, and join our debates!</p></div><form class="subscription-widget-subscribe"><input type="email" class="email-input" name="email" placeholder="Type your email&#8230;" tabindex="-1"><input type="submit" class="button primary" value="Subscribe"><div class="fake-input-wrapper"><div class="fake-input"></div><div class="fake-button"></div></div></form></div></div><p>Coming soon:<br><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/silver-and-gold">Counting down from #2 to #1</a></strong></p><p>Meanwhile, feel free to debate these rankings or post your own as comments! I especially want to know which rankings you think I got wrong!</p><p class="button-wrapper" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/three-kings-of-christmas/comments&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Leave a comment&quot;,&quot;action&quot;:null,&quot;class&quot;:null}" data-component-name="ButtonCreateButton"><a class="button primary" href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/three-kings-of-christmas/comments"><span>Leave a comment</span></a></p><div><hr></div><p><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-handful-of-christmas-whimsy">&#11013;&#65039;Previous (all sections)</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/silver-and-gold">Next (all sections) &#10145;&#65039;</a></p><h6>Last updated 2026-01-16</h6>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[A Handful of Christmas Whimsy]]></title><description><![CDATA[Rick Retro&#8217;s Rankings #9: Counting down #10 to #6 All-Time Best Christmas Movies (w/ Retro Reviews up to 2026-01-12)]]></description><link>https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-handful-of-christmas-whimsy</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-handful-of-christmas-whimsy</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Rick Retro]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Thu, 15 Jan 2026 21:00:58 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!c7E5!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fced08b7f-4e75-4230-b3c5-ff7863e35467_1248x832.png" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><strong>Rick Retro&#8217;s Rankings #9:</strong> <em>Counting down #10 to #6 All-Time Best Christmas Movies (feature length, w/ Retro Reviews up to 2026-01-12) </em></p><p><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-handful-of-christmas-classics">&#11013;&#65039;Previous (all sections)</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-handful-of-christmas-classics">&#11013;&#65039;Previous</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/three-kings-of-christmas">Next &#10145;&#65039;</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/three-kings-of-christmas">Next (all sections) &#10145;&#65039;</a></p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!c7E5!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fced08b7f-4e75-4230-b3c5-ff7863e35467_1248x832.png" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!c7E5!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fced08b7f-4e75-4230-b3c5-ff7863e35467_1248x832.png 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!c7E5!,w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fced08b7f-4e75-4230-b3c5-ff7863e35467_1248x832.png 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!c7E5!,w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fced08b7f-4e75-4230-b3c5-ff7863e35467_1248x832.png 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!c7E5!,w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fced08b7f-4e75-4230-b3c5-ff7863e35467_1248x832.png 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!c7E5!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fced08b7f-4e75-4230-b3c5-ff7863e35467_1248x832.png" width="450" height="300" data-attrs="{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/ced08b7f-4e75-4230-b3c5-ff7863e35467_1248x832.png&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:null,&quot;imageSize&quot;:null,&quot;height&quot;:832,&quot;width&quot;:1248,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:450,&quot;bytes&quot;:1472136,&quot;alt&quot;:null,&quot;title&quot;:null,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;image/png&quot;,&quot;href&quot;:null,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:false,&quot;topImage&quot;:true,&quot;internalRedirect&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/i/184490462?img=https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fced08b7f-4e75-4230-b3c5-ff7863e35467_1248x832.png&quot;,&quot;isProcessing&quot;:false,&quot;align&quot;:null,&quot;offset&quot;:false}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!c7E5!,w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fced08b7f-4e75-4230-b3c5-ff7863e35467_1248x832.png 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!c7E5!,w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fced08b7f-4e75-4230-b3c5-ff7863e35467_1248x832.png 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!c7E5!,w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fced08b7f-4e75-4230-b3c5-ff7863e35467_1248x832.png 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!c7E5!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fced08b7f-4e75-4230-b3c5-ff7863e35467_1248x832.png 1456w" sizes="100vw" fetchpriority="high"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><div class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg role="img" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><title></title><path d="M2.53001 7.81595C3.49179 4.73911 6.43281 2.5 9.91173 2.5C13.1684 2.5 15.9537 4.46214 17.0852 7.23684L17.6179 8.67647M17.6179 8.67647L18.5002 4.26471M17.6179 8.67647L13.6473 6.91176M17.4995 12.1841C16.5378 15.2609 13.5967 17.5 10.1178 17.5C6.86118 17.5 4.07589 15.5379 2.94432 12.7632L2.41165 11.3235M2.41165 11.3235L1.5293 15.7353M2.41165 11.3235L6.38224 13.0882"></path></g></svg></button><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container view-image"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 lucide-maximize-2"><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></button></div></div></div></a></figure></div><p>After completing our <strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/31-days-of-christmas-the-itinerary">2025 Christmas Tour</a></strong> and finishing the <strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/whats-that-in-the-fridge">2025 Christmas Leftovers</a></strong>, I&#8217;ve now reviewed 25 feature-length Christmas movies. Since I watched and analyzed all 25 twice in two years, <strong>I&#8217;ve Retro-actively re-graded and re-ranked a few of them</strong>, after this season&#8217;s second viewing.</p><p>The movies ranked #10-#6 in our updated rankings of All-Time Best Christmas Movies are a wide variety of holiday films from the end of the 20th century, released between 1984 and 1998. Three are Pure Dark Whimsy, one is Dark Whimzy and the outlier is an all-time great romantic comedy. Whimsy is the key here, with an average Whimsy scale reading over these five films of 11, while two of them max out the scale at 13. These are all fantastic films, so check out any of our Retro Reviews you&#8217;ve previously missed, and by all means, watch these films if you&#8217;ve never seen them!</p><p>If you want to see how #10 to #6 were graded and ranked after my <strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/2024-christmas-tour">2024 Christmas Tour</a></strong> and <strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/2024-christmas-follow-up">2024 Christmas Leftovers</a></strong>, <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-10-to-6">look here</a>.</p><p><strong>Previous Countdowns of the All-Time Best Christmas Movies </strong><em>(feature length, with Retro Reviews up to January 12, 2026)</em>:<strong><br><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/christmas-movies-our-bottom-ten">Counting down from #25 to #16</a><br><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-handful-of-christmas-classics">Counting down from #15 to #11</a></strong></p><p><strong>Counting down from #10 to #6:</strong></p><p>I&#8217;m ranking the overall quality of movies that are widely regarded as Christmas movies, <em>not</em> how well these movies demonstrate holiday spirit or even fit a Christmas theme.</p><p><em>Reminder:</em> The arrow after a grade indicates if it is in the top third (^), middle third (&gt;), or lower third (v) of works that share the same letter grade. The icons for <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/reference-entertainment-quality-line">EQ (Entertainment Quality)</a> grades are as follows&#128077;Overall Entertainment Quality, &#128214; Story, &#128101; Characters,&#128253;&#65039; Visuals,&#127932; Soundtrack. <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/reference-my-view-line">Alignment with Judeo-Christian values</a> range from +4 <strong>&#10013;&#65039;</strong>&#10062;4&#65039;&#8419; down to -4 <strong>&#10013;&#65039;</strong>&#9940;4&#65039;&#8419;.</p><p><em>Also:</em> This post looks much better in your browser than on the Substack app, because the images in the links are not included in the version of the post that the app will show you. Go to rickretro.com in your desktop or mobile browser for the better rendition of this post.</p><h1>#10 A+v</h1><h3>&#128077;A+ | &#128214;A+ &#128101;A- &#128253;&#65039;A+ &#127932;A<br><strong>&#10013;&#65039;&#9888;&#65039;0&#65039;&#8419;</strong></h3><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;b394fd09-6ced-42f3-bff5-906bbfb57b07&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;National Lampoon&#8217;s Christmas Vacation (1989) &#8212; Chevy chases the perfect family Christmas.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-17T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!FgBS!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F690acb23-bdee-4d5d-a1ce-91a6d635170e_1920x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/national-lampoons-christmas-vacation&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:181836528,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:1,&quot;comment_count&quot;:0,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#9 A+v</h1><h3>&#128077;A+ | &#128214;A &#128101;A &#128253;&#65039;A+ &#127932;A+<br>&#10013;&#65039;&#9940;1&#65039;&#8419;</h3><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;5f50ba0e-1ee0-41da-8364-3ba712ffadbc&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;Gremlins (1984) &#8212; Dark Whimsy hates bright light. Never spill water on it or feed it after midnight.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;Gremlins (1984)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-14T18:42:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!ufSR!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff9e0774a-b4fc-4b10-8eb9-bff193455222_2560x1440.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/gremlins-1984&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:181559526,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:1,&quot;comment_count&quot;:8,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#8 A+&gt;</h1><h3>&#128077;A+ | &#128214;A+ &#128101;A &#128253;&#65039;A+ &#127932;A+<br>&#10013;&#65039;&#10062;0&#65039;&#8419;&#9888;&#65039;</h3><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;1bf78fab-67ed-45b0-ad66-7d49cf9500a6&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) &#8212; What&#8217;s This?! It&#8217;s Tim Burton&#8217;s glorious collision between Dark and Whimsy.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-20T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!w5zB!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0e665836-8f22-4ce9-86cd-c5de985cdfd0_2000x1125.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/the-nightmare-before-christmas-1993&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:182220612,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:1,&quot;comment_count&quot;:0,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#7 A+^</h1><h3>&#128077;A+ | &#128214;A+ &#128101;A+ &#128253;&#65039;A &#127932;A+<br>&#10013;&#65039;&#10062;0&#65039;&#8419;&#9888;&#65039;</h3><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;bae4a11f-94df-4d55-9197-361b4282b220&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;You&#8217;ve Got Mail (1998) &#8212; The third time is the charm in this rare remake that is superior to two previous adaptations of the same material.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;You&#8217;ve Got Mail (1998)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2025-01-01T16:15:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!7H7y!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F953ac34e-29d3-4f6c-9281-0a0b8ee470be_711x474.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/youve-got-mail-1998&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:183882602,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:1,&quot;comment_count&quot;:2,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#6 A+&gt;</h1><h3>&#128077;A++ | &#128214;A+ &#128101;A+ &#128253;&#65039;A+ &#127932;A+<br>&#10013;&#65039;&#10062;1&#65039;&#8419;</h3><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;53fa3260-c255-4883-a1b6-db63b5d94c7e&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;Edward Scissorhands (1990) &#8212; Modern master of Dark Whimsy Tim Burton weaves a painfully beautiful tale of satire, fantasy and romance.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;Edward Scissorhands (1990)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-30T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/8d5db1fd-ee97-4b44-b1f1-0a857504c357_1280x719.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/edward-scissorhands-1990&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:182025020,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:1,&quot;comment_count&quot;:2,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><div class="subscription-widget-wrap-editor" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/subscribe?&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Subscribe&quot;,&quot;language&quot;:&quot;en&quot;}" data-component-name="SubscribeWidgetToDOM"><div class="subscription-widget show-subscribe"><div class="preamble"><p class="cta-caption">More Retro Rankings will be on the way. Subscribe to have them delivered free to your in-box, and join our debates!</p></div><form class="subscription-widget-subscribe"><input type="email" class="email-input" name="email" placeholder="Type your email&#8230;" tabindex="-1"><input type="submit" class="button primary" value="Subscribe"><div class="fake-input-wrapper"><div class="fake-input"></div><div class="fake-button"></div></div></form></div></div><p>Coming soon:<br><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/three-kings-of-christmas">Counting down from #5 to #3</a><br><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/silver-and-gold">Counting down from #2 to #1</a></strong></p><p>Meanwhile, feel free to debate these rankings or post your own as comments! I especially want to know which rankings you think I got wrong!