Detroit

blue

Axios Detroit Partners

Axios Detroit

Standard

A daily look at the most significant and interesting stories affecting Detroit.

Axios Detroit Thought Bubble

Thought Bubble

Detroit Alerts

Alert

Detroit Members

Membership

San Diego

Axios San Diego

Annalise here, urging you to expand your holiday movie palette beyond the obvious classics and Hallmark-esque ridiculousness.

Why it matters: So many great movies delve into holiday themes or feature Christmas decor, but may not be featured in your streaming service's "holiday movies" category.

Yes, but: I still adore silly holiday rom-coms and have already seen "Elf" twice this year — so I'm not judging!

Caveat: Not all the movies shown here will fill you with holiday spirit. Some of them are … upsetting.

This list features entries from me, as well as Axios San Diego reporter Claire Trageser.

🏰 "The Green Knight": This movie involves a strange tree-looking knight challenging Dev Patel to "The Christmas Game." Definitely about Christmas.

🎭 "Eyes Wide Shut": It starts at a Christmas party and ends with Christmas shopping. What happens in between has little to do with Christmas.

🏫 "The Holdovers": I definitely recommend adding this heartwarming and bittersweet story to your list — it's all about the meaning of the holidays, though it's not technically a Christmas movie.

🐘 "Jumanji": Sure, the vibes are more jungle horrorscape than winter magic, but "Jumanji" is the best and Robin Williams wears a Santa suit.

🚋 "Meet Me in St. Louis": The song "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" was introduced in this movie.

👹 "Gremlins": This classic, cautionary tale is actually seen by some people as a bona fide Christmas movie.

🚉 "While You Were Sleeping": In this classic rom-com, Sandra Bullock rescues Peter Gallagher from the subway tracks on Christmas Day.

🔪 "American Psycho": This might not be the best option to have in the background while trimming the tree with family, but it does include a Christmas party.

Try some unusual Christmas movies this season

Take a break from those Netflix rom-coms and try these odd but interesting picks.

Three photos: One of Christian Bale from American Psycho, one of a cute gremlins creature and one of Judy Garland posing in a fancy dress and hat.

On the set of "American Psycho" (from left), "Gremlins" and Judy Garland. Photos, via Getty Images: Eric Robert/Sygma/Sygma, Warner Brothers and FilmPublicityArchive/United Archives

Annalise here, urging you to expand your holiday movie palette beyond the obvious classics and Hallmark-esque ridiculousness.Why it matters: So many great movies delve into holiday themes or feature Christmas decor, but may not be featured in your streaming service&#x27;s &quot;holiday movies&quot; category.

Culture

Things to Do

Holidays

San Diego plan targets housing gap as families leave

Top Easter events in San Diego

How San Diego is using AI — and what's next

How San Diego parents navigate soaring child care costs

San Diego library offers budget wedding option

topics

politics-policy

epstein-files

donald-trump

2026-midterm-elections

immigration

behind-the-curtain

race-and-equity

technology

privacy-tech-regulation

automation-and-ai

tiktok-news

big-tech

social-media

cybersecurity

economy

social-security

inflation

tariffs

federal-reserve

jobs

transportation

business

stock-market-news

retail-news

crypto

media

elon-musk

dealmaking

health

rfk-jr

drug-prices

axios-explains-abortion

public-health

world

israel

axios-explains-ukraine

iran

russia

china

energy-climate

nuclear-energy

climate-energy-policy

climate-change

extreme-weather

alternative-energy

electric-vehicles

science

emerging-tech

biomedicine

newsletters

charlotte

boulder

detroit

kansas-city

columbus

austin

dallas

atlanta

washington-dc

nw-arkansas

chicago

indianapolis

nashville

richmond

colorado-springs

houston

san-francisco

seattle

boston

des-moines

salt-lake-city

philadelphia

denver

phoenix

new-orleans

miami

twin-cities

raleigh

san-antonio

portland

san-diego

tampa-bay

cleveland

huntsville

pittsburgh

axios-local

axios-pro

axios-live

the-axios-show

Claire Trageser

Featured stories

San Diego plan targets housing gap as families leave

Top Easter events in San Diego

How San Diego is using AI — and what's next

How San Diego parents navigate soaring child care costs

San Diego library offers budget wedding option