</p><p class="button-wrapper" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-handful-of-christmas-whimsy/comments&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Leave a comment&quot;,&quot;action&quot;:null,&quot;class&quot;:null}" data-component-name="ButtonCreateButton"><a class="button primary" href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-handful-of-christmas-whimsy/comments"><span>Leave a comment</span></a></p><div><hr></div><p><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-handful-of-christmas-classics">&#11013;&#65039;Previous (all sections)</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/three-kings-of-christmas">Next (all sections) &#10145;&#65039;</a></p><h6>Last updated 2026-01-15</h6>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[A Handful of Christmas Classics]]></title><description><![CDATA[Rick Retro&#8217;s Rankings #8: Counting down #15 to #11 All-Time Best Christmas Movies (w/ Retro Reviews up to 2026-01-12)]]></description><link>https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-handful-of-christmas-classics</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-handful-of-christmas-classics</guid><pubDate>Wed, 14 Jan 2026 21:00:41 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!CC2p!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7e8779aa-43d6-4056-84d7-bb65da2465c0_1248x832.png" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><strong>Rick Retro&#8217;s Rankings #8:</strong> <em>Counting down #15 to #11 All-Time Best Christmas Movies (feature length, w/ Retro Reviews up to 2026-01-12)</em></p><p><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/christmas-movies-our-bottom-ten">&#11013;&#65039;Previous (all sections)</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/christmas-movies-our-bottom-ten">&#11013;&#65039;Previous</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-handful-of-christmas-whimsy">Next &#10145;&#65039;</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-handful-of-christmas-whimsy">Next (all sections) &#10145;&#65039;</a></p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!CC2p!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7e8779aa-43d6-4056-84d7-bb65da2465c0_1248x832.png" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!CC2p!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7e8779aa-43d6-4056-84d7-bb65da2465c0_1248x832.png 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!CC2p!,w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7e8779aa-43d6-4056-84d7-bb65da2465c0_1248x832.png 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!CC2p!,w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7e8779aa-43d6-4056-84d7-bb65da2465c0_1248x832.png 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!CC2p!,w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7e8779aa-43d6-4056-84d7-bb65da2465c0_1248x832.png 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!CC2p!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7e8779aa-43d6-4056-84d7-bb65da2465c0_1248x832.png" width="450" height="300" data-attrs="{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/7e8779aa-43d6-4056-84d7-bb65da2465c0_1248x832.png&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:null,&quot;imageSize&quot;:null,&quot;height&quot;:832,&quot;width&quot;:1248,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:450,&quot;bytes&quot;:238769,&quot;alt&quot;:null,&quot;title&quot;:null,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;image/png&quot;,&quot;href&quot;:null,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:false,&quot;topImage&quot;:true,&quot;internalRedirect&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/i/184378772?img=https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7e8779aa-43d6-4056-84d7-bb65da2465c0_1248x832.png&quot;,&quot;isProcessing&quot;:false,&quot;align&quot;:null,&quot;offset&quot;:false}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!CC2p!,w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7e8779aa-43d6-4056-84d7-bb65da2465c0_1248x832.png 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!CC2p!,w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7e8779aa-43d6-4056-84d7-bb65da2465c0_1248x832.png 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!CC2p!,w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7e8779aa-43d6-4056-84d7-bb65da2465c0_1248x832.png 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!CC2p!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7e8779aa-43d6-4056-84d7-bb65da2465c0_1248x832.png 1456w" sizes="100vw" fetchpriority="high"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><div class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg role="img" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><title></title><path d="M2.53001 7.81595C3.49179 4.73911 6.43281 2.5 9.91173 2.5C13.1684 2.5 15.9537 4.46214 17.0852 7.23684L17.6179 8.67647M17.6179 8.67647L18.5002 4.26471M17.6179 8.67647L13.6473 6.91176M17.4995 12.1841C16.5378 15.2609 13.5967 17.5 10.1178 17.5C6.86118 17.5 4.07589 15.5379 2.94432 12.7632L2.41165 11.3235M2.41165 11.3235L1.5293 15.7353M2.41165 11.3235L6.38224 13.0882"></path></g></svg></button><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container view-image"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 lucide-maximize-2"><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></button></div></div></div></a></figure></div><p>After completing our <strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/31-days-of-christmas-the-itinerary">2025 Christmas Tour</a></strong> and finishing the <strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/whats-that-in-the-fridge">2025 Christmas Leftovers</a></strong>, I&#8217;ve now reviewed 25 feature-length Christmas movies. Since I watched and analyzed all 25 twice in two years, <strong>I&#8217;ve Retro-actively re-graded and re-ranked a few of them</strong>, after this season&#8217;s second viewing.</p><p>Coincidentally, or maybe not, #15-#11 in our updated rankings of All-Time Best Christmas Movies are all older classics, released between 1938 and 1954.</p><p>If you want to see how #15 to #11 were graded and ranked after my <strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/2024-christmas-tour">2024 Christmas Tour</a></strong> and <strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/2024-christmas-follow-up">2024 Christmas Leftovers</a></strong>, <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-15-to-11">look here</a>.</p><p><strong>Previous Countdowns of the All-Time Best Christmas Movies </strong><em>(feature length, with Retro Reviews up to January 12, 2026)</em>:<strong><br><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/christmas-movies-our-bottom-ten">Counting down from #25 to #16</a></strong></p><p><strong>Counting down from #15 to #11:</strong></p><p>I&#8217;m ranking the overall quality of movies that are widely regarded as Christmas movies, <em>not</em> how well these movies demonstrate holiday spirit or even fit a Christmas theme.</p><p><em>Reminder:</em> The arrow after a grade indicates if it is in the top third (^), middle third (&gt;), or lower third (v) of works that share the same letter grade. The icons for <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/reference-entertainment-quality-line">EQ (Entertainment Quality)</a> grades are as follows&#128077;Overall Entertainment Quality, &#128214; Story, &#128101; Characters,&#128253;&#65039; Visuals,&#127932; Soundtrack. <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/reference-my-view-line">Alignment with Judeo-Christian values</a> range from +4 <strong>&#10013;&#65039;</strong>&#10062;4&#65039;&#8419; down to -4 <strong>&#10013;&#65039;</strong>&#9940;4&#65039;&#8419;.</p><p><em>Also:</em> This post looks much better in your browser than on the Substack app, because the images in the links are not included in the version of the post that the app will show you. Go to rickretro.com in your desktop or mobile browser for the better rendition of this post.</p><h1>#15 A ^</h1><h3>&#128077;A | &#128214;A- &#128107;A+ &#128253;&#65039;A+ &#127932;B+<br><strong>&#10013;&#65039;&#10062;1&#65039;&#8419;</strong></h3><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;65aca128-6dbd-423a-b714-2cbf965f7906&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;Miracle on 34th Street (1947) &#8212; Might be more aptly titled Santa on Trial.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;Miracle on 34th Street (1947)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-27T16:15:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!GZkY!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F593477ea-302b-4aee-bef9-b7c9aec9e726_1512x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/miracle-on-34th-street-1947&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:181013415,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:0,&quot;comment_count&quot;:0,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#14 A ^</h1><h3>&#128077;A | &#128214;A- &#128101;A &#128253;&#65039;A+ &#127932;A-<br><strong>&#10013;&#65039;&#10062;2&#65039;&#8419;</strong></h3><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;11332916-a2a2-4d5d-bd11-88ec5d04f3cb&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;White Christmas (1954) &#8212; There&#8217;s not a ton of snow or Christmas here, but this film honors veterans and is a solid musical romcom well worth the watch.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;White Christmas (1954)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-07T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F780428b1-3c9c-453d-b7df-755483ff6aff_1280x720.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/white-christmas-1954&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:157140488,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:0,&quot;comment_count&quot;:0,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#13 A ^</h1><h3>&#128077;A | &#128214;A &#128101;A &#128253;&#65039;B+ &#127932;B<br><strong>&#10013;&#65039;&#10062;1&#65039;&#8419;</strong></h3><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;36ba90e6-440f-4f9b-a727-f14cf7e9bf24&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;The Shop Around the Corner (1940) &#8212; Actually it&#8217;s in Budapest, but it&#8217;s as cozy as it sounds.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;The Shop Around the Corner (1940)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-26T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!reS6!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7a82cf5f-7fe0-4d66-b3f8-136a219065a7_985x657.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/the-shop-around-the-corner-1940&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:180780881,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:2,&quot;comment_count&quot;:1,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#12 A ^</h1><h3>&#128077;A | &#128214;A+ &#128101;A- &#128253;&#65039;B+ &#127932;A-<br><strong>&#10013;&#65039;&#9888;&#65039;0&#65039;&#8419;</strong></h3><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;9863d811-d96a-4cac-8110-51b8a379ed89&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;Christmas in Connecticut (1945) &#8212; A solid screwball romcom delivers clever Christmas comedy in the Constitution State.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;Christmas in Connecticut (1945)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-05T16:30:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb13af4b4-992e-4f00-9261-f04e6595ec60_3500x2280.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/christmas-in-connecticut-1945&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:157135690,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:1,&quot;comment_count&quot;:0,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#11 A+v</h1><h3>&#128077;A | &#128214;A &#128101;A+ &#128253;&#65039;A &#127932;A<br><strong>&#10013;&#65039;&#10062;4&#65039;&#8419;</strong></h3><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;612c16c1-fc7e-481c-b2cc-371ed730317c&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;A Christmas Carol (1938) &#8212; The first film adaptation of A Christmas Carol to be visited by the Spirit of Dickens&#8217; Past.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;A Christmas Carol (1938)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-04T16:15:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F52c8dd1c-3b40-412e-ad6c-fe72a5101182_750x492.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-christmas-carol-1938&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:157135206,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:1,&quot;comment_count&quot;:1,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><div class="subscription-widget-wrap-editor" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/subscribe?&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Subscribe&quot;,&quot;language&quot;:&quot;en&quot;}" data-component-name="SubscribeWidgetToDOM"><div class="subscription-widget show-subscribe"><div class="preamble"><p class="cta-caption">More Retro Rankings will be on the way. Subscribe to have them delivered free to your in-box, and join our debates!</p></div><form class="subscription-widget-subscribe"><input type="email" class="email-input" name="email" placeholder="Type your email&#8230;" tabindex="-1"><input type="submit" class="button primary" value="Subscribe"><div class="fake-input-wrapper"><div class="fake-input"></div><div class="fake-button"></div></div></form></div></div><p>Coming soon:<br><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-handful-of-christmas-whimsy">Counting down from #10 to #6</a><br><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/three-kings-of-christmas">Counting down from #5 to #3</a><br><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/silver-and-gold">Counting down from #2 to #1</a></strong></p><p>Meanwhile, feel free to debate these rankings or post your own as comments! I especially want to know which rankings you think I got wrong!</p><p class="button-wrapper" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-handful-of-christmas-classics/comments&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Leave a comment&quot;,&quot;action&quot;:null,&quot;class&quot;:null}" data-component-name="ButtonCreateButton"><a class="button primary" href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-handful-of-christmas-classics/comments"><span>Leave a comment</span></a></p><div><hr></div><p><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/christmas-movies-our-bottom-ten">&#11013;&#65039;Previous (all sections)</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-handful-of-christmas-whimsy">Next (all sections) &#10145;&#65039;</a></p><h6>Last updated 2026-01-12</h6>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[Christmas Movies: Our Bottom Ten]]></title><description><![CDATA[Rick Retro&#8217;s Rankings #7: Counting down #25 to #16 All-Time Best Christmas Movies (w/ Retro Reviews up to 2026-01-12)]]></description><link>https://www.rickretro.com/p/christmas-movies-our-bottom-ten</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.rickretro.com/p/christmas-movies-our-bottom-ten</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Rick Retro]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Tue, 13 Jan 2026 21:00:32 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!wOVB!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fccdd2b47-b2b3-497c-8e24-417452b7c88e_1248x832.png" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><strong>Rick Retro&#8217;s Rankings #7:</strong> <em>Counting down #25 to #16 All-Time Best Christmas Movies (feature length, w/ Retro Reviews up to 2026-01-12) </em></p><p><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/whats-that-in-the-fridge">&#11013;&#65039;Previous (all sections)</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-2-to-1">&#11013;&#65039;Previous</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-handful-of-christmas-classics">Next &#10145;&#65039;</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-handful-of-christmas-classics">Next (all sections) &#10145;&#65039;</a></p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!wOVB!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fccdd2b47-b2b3-497c-8e24-417452b7c88e_1248x832.png" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!wOVB!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fccdd2b47-b2b3-497c-8e24-417452b7c88e_1248x832.png 424w, 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data-attrs="{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/ccdd2b47-b2b3-497c-8e24-417452b7c88e_1248x832.png&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:null,&quot;imageSize&quot;:null,&quot;height&quot;:832,&quot;width&quot;:1248,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:450,&quot;bytes&quot;:173422,&quot;alt&quot;:null,&quot;title&quot;:null,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;image/png&quot;,&quot;href&quot;:null,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:false,&quot;topImage&quot;:true,&quot;internalRedirect&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/i/184368745?img=https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fccdd2b47-b2b3-497c-8e24-417452b7c88e_1248x832.png&quot;,&quot;isProcessing&quot;:false,&quot;align&quot;:null,&quot;offset&quot;:false}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" 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class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg role="img" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><title></title><path d="M2.53001 7.81595C3.49179 4.73911 6.43281 2.5 9.91173 2.5C13.1684 2.5 15.9537 4.46214 17.0852 7.23684L17.6179 8.67647M17.6179 8.67647L18.5002 4.26471M17.6179 8.67647L13.6473 6.91176M17.4995 12.1841C16.5378 15.2609 13.5967 17.5 10.1178 17.5C6.86118 17.5 4.07589 15.5379 2.94432 12.7632L2.41165 11.3235M2.41165 11.3235L1.5293 15.7353M2.41165 11.3235L6.38224 13.0882"></path></g></svg></button><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container view-image"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 lucide-maximize-2"><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></button></div></div></div></a></figure></div><p>After completing our <strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/31-days-of-christmas-the-itinerary">2025 Christmas Tour</a></strong> and finishing the <strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/whats-that-in-the-fridge">2025 Christmas Leftovers</a></strong>, I&#8217;ve now reviewed 25 feature-length Christmas movies. Since I watched and analyzed all 25 twice in two years, <strong>I&#8217;ve Retro-actively re-graded and re-ranked a few of them</strong>, after this season&#8217;s second viewing, mainly because I gave more weight to their alignment with Judeo-Christian values. But it isn&#8217;t just that. Some movies seem better each time you watch them, some stay the same, and some get worse. For the purposes of ranking them, each viewing helps.</p><p>Let&#8217;s face it. <strong>This is really our Bottom Ten.</strong> Once I&#8217;ve reviewed a couple of hundred Christmas movies, most of these probably won&#8217;t even make my top 100. But for now, with just 25 reviews under our Santa belt, everything I&#8217;ve reviewed makes the Top 25!</p><p>If you want to see how the Bottom 10 were graded and ranked after my <strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/2024-christmas-tour">2024 Christmas Tour</a></strong> and <strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/2024-christmas-follow-up">2024 Christmas Leftovers</a></strong>, <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-25-to-16">look here</a>.</p><p>I&#8217;m ranking the overall quality of movies that are widely regarded as Christmas movies, <em>not</em> how well these movies demonstrate holiday spirit or even fit a Christmas theme.</p><p><em>Reminder:</em> The arrow after a grade indicates if it is in the top third (^), middle third (&gt;), or lower third (v) of works that share the same letter grade. The icons for <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/reference-entertainment-quality-line">EQ (Entertainment Quality)</a> grades are as follows&#128077;Overall Entertainment Quality, &#128214; Story, &#128101; Characters,&#128253;&#65039; Visuals,&#127932; Soundtrack. <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/reference-my-view-line">Alignment with Judeo-Christian values</a> range from +4 <strong>&#10013;&#65039;</strong>&#10062;4&#65039;&#8419; down to -4 <strong>&#10013;&#65039;</strong>&#9940;4&#65039;&#8419;.</p><p><em>Also:</em> This post looks much better in your browser than on the Substack app, because the images in the links are not included in the version of the post that the app will show you. Go to rickretro.com in your desktop or mobile browser for the better rendition of this post.</p><p><strong>Counting down from #25 to #16:</strong></p><h1>#25 D ^</h1><h3>&#128077;C- | &#128214;C- &#128101;C- &#128253;&#65039;C+ &#127932;B<br><strong>&#10013;&#65039;</strong>&#9940;4&#65039;&#8419;</h3><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;c0663f53-256a-4f48-994e-974ca740005d&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;Bad Santa (2003) &#8212; How bad is he? Ebenezer Scrooge and the Grinch combined have nothing on this guy.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;Bad Santa (2003)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-24T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!KFcr!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F4266961c-7847-438a-bcf1-908672508a1a_1280x720.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/bad-santa-2003&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:184193636,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:1,&quot;comment_count&quot;:0,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#24 D+&gt;</h1><h3>&#128077;C | &#128214;D+ &#128101;B &#128253;&#65039;B- &#127932;B-<br><strong>&#10013;&#65039;</strong>&#9940;4&#65039;&#8419;</h3><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;dabb249a-1f7b-40a9-8059-33b537b34c30&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;Black Christmas (1974) &#8212; A film with a surprisingly entertaining second half&#8230;&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;Black Christmas (1974)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-11T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!POq8!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F78f1fb94-52c4-4033-8af7-57caa22760b4_2459x1383.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/black-christmas-1974&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:183528474,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:0,&quot;comment_count&quot;:0,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#23 C ^</h1><h3>&#128077;B | &#128214;C+ &#128101;B- &#128253;&#65039;A+ &#127932;B<br><strong>&#10013;&#65039;</strong>&#9940;4&#65039;&#8419;</h3><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;17562b0b-083d-4d4b-bef9-445e2184d5d4&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;Scrooged (1988) &#8212; A film that tries to get away with putting lipstick on a Christmas pig that&#8217;s impersonating a Christmas classic.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;Scrooged (1988)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-16T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/52e33767-fe6c-4d5d-a410-e7da741e95a8_891x501.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/scrooged-1988&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:181762921,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:0,&quot;comment_count&quot;:8,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#22 B ^</h1><h3>&#128077;A- | &#128214;A- &#128101;A &#128253;&#65039;A- &#127932;A-<br><strong>&#10013;&#65039;</strong>&#9940;<strong>3&#65039;&#8419;</strong></h3><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;f78dfe05-f2a0-4f22-88a4-b61047ba31b1&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;Trading Places (1983) &#8212; Good story, lots of laughs, but ultimately, too much unnecessary baggage.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;Trading Places (1983)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-12T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!eKS9!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F15318329-b605-4ab3-a931-c658382032a0_1280x720.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/trading-places-1983&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:181433655,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:1,&quot;comment_count&quot;:0,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#21 B ^</h1><h3>&#128077;A- | &#128214;A- &#128101;A &#128253;&#65039;B &#127932;A+<br><strong>&#10013;&#65039;</strong>&#9940;<strong>3&#65039;&#8419;</strong></h3><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;ad81f4a5-d532-413a-b4ab-34fe5fdd2d43&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;Love Actually (2003) &#8212; They actually use the word &#8220;actually&#8221; frequently in this film. I merely follow their lead&#8230;&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;Love Actually (2003)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-22T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!RJ2N!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb0b4c64e-a815-43b2-a7a2-af74bb11ddbe_1920x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/love-actually-2003&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:184109780,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:0,&quot;comment_count&quot;:0,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#20 B+v</h1><h3>&#128077;B+ | &#128214;B+ &#128101;B &#128253;&#65039;A &#127932;A<br><strong>&#10013;&#65039;&#9888;&#65039;0&#65039;&#8419;</strong></h3><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;997699dd-d28e-481e-b9ea-fd7c2678302e&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;The Santa Clause (1994) &#8212; As &#8220;Ho, ho, ho!&#8221;s go, it&#8217;s better than so-so, but more &#8220;Oh.&#8221; than &#8220;Whoa!&#8221;, don&#8217;t you know.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;The Santa Clause (1994)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-21T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/2e9547fb-9a04-46a5-9a29-308d539a05db_1600x900.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/the-santa-clause-1994&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:182393559,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:2,&quot;comment_count&quot;:0,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#19 B+&gt;</h1><h3>&#128077;B+ | &#128214;B- &#128101;A- &#128253;&#65039;B+ &#127932;B<br><strong>&#10013;&#65039;&#10062;1&#65039;&#8419;</strong></h3><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;429d99b6-32a2-4ec3-9c61-e1fb19d888e8&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;Babes in Toyland (1934) (aka March of the Wooden Soldiers) &#8212; Laurel and Hardy rescue Mother Goose and friends in more ways than one.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;Babes in Toyland (1934) (aka March of the Wooden Soldiers)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-03T16:30:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!3iHU!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1056050d-b9da-40fc-bcad-159355b7213a_3176x2135.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/babes-in-toyland-1934-aka-march-of&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:157134192,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:1,&quot;comment_count&quot;:0,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#18 B+^</h1><h3>&#128077;B+ | &#128214;A &#128101;B+ &#128253;&#65039;B+ &#127932;B+<br><strong>&#10013;&#65039;&#10062;0&#65039;&#8419;</strong></h3><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;170e16b4-cac3-4f6b-bd97-ea717b64f148&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;In the Good Old Summertime (1949) &#8212; If they had called this movie In the Great Old Summertime, then they would be misleading you with two words of the title, not just one!&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;In the Good Old Summertime (1949)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-28T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!Pr_z!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6c0e1d6c-3671-4bb5-a904-5f469e1a6189_1080x720.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/in-the-good-old-summertime-1949&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:183225788,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:2,&quot;comment_count&quot;:0,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#17 A-v</h1><h3>&#128077;B+ | &#128214;B &#128101;B+ &#128253;&#65039;A- &#127932;A+<br><strong>&#10013;&#65039;&#10062;2&#65039;&#8419;</strong></h3><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;5e3c1a5f-04bc-4b1d-9f35-56ec3b7fcbb9&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;Home Alone (1990) &#8212; Smart kid vs. dumb criminals at Christmastime equals holiday slapstick success.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;Home Alone (1990)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-18T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!XloZ!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8bc16f46-a0b1-4278-a8ec-26fe965b3057_1605x903.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/home-alone-1990&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:183681134,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:0,&quot;comment_count&quot;:1,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#16 A ^</h1><h3>&#128077;A- | &#128214;A &#128101;A- &#128253;&#65039;B &#127932;A-<br><strong>&#10013;&#65039;&#10062;4&#65039;&#8419;</strong></h3><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;af6f9fe0-4821-49ac-ac2d-e4413c433475&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;Scrooge (1935) &#8212; It&#8217;s the best Scrooge we&#8217;ve seen yet, but could use more of the Charles Dickens twinkle.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;Scrooge (1935)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-04T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F19e3ae28-6bcd-4237-8c61-76553f60d628_1200x600.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/scrooge-1935&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:157134814,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:1,&quot;comment_count&quot;:1,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><div class="subscription-widget-wrap-editor" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/subscribe?&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Subscribe&quot;,&quot;language&quot;:&quot;en&quot;}" data-component-name="SubscribeWidgetToDOM"><div class="subscription-widget show-subscribe"><div class="preamble"><p class="cta-caption">More Retro Rankings will be on the way. Subscribe to have them delivered free to your in-box, and join our debates!</p></div><form class="subscription-widget-subscribe"><input type="email" class="email-input" name="email" placeholder="Type your email&#8230;" tabindex="-1"><input type="submit" class="button primary" value="Subscribe"><div class="fake-input-wrapper"><div class="fake-input"></div><div class="fake-button"></div></div></form></div></div><p>Coming soon:<br><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-handful-of-christmas-classics">Counting down from #15 to #11</a><br><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-handful-of-christmas-whimsy">Counting down from #10 to #6</a><br><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/three-kings-of-christmas">Counting down from #5 to #3</a><br><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/silver-and-gold">Counting down from #2 to #1</a></strong></p><p>Meanwhile, feel free to debate these rankings or post your own as comments! I especially want to know which rankings you think I got wrong!</p><p class="button-wrapper" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/christmas-movies-our-bottom-ten/comments&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Leave a comment&quot;,&quot;action&quot;:null,&quot;class&quot;:null}" data-component-name="ButtonCreateButton"><a class="button primary" href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/christmas-movies-our-bottom-ten/comments"><span>Leave a comment</span></a></p><div><hr></div><p><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/whats-that-in-the-fridge">&#11013;&#65039;Previous (all sections)</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-handful-of-christmas-classics">Next (all sections) &#10145;&#65039;</a></p><h6>Last updated 2026-01-12</h6>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[Best Christmas Movies #2 to #1]]></title><description><![CDATA[Rick Retro&#8217;s Rankings #6: Counting down #2 to #1 All-Time Best Christmas Movies (w/ Retro Reviews up to 2025-01-01)]]></description><link>https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-2-to-1</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-2-to-1</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Rick Retro]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Tue, 31 Dec 2024 17:00:00 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!eSZS!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1373cdeb-434e-4c15-97b1-86823ce52329_1248x832.png" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><strong>Rick Retro&#8217;s Rankings #6:</strong> <em>Counting down #2 to #1 All-Time Best Christmas Movies (feature length, w/ Retro Reviews up to 2025-01-01) </em></p><p><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-5-to-3">&#11013;&#65039;Previous (all sections)</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-5-to-3">&#11013;&#65039;Previous</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/christmas-movies-our-bottom-ten">Next &#10145;&#65039;</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/retroactive-re-grades">Next (all sections) &#10145;&#65039;</a></p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!eSZS!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1373cdeb-434e-4c15-97b1-86823ce52329_1248x832.png" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!eSZS!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1373cdeb-434e-4c15-97b1-86823ce52329_1248x832.png 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!eSZS!,w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1373cdeb-434e-4c15-97b1-86823ce52329_1248x832.png 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!eSZS!,w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1373cdeb-434e-4c15-97b1-86823ce52329_1248x832.png 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!eSZS!,w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1373cdeb-434e-4c15-97b1-86823ce52329_1248x832.png 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!eSZS!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1373cdeb-434e-4c15-97b1-86823ce52329_1248x832.png" width="450" height="300" data-attrs="{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/1373cdeb-434e-4c15-97b1-86823ce52329_1248x832.png&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:null,&quot;imageSize&quot;:null,&quot;height&quot;:832,&quot;width&quot;:1248,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:450,&quot;bytes&quot;:247057,&quot;alt&quot;:null,&quot;title&quot;:null,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;image/png&quot;,&quot;href&quot;:null,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:false,&quot;topImage&quot;:true,&quot;internalRedirect&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/i/184826772?img=https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1373cdeb-434e-4c15-97b1-86823ce52329_1248x832.png&quot;,&quot;isProcessing&quot;:false,&quot;align&quot;:null,&quot;offset&quot;:false}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!eSZS!,w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1373cdeb-434e-4c15-97b1-86823ce52329_1248x832.png 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!eSZS!,w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1373cdeb-434e-4c15-97b1-86823ce52329_1248x832.png 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!eSZS!,w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1373cdeb-434e-4c15-97b1-86823ce52329_1248x832.png 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!eSZS!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1373cdeb-434e-4c15-97b1-86823ce52329_1248x832.png 1456w" sizes="100vw" fetchpriority="high"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><div class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg role="img" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><title></title><path d="M2.53001 7.81595C3.49179 4.73911 6.43281 2.5 9.91173 2.5C13.1684 2.5 15.9537 4.46214 17.0852 7.23684L17.6179 8.67647M17.6179 8.67647L18.5002 4.26471M17.6179 8.67647L13.6473 6.91176M17.4995 12.1841C16.5378 15.2609 13.5967 17.5 10.1178 17.5C6.86118 17.5 4.07589 15.5379 2.94432 12.7632L2.41165 11.3235M2.41165 11.3235L1.5293 15.7353M2.41165 11.3235L6.38224 13.0882"></path></g></svg></button><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container view-image"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 lucide-maximize-2"><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></button></div></div></div></a></figure></div><p><em>(Note from Rick Retro, 2026-01-12: These rankings were originally sent out to our early text group before my Substack debut. After re-reviewing these films a year later, <strong>some have been Retro-actively regraded and re-ranked</strong>, but I present them here as they were graded and ranked on 2024-12-31. <strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/silver-and-gold">The updated rankings through 2026-01-12 can be found here.</a></strong></em>)</p><p><strong>Previous Countdowns of the All-Time Best Christmas Movies </strong><em>(feature length, with Retro Reviews up to January 1, 2025)</em>:<strong><br><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-25-to-16">Counting down from #25 to #16</a><br><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-15-to-11">Counting down from #15 to #11</a><br><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-10-to-6">Counting down from #10 to #6</a><br><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-5-to-3">Counting down from #5 to #3</a></strong></p><p><strong>Counting down from #2 to #1:</strong></p><p>I&#8217;m ranking the overall quality of movies that are widely regarded as Christmas movies, <em>not</em> how well these movies demonstrate holiday spirit or even fit a Christmas theme.</p><p><em>Reminder:</em> The arrow after a grade indicates if it is in the top third (^), middle third (&gt;), or lower third (v) of works that share the same letter grade.</p><p><em>Also:</em> This post looks much better in your browser than on the Substack app, because the images in the links are not included in the version of the post that the app will show you. Go to rickretro.com in your desktop or mobile browser for the better rendition of this post.</p><h1>#2 A+^</h1><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;0a903c0a-711d-46fc-8bf9-ee7b2bbbaba0&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;It&#8217;s a Wonderful Life (1946) &#8212; The Frank Capra&#8211;James Stewart all-time Christmas classic that blesses viewers every holiday season.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;It&#8217;s a Wonderful Life (1946)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-06T16:15:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F42b57359-cbef-48fe-8022-4e75a8bff592_1010x622.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/its-a-wonderful-life-1946&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:157139380,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:1,&quot;comment_count&quot;:1,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#1 A+^</h1><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;7bfc6d16-7d0c-4015-81a0-aa344935410d&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;A Christmas Story (1983) &#8212; Could this be the best Christmas Dark Whimsy since Dickens?&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;A Christmas Story (1983)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-13T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!6jjQ!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff40b62d8-c910-425c-9726-7e0a606914c7_3500x1969.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-christmas-story-1983&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:181477587,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:2,&quot;comment_count&quot;:1,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><p>So the final list of <strong>The All-Time Best Christmas Movies #1-25 </strong><em>(feature length, with Retro Reviews up to January 1, 2025)</em> is as follows:</p><ol><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-christmas-story-1983">A Christmas Story</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-christmas-story-1983"> (1983)</a></strong> <strong>A+^</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/its-a-wonderful-life-1946">It&#8217;s a Wonderful Life</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/its-a-wonderful-life-1946"> (1946)</a></strong> <strong>A+^</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/die-hard-1988">Die Hard</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/die-hard-1988"> (1988)</a></strong> <strong>A+^</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/elf-2003">Elf</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/elf-2003"> (2003)</a></strong> <strong>A+^</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/the-muppet-christmas-carol-1992">The Muppet Christmas Carol</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/the-muppet-christmas-carol-1992"> (1992)</a></strong> <strong>A+^</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/edward-scissorhands-1990">Edward Scissorhands</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/edward-scissorhands-1990"> (1990)</a></strong> <strong>A+&gt;</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/youve-got-mail-1998">You&#8217;ve Got Mail</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/youve-got-mail-1998"> (1998)</a></strong> <strong>A+&gt;</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/the-nightmare-before-christmas-1993">The Nightmare Before Christmas</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/the-nightmare-before-christmas-1993"> (1993)</a></strong> <strong>A+&gt;</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/gremlins-1984">Gremlins</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/gremlins-1984"> (1984)</a></strong> <strong>A+v</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/miracle-on-34th-street-1947">Miracle on 34th Street</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/miracle-on-34th-street-1947"> (1947)</a></strong> <strong>A+v</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/national-lampoons-christmas-vacation">National Lampoon&#8217;s Christmas Vacation</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/national-lampoons-christmas-vacation"> (1989)</a></strong> <strong>A+v</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-christmas-carol-1938">A Christmas Carol</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-christmas-carol-1938"> (1938)</a></strong> <strong>A+v</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/christmas-in-connecticut-1945">Christmas in Connecticut</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/christmas-in-connecticut-1945"> (1945)</a></strong> <strong>A ^</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/the-shop-around-the-corner-1940">The Shop Around the Corner</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/the-shop-around-the-corner-1940"> (1940)</a></strong> <strong>A ^</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/scrooge-1935">Scrooge</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/scrooge-1935"> (1935)</a></strong> <strong>A ^</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/white-christmas-1954">White Christmas</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/white-christmas-1954"> (1954)</a></strong> <strong>A &gt;</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/home-alone-1990">Home Alone</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/home-alone-1990"> (1990)</a></strong> <strong>A-v</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/in-the-good-old-summertime-1949">In the Good Old Summertime</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/in-the-good-old-summertime-1949"> (1949)</a></strong> <strong>B+^</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/babes-in-toyland-1934-aka-march-of">Babes in Toyland</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/babes-in-toyland-1934-aka-march-of"> (1934) (aka </a></strong><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/babes-in-toyland-1934-aka-march-of">March of the Wooden Soldiers</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/babes-in-toyland-1934-aka-march-of">)</a></strong> <strong>B+^</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/trading-places-1983">Trading Places</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/trading-places-1983"> (1983)</a></strong> <strong>B+&gt;</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/the-santa-clause-1994">The Santa Clause</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/the-santa-clause-1994"> (1994)</a></strong> <strong>B+v</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/love-actually-2003">Love Actually</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/love-actually-2003"> (2003)</a></strong> <strong>B ^</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/scrooged-1988">Scrooged</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/scrooged-1988"> (1988)</a></strong> <strong>B ^</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/black-christmas-1974">Black Christmas</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/black-christmas-1974"> (1974)</a></strong> <strong>C v</strong></p></li><li><p><em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/bad-santa-2003">Bad Santa</a></strong></em><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/bad-santa-2003"> (2003)</a></strong> <strong>D+&gt;</strong></p></li></ol><div class="subscription-widget-wrap-editor" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/subscribe?&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Subscribe&quot;,&quot;language&quot;:&quot;en&quot;}" data-component-name="SubscribeWidgetToDOM"><div class="subscription-widget show-subscribe"><div class="preamble"><p class="cta-caption">More Retro Rankings will be on the way. Subscribe to have them delivered free to your in-box, and join our debates!</p></div><form class="subscription-widget-subscribe"><input type="email" class="email-input" name="email" placeholder="Type your email&#8230;" tabindex="-1"><input type="submit" class="button primary" value="Subscribe"><div class="fake-input-wrapper"><div class="fake-input"></div><div class="fake-button"></div></div></form></div></div><p>Coming soon:<br><strong>What Will Project #3 Be?</strong></p><p>Meanwhile, feel free to debate these rankings or post your own as comments! I especially want to know which rankings you think I got wrong!</p><p class="button-wrapper" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-2-to-1/comments&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Leave a comment&quot;,&quot;action&quot;:null,&quot;class&quot;:null}" data-component-name="ButtonCreateButton"><a class="button primary" href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-2-to-1/comments"><span>Leave a comment</span></a></p><div><hr></div><p><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-5-to-3">&#11013;&#65039;Previous (all sections)</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/retroactive-re-grades">Next (all sections) &#10145;&#65039;</a></p><h6>Originally posted to text group 2024-12-31<br>Updated to v2.0 post formatting 2026-01-16</h6>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[Best Christmas Movies #5 to #3]]></title><description><![CDATA[Rick Retro&#8217;s Rankings #5: Counting down #5 to #3 All-Time Best Christmas Movies (w/ Retro Reviews up to 2025-01-01)]]></description><link>https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-5-to-3</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-5-to-3</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Rick Retro]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Tue, 31 Dec 2024 16:45:00 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!l7SE!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9ef19f0a-94f6-4f53-80b2-d9dd923410b3_1248x832.png" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><strong>Rick Retro&#8217;s Rankings #5:</strong> <em>Counting down #5 to #3 All-Time Best Christmas Movies (feature length, w/ Retro Reviews up to 2025-01-01) </em></p><p><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-10-to-6">&#11013;&#65039;Previous (all sections)</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-10-to-6">&#11013;&#65039;Previous</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-2-to-1">Next &#10145;&#65039;</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-2-to-1">Next (all sections) &#10145;&#65039;</a></p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!l7SE!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9ef19f0a-94f6-4f53-80b2-d9dd923410b3_1248x832.png" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!l7SE!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9ef19f0a-94f6-4f53-80b2-d9dd923410b3_1248x832.png 424w, 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class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg role="img" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><title></title><path d="M2.53001 7.81595C3.49179 4.73911 6.43281 2.5 9.91173 2.5C13.1684 2.5 15.9537 4.46214 17.0852 7.23684L17.6179 8.67647M17.6179 8.67647L18.5002 4.26471M17.6179 8.67647L13.6473 6.91176M17.4995 12.1841C16.5378 15.2609 13.5967 17.5 10.1178 17.5C6.86118 17.5 4.07589 15.5379 2.94432 12.7632L2.41165 11.3235M2.41165 11.3235L1.5293 15.7353M2.41165 11.3235L6.38224 13.0882"></path></g></svg></button><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container view-image"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 lucide-maximize-2"><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></button></div></div></div></a></figure></div><p><em>(Note from Rick Retro, 2026-01-12: These rankings were originally sent out to our early text group before my Substack debut. After re-reviewing these films a year later, <strong>some have been Retro-actively regraded and re-ranked</strong>, but I present them here as they were graded and ranked on 2024-12-31. <strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/three-kings-of-christmas">The updated rankings through 2026-01-12 can be found here.</a></strong></em>)</p><p><strong>Previous Countdowns of the All-Time Best Christmas Movies </strong><em>(feature length, with Retro Reviews up to January 1, 2025)</em>:<strong><br><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-25-to-16">Counting down from #25 to #16</a><br><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-15-to-11">Counting down from #15 to #11</a><br><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-10-to-6">Counting down from #10 to #6</a></strong></p><p><strong>Counting down from #5 to #3:</strong></p><p>I&#8217;m ranking the overall quality of movies that are widely regarded as Christmas movies, <em>not</em> how well these movies demonstrate holiday spirit or even fit a Christmas theme.</p><p><em>Reminder:</em> The arrow after a grade indicates if it is in the top third (^), middle third (&gt;), or lower third (v) of works that share the same letter grade.</p><p><em>Also:</em> This post looks much better in your browser than on the Substack app, because the images in the links are not included in the version of the post that the app will show you. Go to rickretro.com in your desktop or mobile browser for the better rendition of this post.</p><h1>#5 A+^</h1><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;a3bdced4-6e60-4d9d-8600-181fdf06236a&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992) &#8212; Kermit and friends deliver delightful Dickensian Dark Whimsy.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-19T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!cqJq!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F06f80a98-ff38-4be4-ae26-e8a1cce1a795_1920x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/the-muppet-christmas-carol-1992&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:182098645,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:5,&quot;comment_count&quot;:9,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#4 A+^</h1><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;f6d34fd3-15c9-4562-a58e-e44004aeba3d&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;Elf (2003) &#8212; The early frontrunner for best Christmas movie of the 21st century delivers non-stop laughs.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;Elf (2003)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-23T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/af7062c4-7f25-49f2-b4a7-e79543ee1471_3000x1688.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/elf-2003&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:182464303,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:3,&quot;comment_count&quot;:1,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#3 A+^</h1><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;71510ac9-3721-45fb-bab4-9b611c6e5a08&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;Die Hard (1988) &#8212; Would you like to debate whether or not it&#8217;s a Christmas movie?&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;Die Hard (1988)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-15T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!NiRn!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F94089036-9584-477c-8687-a87636ed5f87_2311x1300.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/die-hard-1988&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:181650310,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:2,&quot;comment_count&quot;:5,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><div class="subscription-widget-wrap-editor" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/subscribe?&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Subscribe&quot;,&quot;language&quot;:&quot;en&quot;}" data-component-name="SubscribeWidgetToDOM"><div class="subscription-widget show-subscribe"><div class="preamble"><p class="cta-caption">More Retro Rankings will be on the way. Subscribe to have them delivered free to your in-box, and join our debates!</p></div><form class="subscription-widget-subscribe"><input type="email" class="email-input" name="email" placeholder="Type your email&#8230;" tabindex="-1"><input type="submit" class="button primary" value="Subscribe"><div class="fake-input-wrapper"><div class="fake-input"></div><div class="fake-button"></div></div></form></div></div><p>Coming soon:<br><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-2-to-1">Counting down from #2 to #1</a></strong></p><p>Meanwhile, feel free to debate these rankings or post your own as comments! I especially want to know which rankings you think I got wrong!</p><p class="button-wrapper" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-5-to-3/comments&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Leave a comment&quot;,&quot;action&quot;:null,&quot;class&quot;:null}" data-component-name="ButtonCreateButton"><a class="button primary" href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-5-to-3/comments"><span>Leave a comment</span></a></p><div><hr></div><p><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-10-to-6">&#11013;&#65039;Previous (all sections)</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-2-to-1">Next (all sections) &#10145;&#65039;</a></p><h6>Originally posted to text group 2024-12-31<br>Updated to v2.0 post formatting 2026-01-16</h6>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[Best Christmas Movies #10 to #6]]></title><description><![CDATA[Rick Retro&#8217;s Rankings #4: Counting down #10 to #6 All-Time Best Christmas Movies (w/ Retro Reviews up to 2025-01-01)]]></description><link>https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-10-to-6</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-10-to-6</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Rick Retro]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Tue, 31 Dec 2024 16:30:00 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!vecT!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6c02a6f9-81ce-48ab-8ebc-ebcb99749541_1248x832.png" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><strong>Rick Retro&#8217;s Rankings #4:</strong> <em>Counting down #10 to #6 All-Time Best Christmas Movies (feature length, w/ Retro Reviews up to 2025-01-01) </em></p><p><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-15-to-11">&#11013;&#65039;Previous (all sections)</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-15-to-11">&#11013;&#65039;Previous</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-5-to-3">Next &#10145;&#65039;</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-5-to-3">Next (all sections) &#10145;&#65039;</a></p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!vecT!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6c02a6f9-81ce-48ab-8ebc-ebcb99749541_1248x832.png" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!vecT!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6c02a6f9-81ce-48ab-8ebc-ebcb99749541_1248x832.png 424w, 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class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg role="img" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><title></title><path d="M2.53001 7.81595C3.49179 4.73911 6.43281 2.5 9.91173 2.5C13.1684 2.5 15.9537 4.46214 17.0852 7.23684L17.6179 8.67647M17.6179 8.67647L18.5002 4.26471M17.6179 8.67647L13.6473 6.91176M17.4995 12.1841C16.5378 15.2609 13.5967 17.5 10.1178 17.5C6.86118 17.5 4.07589 15.5379 2.94432 12.7632L2.41165 11.3235M2.41165 11.3235L1.5293 15.7353M2.41165 11.3235L6.38224 13.0882"></path></g></svg></button><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container view-image"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 lucide-maximize-2"><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></button></div></div></div></a></figure></div><p><em>(Note from Rick Retro, 2026-01-12: These rankings were originally sent out to our early text group before my Substack debut. After re-reviewing these films a year later, <strong>some have been Retro-actively regraded and re-ranked</strong>, but I present them here as they were graded and ranked on 2024-12-31. <strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-handful-of-christmas-whimsy">The updated rankings through 2026-01-12 can be found here.</a></strong></em>)</p><p><strong>Previous Countdowns of the All-Time Best Christmas Movies </strong><em>(feature length, with Retro Reviews up to January 1, 2025)</em>:<strong><br><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-25-to-16">Counting down from #25 to #16</a><br><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-15-to-11">Counting down from #15 to #11</a></strong></p><p><strong>Counting down from #10 to #6:</strong></p><p>I&#8217;m ranking the overall quality of movies that are widely regarded as Christmas movies, <em>not</em> how well these movies demonstrate holiday spirit or even fit a Christmas theme.</p><p><em>Reminder:</em> The arrow after a grade indicates if it is in the top third (^), middle third (&gt;), or lower third (v) of works that share the same letter grade.</p><p><em>Also:</em> This post looks much better in your browser than on the Substack app, because the images in the links are not included in the version of the post that the app will show you. Go to rickretro.com in your desktop or mobile browser for the better rendition of this post.</p><h1>#10 A+v</h1><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;c1308c4a-4b41-482b-89f9-fa3998fcd093&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;Miracle on 34th Street (1947) &#8212; Might be more aptly titled Santa on Trial.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;Miracle on 34th Street (1947)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-27T16:15:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!GZkY!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F593477ea-302b-4aee-bef9-b7c9aec9e726_1512x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/miracle-on-34th-street-1947&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:181013415,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:0,&quot;comment_count&quot;:0,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#9 A+v</h1><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;5f50ba0e-1ee0-41da-8364-3ba712ffadbc&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;Gremlins (1984) &#8212; Dark Whimsy hates bright light. Never spill water on it or feed it after midnight.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;Gremlins (1984)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-14T18:42:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!ufSR!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff9e0774a-b4fc-4b10-8eb9-bff193455222_2560x1440.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/gremlins-1984&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:181559526,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:1,&quot;comment_count&quot;:8,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#8 A+&gt;</h1><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;1bf78fab-67ed-45b0-ad66-7d49cf9500a6&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) &#8212; What&#8217;s This?! It&#8217;s Tim Burton&#8217;s glorious collision between Dark and Whimsy.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-20T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!w5zB!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0e665836-8f22-4ce9-86cd-c5de985cdfd0_2000x1125.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/the-nightmare-before-christmas-1993&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:182220612,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:1,&quot;comment_count&quot;:0,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#7 A+&gt;</h1><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;bae4a11f-94df-4d55-9197-361b4282b220&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;You&#8217;ve Got Mail (1998) &#8212; The third time is the charm in this rare remake that is superior to two previous adaptations of the same material.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;You&#8217;ve Got Mail (1998)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2025-01-01T16:15:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!7H7y!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F953ac34e-29d3-4f6c-9281-0a0b8ee470be_711x474.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/youve-got-mail-1998&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:183882602,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:1,&quot;comment_count&quot;:2,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#6 A+&gt;</h1><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;53fa3260-c255-4883-a1b6-db63b5d94c7e&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;Edward Scissorhands (1990) &#8212; Modern master of Dark Whimsy Tim Burton weaves a painfully beautiful tale of satire, fantasy and romance.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;Edward Scissorhands (1990)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-30T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/8d5db1fd-ee97-4b44-b1f1-0a857504c357_1280x719.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/edward-scissorhands-1990&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:182025020,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:1,&quot;comment_count&quot;:2,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><div class="subscription-widget-wrap-editor" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/subscribe?&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Subscribe&quot;,&quot;language&quot;:&quot;en&quot;}" data-component-name="SubscribeWidgetToDOM"><div class="subscription-widget show-subscribe"><div class="preamble"><p class="cta-caption">More Retro Rankings will be on the way. Subscribe to have them delivered free to your in-box, and join our debates!</p></div><form class="subscription-widget-subscribe"><input type="email" class="email-input" name="email" placeholder="Type your email&#8230;" tabindex="-1"><input type="submit" class="button primary" value="Subscribe"><div class="fake-input-wrapper"><div class="fake-input"></div><div class="fake-button"></div></div></form></div></div><p>Coming soon:<br><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-5-to-3">Counting down from #5 to #3</a><br><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-2-to-1">Counting down from #2 to #1</a></strong></p><p>Meanwhile, feel free to debate these rankings or post your own as comments! I especially want to know which rankings you think I got wrong!</p><p class="button-wrapper" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-10-to-6/comments&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Leave a comment&quot;,&quot;action&quot;:null,&quot;class&quot;:null}" data-component-name="ButtonCreateButton"><a class="button primary" href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-10-to-6/comments"><span>Leave a comment</span></a></p><div><hr></div><p><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-15-to-11">&#11013;&#65039;Previous (all sections)</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-5-to-3">Next (all sections) &#10145;&#65039;</a></p><h6>Originally posted to text group 2024-12-31<br>Updated to v2.0 post formatting 2026-01-13</h6>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[Best Christmas Movies #15 to #11]]></title><description><![CDATA[Rick Retro&#8217;s Rankings #3: Counting down #15 to #11 All-Time Best Christmas Movies (w/ Retro Reviews up to 2025-01-01)]]></description><link>https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-15-to-11</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-15-to-11</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Rick Retro]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Tue, 31 Dec 2024 16:15:00 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!y_-b!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F39330829-e0b2-41a6-89b1-3ef80b36a8c0_1248x832.png" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><strong>Rick Retro&#8217;s Rankings #3:</strong> <em>Counting down #15 to #11 All-Time Best Christmas Movies (feature length, w/ Retro Reviews up to 2025-01-01) </em></p><p><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-25-to-16">&#11013;&#65039;Previous (all sections)</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-25-to-16">&#11013;&#65039;Previous</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-10-to-6">Next &#10145;&#65039;</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-10-to-6">Next (all sections) &#10145;&#65039;</a></p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!y_-b!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F39330829-e0b2-41a6-89b1-3ef80b36a8c0_1248x832.png" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!y_-b!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F39330829-e0b2-41a6-89b1-3ef80b36a8c0_1248x832.png 424w, 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class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg role="img" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><title></title><path d="M2.53001 7.81595C3.49179 4.73911 6.43281 2.5 9.91173 2.5C13.1684 2.5 15.9537 4.46214 17.0852 7.23684L17.6179 8.67647M17.6179 8.67647L18.5002 4.26471M17.6179 8.67647L13.6473 6.91176M17.4995 12.1841C16.5378 15.2609 13.5967 17.5 10.1178 17.5C6.86118 17.5 4.07589 15.5379 2.94432 12.7632L2.41165 11.3235M2.41165 11.3235L1.5293 15.7353M2.41165 11.3235L6.38224 13.0882"></path></g></svg></button><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container view-image"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 lucide-maximize-2"><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></button></div></div></div></a></figure></div><p><em>(Note from Rick Retro, 2026-01-12: These rankings were originally sent out to our early text group before my Substack debut. After re-reviewing these films a year later, <strong>some have been Retro-actively regraded and re-ranked</strong>, but I present them here as they were graded and ranked on 2024-12-31. <strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-handful-of-christmas-classics">The updated rankings through 2026-01-12 can be found here.</a></strong></em>)</p><p><strong>Previous Countdowns of the All-Time Best Christmas Movies </strong><em>(feature length, with Retro Reviews up to January 1, 2025)</em>:<strong><br><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-25-to-16">Counting down from #25 to #16</a></strong></p><p><strong>Counting down from #15 to #11:</strong></p><p>I&#8217;m ranking the overall quality of movies that are widely regarded as Christmas movies, <em>not</em> how well these movies demonstrate holiday spirit or even fit a Christmas theme.</p><p><em>Reminder:</em> The arrow after a grade indicates if it is in the top third (^), middle third (&gt;), or lower third (v) of works that share the same letter grade.</p><p><em>Also:</em> This post looks much better in your browser than on the Substack app, because the images in the links are not included in the version of the post that the app will show you. Go to rickretro.com in your desktop or mobile browser for the better rendition of this post.</p><h1>#15 A ^</h1><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;69cae1b7-ca12-4281-83af-cf7c2ef2efd9&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;Scrooge (1935) &#8212; It&#8217;s the best Scrooge we&#8217;ve seen yet, but could use more of the Charles Dickens twinkle.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;Scrooge (1935)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-04T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F19e3ae28-6bcd-4237-8c61-76553f60d628_1200x600.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/scrooge-1935&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:157134814,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:1,&quot;comment_count&quot;:1,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#14 A ^</h1><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;36ba90e6-440f-4f9b-a727-f14cf7e9bf24&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;The Shop Around the Corner (1940) &#8212; Actually it&#8217;s in Budapest, but it&#8217;s as cozy as it sounds.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;The Shop Around the Corner (1940)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-26T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!reS6!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7a82cf5f-7fe0-4d66-b3f8-136a219065a7_985x657.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/the-shop-around-the-corner-1940&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:180780881,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:2,&quot;comment_count&quot;:1,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#13 A ^</h1><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;9863d811-d96a-4cac-8110-51b8a379ed89&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;Christmas in Connecticut (1945) &#8212; A solid screwball romcom delivers clever Christmas comedy in the Constitution State.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;Christmas in Connecticut (1945)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-05T16:30:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb13af4b4-992e-4f00-9261-f04e6595ec60_3500x2280.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/christmas-in-connecticut-1945&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:157135690,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:1,&quot;comment_count&quot;:0,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#12 A+v</h1><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;612c16c1-fc7e-481c-b2cc-371ed730317c&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;A Christmas Carol (1938) &#8212; The first film adaptation of A Christmas Carol to be visited by the Spirit of Dickens&#8217; Past.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;A Christmas Carol (1938)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-04T16:15:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F52c8dd1c-3b40-412e-ad6c-fe72a5101182_750x492.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-christmas-carol-1938&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:157135206,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:1,&quot;comment_count&quot;:1,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#11 A+v</h1><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;ea954985-3d35-4769-a7c2-9f404f0b420c&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;National Lampoon&#8217;s Christmas Vacation (1989) &#8212; Chevy chases the perfect family Christmas.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-17T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!FgBS!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F690acb23-bdee-4d5d-a1ce-91a6d635170e_1920x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/national-lampoons-christmas-vacation&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:181836528,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:1,&quot;comment_count&quot;:0,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><div class="subscription-widget-wrap-editor" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/subscribe?&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Subscribe&quot;,&quot;language&quot;:&quot;en&quot;}" data-component-name="SubscribeWidgetToDOM"><div class="subscription-widget show-subscribe"><div class="preamble"><p class="cta-caption">More Retro Rankings will be on the way. Subscribe to have them delivered free to your in-box, and join our debates!</p></div><form class="subscription-widget-subscribe"><input type="email" class="email-input" name="email" placeholder="Type your email&#8230;" tabindex="-1"><input type="submit" class="button primary" value="Subscribe"><div class="fake-input-wrapper"><div class="fake-input"></div><div class="fake-button"></div></div></form></div></div><p>Coming soon:<br><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-10-to-6">Counting down from #10 to #6</a><br><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-5-to-3">Counting down from #5 to #3</a><br><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-2-to-1">Counting down from #2 to #1</a></strong></p><p>Meanwhile, feel free to debate these rankings or post your own as comments! I especially want to know which rankings you think I got wrong!</p><p class="button-wrapper" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-15-to-11/comments&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Leave a comment&quot;,&quot;action&quot;:null,&quot;class&quot;:null}" data-component-name="ButtonCreateButton"><a class="button primary" href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-15-to-11/comments"><span>Leave a comment</span></a></p><div><hr></div><p><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-25-to-16">&#11013;&#65039;Previous (all sections)</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-10-to-6">Next (all sections) &#10145;&#65039;</a></p><h6>Originally posted to text group 2024-12-31<br>Updated to v2.0 post formatting 2026-01-12</h6>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[Best Christmas Movies #25 to #16]]></title><description><![CDATA[Rick Retro&#8217;s Rankings #2: Counting down #25 to #16 All-Time Best Christmas Movies (w/ Retro Reviews up to 2025-01-01)]]></description><link>https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-25-to-16</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-25-to-16</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Rick Retro]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Tue, 31 Dec 2024 16:00:00 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!vsIz!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F256693e2-1bd0-42c0-8830-a3ac69ec97c7_1248x832.png" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><strong>Rick Retro&#8217;s Rankings #2:</strong> <em>Counting down #25 to #16 All-Time Best Christmas Movies (feature length, w/ Retro Reviews up to 2025-01-01) </em></p><p><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/update-december-30-2024">&#11013;&#65039;Previous (all sections)</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/the-big-three-christmas-tv-specials">&#11013;&#65039;Previous</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-15-to-11">Next &#10145;&#65039;</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-15-to-11">Next (all sections) &#10145;&#65039;</a></p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!vsIz!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F256693e2-1bd0-42c0-8830-a3ac69ec97c7_1248x832.png" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!vsIz!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F256693e2-1bd0-42c0-8830-a3ac69ec97c7_1248x832.png 424w, 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class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg role="img" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><title></title><path d="M2.53001 7.81595C3.49179 4.73911 6.43281 2.5 9.91173 2.5C13.1684 2.5 15.9537 4.46214 17.0852 7.23684L17.6179 8.67647M17.6179 8.67647L18.5002 4.26471M17.6179 8.67647L13.6473 6.91176M17.4995 12.1841C16.5378 15.2609 13.5967 17.5 10.1178 17.5C6.86118 17.5 4.07589 15.5379 2.94432 12.7632L2.41165 11.3235M2.41165 11.3235L1.5293 15.7353M2.41165 11.3235L6.38224 13.0882"></path></g></svg></button><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container view-image"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 lucide-maximize-2"><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></button></div></div></div></a></figure></div><p><em>(Note from Rick Retro, 2026-01-12: These rankings were originally sent out to our early text group before my Substack debut. After re-reviewing these films a year later, <strong>some have been Retro-actively regraded and re-ranked</strong>, but I present them here as they were graded and ranked on 2024-12-31. <strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/christmas-movies-our-bottom-ten">The updated rankings through 2026-01-12 can be found here.</a></strong></em>)</p><p>I&#8217;ve now reviewed 25 feature-length Christmas movies, well, 24. I just watched #25, You&#8217;ve Got Mail, and that review will be posted tomorrow.</p><p><strong>Counting down from #25 to #16:</strong></p><p><em>Added in response to a text group question:</em> I&#8217;m ranking the overall quality of movies that are widely regarded as Christmas movies, <em>not</em> how well these movies demonstrate holiday spirit or even fit a Christmas theme.</p><p><em>Reminder:</em> The arrow after a grade indicates if it is in the top third (^), middle third (&gt;), or lower third (v) of works that share the same letter grade.</p><p><em>Also:</em> This post looks much better in your browser than on the Substack app, because the images in the links are not included in the version of the post that the app will show you. Go to rickretro.com in your desktop or mobile browser for the better rendition of this post.</p><h1>#25 D+&gt;</h1><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;c0663f53-256a-4f48-994e-974ca740005d&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;Bad Santa (2003) &#8212; How bad is he? Ebenezer Scrooge and the Grinch combined have nothing on this guy.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;Bad Santa (2003)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-24T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!KFcr!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F4266961c-7847-438a-bcf1-908672508a1a_1280x720.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/bad-santa-2003&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:184193636,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:1,&quot;comment_count&quot;:0,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#24 C v</h1><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;dabb249a-1f7b-40a9-8059-33b537b34c30&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;Black Christmas (1974) &#8212; A film with a surprisingly entertaining second half&#8230;&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;Black Christmas (1974)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-11T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!POq8!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F78f1fb94-52c4-4033-8af7-57caa22760b4_2459x1383.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/black-christmas-1974&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:183528474,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:0,&quot;comment_count&quot;:0,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#23 B ^</h1><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;17562b0b-083d-4d4b-bef9-445e2184d5d4&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;Scrooged (1988) &#8212; A film that tries to get away with putting lipstick on a Christmas pig that&#8217;s impersonating a Christmas classic.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;Scrooged (1988)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-16T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/52e33767-fe6c-4d5d-a410-e7da741e95a8_891x501.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/scrooged-1988&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:181762921,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:0,&quot;comment_count&quot;:8,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#22 B ^</h1><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;53e19183-4b79-40b8-afb4-90cefcd9af6b&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;Love Actually (2003) &#8212; They actually use the word &#8220;actually&#8221; frequently in this film. I merely follow their lead&#8230;&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;Love Actually (2003)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-22T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!RJ2N!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb0b4c64e-a815-43b2-a7a2-af74bb11ddbe_1920x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/love-actually-2003&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:184109780,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:0,&quot;comment_count&quot;:0,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#21 B+v</h1><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;997699dd-d28e-481e-b9ea-fd7c2678302e&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;The Santa Clause (1994) &#8212; As &#8220;Ho, ho, ho!&#8221;s go, it&#8217;s better than so-so, but more &#8220;Oh.&#8221; than &#8220;Whoa!&#8221;, don&#8217;t you know.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;The Santa Clause (1994)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-21T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/2e9547fb-9a04-46a5-9a29-308d539a05db_1600x900.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/the-santa-clause-1994&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:182393559,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:2,&quot;comment_count&quot;:0,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#20 B+&gt;</h1><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;79970b44-52fb-4fa9-8c91-662a78486a9d&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;Trading Places (1983) &#8212; Good story, lots of laughs, but ultimately, too much unnecessary baggage.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;Trading Places (1983)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-12T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!eKS9!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F15318329-b605-4ab3-a931-c658382032a0_1280x720.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/trading-places-1983&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:181433655,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:1,&quot;comment_count&quot;:0,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#19 B+^</h1><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;429d99b6-32a2-4ec3-9c61-e1fb19d888e8&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;Babes in Toyland (1934) (aka March of the Wooden Soldiers) &#8212; Laurel and Hardy rescue Mother Goose and friends in more ways than one.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;Babes in Toyland (1934) (aka March of the Wooden Soldiers)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-03T16:30:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!3iHU!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1056050d-b9da-40fc-bcad-159355b7213a_3176x2135.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/babes-in-toyland-1934-aka-march-of&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:157134192,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:1,&quot;comment_count&quot;:0,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#18 B+^</h1><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;170e16b4-cac3-4f6b-bd97-ea717b64f148&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;In the Good Old Summertime (1949) &#8212; If they had called this movie In the Great Old Summertime, then they would be misleading you with two words of the title, not just one!&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;In the Good Old Summertime (1949)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-28T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!Pr_z!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F6c0e1d6c-3671-4bb5-a904-5f469e1a6189_1080x720.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/in-the-good-old-summertime-1949&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:183225788,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:2,&quot;comment_count&quot;:0,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#17 A-v</h1><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;5e3c1a5f-04bc-4b1d-9f35-56ec3b7fcbb9&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;Home Alone (1990) &#8212; Smart kid vs. dumb criminals at Christmastime equals holiday slapstick success.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;Home Alone (1990)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-18T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!XloZ!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8bc16f46-a0b1-4278-a8ec-26fe965b3057_1605x903.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/home-alone-1990&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:183681134,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:0,&quot;comment_count&quot;:1,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><h1>#16 A &gt;</h1><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;46e682fb-9cab-4830-a946-103f33dd9713&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;White Christmas (1954) &#8212; There&#8217;s not a ton of snow or Christmas here, but this film honors veterans and is a solid musical romcom well worth the watch.&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;White Christmas (1954)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-07T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F780428b1-3c9c-453d-b7df-755483ff6aff_1280x720.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/white-christmas-1954&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:157140488,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:0,&quot;comment_count&quot;:0,&quot;publication_id&quot;:3933997,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:true,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><div class="subscription-widget-wrap-editor" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/subscribe?&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Subscribe&quot;,&quot;language&quot;:&quot;en&quot;}" data-component-name="SubscribeWidgetToDOM"><div class="subscription-widget show-subscribe"><div class="preamble"><p class="cta-caption">More Retro Rankings will be on the way. Subscribe to have them delivered free to your in-box, and join our debates!</p></div><form class="subscription-widget-subscribe"><input type="email" class="email-input" name="email" placeholder="Type your email&#8230;" tabindex="-1"><input type="submit" class="button primary" value="Subscribe"><div class="fake-input-wrapper"><div class="fake-input"></div><div class="fake-button"></div></div></form></div></div><p>Coming soon:<br><strong><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-15-to-11">Counting down from #15 to #11</a><br><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-10-to-6">Counting down from #10 to #6</a><br><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-5-to-3">Counting down from #5 to #3</a><br><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-2-to-1">Counting down from #2 to #1</a></strong></p><p>Meanwhile, feel free to debate these rankings or post your own as comments! I especially want to know which rankings you think I got wrong!</p><p class="button-wrapper" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-25-to-16/comments&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Leave a comment&quot;,&quot;action&quot;:null,&quot;class&quot;:null}" data-component-name="ButtonCreateButton"><a class="button primary" href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-25-to-16/comments"><span>Leave a comment</span></a></p><div><hr></div><p><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/update-december-30-2024">&#11013;&#65039;Previous (all sections)</a> | <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/best-christmas-movies-15-to-11">Next (all sections) &#10145;&#65039;</a></p><h6>Originally posted to text group 2024-12-31<br>Updated to v2.0 post formatting 2026-01-12</h6>]]></content:encoded></item><item><title><![CDATA[Rudolph vs. Charlie Brown vs. The Grinch: Who's The Best?]]></title><description><![CDATA[Rick Retro&#8217;s Rankings #1: The Big Three Christmas TV Specials.]]></description><link>https://www.rickretro.com/p/the-big-three-christmas-tv-specials</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.rickretro.com/p/the-big-three-christmas-tv-specials</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Rick Retro]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Mon, 09 Dec 2024 16:15:00 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!8gAM!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F21f69794-4b33-4ded-854e-8980b81226ea_472x300.jpeg" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><strong>Rick Retro&#8217;s Rankings #1:</strong> <em>The Big Three Christmas TV Specials. Rudolph vs. Charlie Brown vs. The Grinch: Who&#8217;s The Best?</em></p><p><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/how-the-grinch-stole-christmas-1966">&#11013;&#65039;Previous (all sections)</a>  |  <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/the-little-drummer-boy-1968">Next (all sections) &#10145;&#65039;</a></p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!8gAM!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F21f69794-4b33-4ded-854e-8980b81226ea_472x300.jpeg" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!8gAM!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F21f69794-4b33-4ded-854e-8980b81226ea_472x300.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!8gAM!,w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F21f69794-4b33-4ded-854e-8980b81226ea_472x300.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!8gAM!,w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F21f69794-4b33-4ded-854e-8980b81226ea_472x300.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!8gAM!,w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F21f69794-4b33-4ded-854e-8980b81226ea_472x300.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!8gAM!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F21f69794-4b33-4ded-854e-8980b81226ea_472x300.jpeg" width="472" height="300" data-attrs="{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/21f69794-4b33-4ded-854e-8980b81226ea_472x300.jpeg&quot;,&quot;srcNoWatermark&quot;:null,&quot;fullscreen&quot;:null,&quot;imageSize&quot;:null,&quot;height&quot;:300,&quot;width&quot;:472,&quot;resizeWidth&quot;:null,&quot;bytes&quot;:44223,&quot;alt&quot;:null,&quot;title&quot;:null,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;image/jpeg&quot;,&quot;href&quot;:null,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:false,&quot;topImage&quot;:true,&quot;internalRedirect&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/i/167709675?img=https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F21f69794-4b33-4ded-854e-8980b81226ea_472x300.jpeg&quot;,&quot;isProcessing&quot;:false,&quot;align&quot;:null,&quot;offset&quot;:false}" class="sizing-normal" alt="" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!8gAM!,w_424,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F21f69794-4b33-4ded-854e-8980b81226ea_472x300.jpeg 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!8gAM!,w_848,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F21f69794-4b33-4ded-854e-8980b81226ea_472x300.jpeg 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!8gAM!,w_1272,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F21f69794-4b33-4ded-854e-8980b81226ea_472x300.jpeg 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!8gAM!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F21f69794-4b33-4ded-854e-8980b81226ea_472x300.jpeg 1456w" sizes="100vw" fetchpriority="high"></picture><div class="image-link-expand"><div class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg role="img" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><title></title><path d="M2.53001 7.81595C3.49179 4.73911 6.43281 2.5 9.91173 2.5C13.1684 2.5 15.9537 4.46214 17.0852 7.23684L17.6179 8.67647M17.6179 8.67647L18.5002 4.26471M17.6179 8.67647L13.6473 6.91176M17.4995 12.1841C16.5378 15.2609 13.5967 17.5 10.1178 17.5C6.86118 17.5 4.07589 15.5379 2.94432 12.7632L2.41165 11.3235M2.41165 11.3235L1.5293 15.7353M2.41165 11.3235L6.38224 13.0882"></path></g></svg></button><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container view-image"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" stroke-width="2" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" class="lucide lucide-maximize2 lucide-maximize-2"><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></button></div></div></div></a></figure></div><p>I&#8217;ve now reviewed all three of the iconic Christmas TV specials some of us have seen too many times to count. Dozens, if not hundreds, of Christmas TV specials have been produced since these ones from the 1960s, but most people agree these were the best. The <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-charlie-brown-christmas-1965">Charlie Brown</a> special made all ten of the best Christmas movies lists I recently checked. <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/rudolph-the-red-nosed-reindeer-1964">Rudolph</a> and <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/how-the-grinch-stole-christmas-1966">Grinch</a> both made nine of ten. They would be near the top, if not the top three, on most lists of Christmas TV specials, no matter what aspect of the specials is being ranked.</p><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;43aa1910-0bf8-4a4b-9119-5f7a5f197a27&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&#8220;Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer&#8221; (1964) &#8212; Now, new and improved in HD! Don't be too cool to watch this again as an adult!&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&#8220;Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer&#8221; (1964)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-08T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/247dc7d0-bc4e-4460-814e-152ae206953d_735x564.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/rudolph-the-red-nosed-reindeer-1964&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:157252801,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:0,&quot;comment_count&quot;:13,&quot;publication_id&quot;:null,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:false,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;f2fa8c5d-dc25-455e-b3a2-0afefd42cb2f&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&#8220;A Charlie Brown Christmas&#8221; (1965) &#8212; 1960s shocker! Network TV actually broadcasts the true meaning of Christmas!&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&#8220;A Charlie Brown Christmas&#8221; (1965)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-08T16:30:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/8c831fac-ef28-4ae7-880c-f3991204466a_1920x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-charlie-brown-christmas-1965&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:157262775,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:1,&quot;comment_count&quot;:1,&quot;publication_id&quot;:null,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:false,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><div class="digest-post-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;nodeId&quot;:&quot;8c4fa4ea-6167-4d83-b694-759939fb1c24&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&#8220;How the Grinch Stole Christmas!&#8221; (1966) &#8212; Spoiler Alert: By abusing his poor little dog, that's how!&quot;,&quot;cta&quot;:&quot;Read full story&quot;,&quot;showBylines&quot;:true,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;lg&quot;,&quot;isEditorNode&quot;:true,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&#8220;How the Grinch Stole Christmas!&#8221; (1966)&quot;,&quot;publishedBylines&quot;:[{&quot;id&quot;:75595364,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro&quot;,&quot;bio&quot;:&quot;Rick Retro loves movies, TV shows, books and music, and writes about them from a fun, info-packed, non-woke viewpoint. He loves politics, tabletop games and Angels baseball too, but doesn't write about any of them. Yet. &quot;,&quot;photo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/cafe963d-c2a6-437e-8833-0554c5f55c2b_1080x1080.jpeg&quot;,&quot;is_guest&quot;:false,&quot;bestseller_tier&quot;:null}],&quot;post_date&quot;:&quot;2024-12-09T16:00:00.000Z&quot;,&quot;cover_image&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!W0wl!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9a2aaf65-8ee7-4328-b641-adfd4f53e183_992x720.jpeg&quot;,&quot;cover_image_alt&quot;:null,&quot;canonical_url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/how-the-grinch-stole-christmas-1966&quot;,&quot;section_name&quot;:&quot;Reviews&quot;,&quot;video_upload_id&quot;:null,&quot;id&quot;:157264138,&quot;type&quot;:&quot;newsletter&quot;,&quot;reaction_count&quot;:2,&quot;comment_count&quot;:1,&quot;publication_id&quot;:null,&quot;publication_name&quot;:&quot; Retro Movie Reviews&quot;,&quot;publication_logo_url&quot;:&quot;https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!jSO2!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9802dda7-82dc-4c8b-b780-1951e7b19c65_1024x1024.png&quot;,&quot;belowTheFold&quot;:false,&quot;youtube_url&quot;:null,&quot;show_links&quot;:null,&quot;feed_url&quot;:null}"></div><p>Here are my takes on the respective strengths of these three specials that all received my highest grade, A+^. It&#8217;s not easy to decide on these rankings. They&#8217;re all great specials in their own right, and a lot of these are really close calls. Here goes:</p><h2>Best Christmas TV Special</h2><p>1 <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-charlie-brown-christmas-1965">Charlie Brown</a><br>2 <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/how-the-grinch-stole-christmas-1966">Grinch</a><br>3 <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/rudolph-the-red-nosed-reindeer-1964">Rudolph</a></p><p>Use this same order for:</p><h3>Best Christmas TV Special for Adults<br>Best Christmas TV Special for Teenagers<br>Best Message in a Christmas TV Special<br>Best Script in a Christmas TV Special<br>Best Dog or Dogs in a Christmas TV Special (Snoopy, Max, Yukon's sled dogs)</h3><h2>Best Christmas TV Special for Younger Kids</h2><p>1 <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/rudolph-the-red-nosed-reindeer-1964">Rudolph</a><br>2 <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/how-the-grinch-stole-christmas-1966">Grinch</a><br>3 <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-charlie-brown-christmas-1965">Charlie Brown</a></p><p>Use this same order for:</p><h3>Best Visual Appearance of a Christmas TV Special <br>Christmas TV Special Most Improved by HD<br>Best Voice Cast in a Christmas TV Special<br>Best Plot in a Christmas TV Special </h3><h2>Best Cast of Characters in a Christmas TV Special</h2><p>1 <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-charlie-brown-christmas-1965">Charlie Brown</a><br>2 <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/rudolph-the-red-nosed-reindeer-1964">Rudolph</a><br>3 <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/how-the-grinch-stole-christmas-1966">Grinch</a></p><p>Use this same order for:</p><h3>Best Lead Female Character in a Christmas TV Special (Lucy, Clarice, n/a)<br>Best Supporting Male Character in a Christmas TV Special (Linus, Hermey, Max)<br>Best Christmas TV Special Soundtrack Album</h3><h2>Best Christmas TV Special for Older Kids</h2><p>1 <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/how-the-grinch-stole-christmas-1966">Grinch</a><br>2 <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-charlie-brown-christmas-1965">Charlie Brown</a><br>3 <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/rudolph-the-red-nosed-reindeer-1964">Rudolph</a></p><p>Use this same order for:</p><h3>Best Lead Male Character in a Christmas TV Special (The Grinch, Charlie Brown, Rudolph)<br>Best Supporting Female Character in a Christmas TV Special (Cindy Lou Who, Sally, Mama Claus)</h3><h2>Best Dark Whimsy in a Christmas TV Special</h2><p>1 <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/how-the-grinch-stole-christmas-1966">Grinch</a><br>2 <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/rudolph-the-red-nosed-reindeer-1964">Rudolph</a><br>3 <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/a-charlie-brown-christmas-1965">Charlie Brown</a></p><p>Use this same order for:</p><h3>Best Animation in a Christmas TV Special<br>Best Production Quality of a Christmas TV Special</h3><div class="subscription-widget-wrap-editor" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/subscribe?&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Subscribe&quot;,&quot;language&quot;:&quot;en&quot;}" data-component-name="SubscribeWidgetToDOM"><div class="subscription-widget show-subscribe"><div class="preamble"><p class="cta-caption">More Rankings will be on the way. Subscribe to have them delivered free to your in-box, and join our debates!</p></div><form class="subscription-widget-subscribe"><input type="email" class="email-input" name="email" placeholder="Type your email&#8230;" tabindex="-1"><input type="submit" class="button primary" value="Subscribe"><div class="fake-input-wrapper"><div class="fake-input"></div><div class="fake-button"></div></div></form></div></div><div class="poll-embed" data-attrs="{&quot;id&quot;:417507}" data-component-name="PollToDOM"></div><p>The next three reviews will be from the second tier of Christmas TV specials, sitting just below the Big Three in stature, but still more renowned than all the rest.</p><p>Meanwhile, feel free to debate these rankings or post your own as comments! I especially want to know which rankings you think I got wrong!</p><p class="button-wrapper" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://www.rickretro.com/p/the-big-three-christmas-tv-specials/comments&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Leave a comment&quot;,&quot;action&quot;:null,&quot;class&quot;:null}" data-component-name="ButtonCreateButton"><a class="button primary" href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/the-big-three-christmas-tv-specials/comments"><span>Leave a comment</span></a></p><div><hr></div><p><a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/how-the-grinch-stole-christmas-1966">&#11013;&#65039;Previous (all sections)</a>  |  <a href="https://www.rickretro.com/p/the-little-drummer-boy-1968">Next (all sections) &#10145;&#65039;</a></p><h6>Originally posted to text group 2024-12-09<br>Updated for new post formatting 2025-08-24<br>Last updated 2025-12-11</h6>]]></content:encoded></item></channel></rss>