Christmas Movies for Adults
Christmas is my favorite time of year to watch movies. I can remember watching all of the claymation movies when I was growing up, but since then there have been many great movies that have came out, both animation and real life. As the years have gone by, some Christmas movies weren't really made suitable for all ages. It's nice to watch the holiday classics with children and friends, but there are some other great Christmas movies out there that are just better suited for adults. I haven't seen many Christmas movies that I didn't like, but I have compiled the following list of the latest Christmas movies that I have seen and own that are great for adult couples to watch after they put the kids to bed.
Fred Claus
This movie is about the brother of Santa Claus, Fred (Vince Vaughn). Nick (Paul Giamatti) was the favored child out of the two. After sawing down Fred's favorite tree, where his bird companion lived, Fred resents his brother and becomes extremely jealous. While Nick was busy being Santa and delivering toys, Fred decided to become a Repo man and take gifts away instead of giving them. After a span of trouble Fred is in need of money and calls upon his brother, which lands him at the North Pole to help make toys. When an inspector comes on the scene and starts framing Fred for mishaps at Santa's Toy Shop, it drives Fred even further away from Nick. After injuring his brother, Nick, in a fight over the Naughty and Nice list, Fred decides to return home. Nick gives Fred one gift before he leave, which Fred decides to open when he gets home. The gift is a replica bird house with an apology note attached for sawing down Fred's favorite tree. To find out what happens you must watch this movie. I rent movies all the time, but this is a great Christmas movie to own. I have watched it several times and you can purchase it for what it would cost to rent two times.
Four Christmases
In this movie, Brad (Vince Vaughn) and Kate (Reese Witherspoon) are a happy dating couple who are trying to avoid spending Christmas with their embarrassing families. During their wait at the airport they are interviewed by a news team, revealing their whereabouts to their respective families. Both were way to embarrassed to spend time with their families and rightfully so. Before visiting their families, all of which had been broken up by divorce, Brad and Kate were satisfied just being an unmarried couple with no children, but the lonliness they see in their divorced families leads them to think otherwise. This is a great Christmas movie for couples.
Black Christmas
This movie is a whole different take on your usual holiday flick. In this movie, Mrs. Lenz has a son, Billy, who is born with a rare disease which turned his skin yellow. Mrs. Lenz falls in love with another man and decides to murder her husband when he won't give her a divorce. When Billy witnesses his mother and her lover burying his father, he is locked in the attic for years. Mrs. Lenz begins to hate her son and abuses him. After repeated attempts to bear another offspring, Mrs. Lenz new husband is unable to provide her with another child, which drives Mrs. Lenz to rape her son, Billy, bearing a little girl named Agnes. Years later on Christmas Eve, Billy escapes his binds, kills his mother and her lover and disfigures his sister/daughter by ripping her eye out. Soon after he is committed to a mental institution in which he escapes on a particular Christmas Eve to return home to reek havoc once again. This movie is definitely not for children, but is a good thriller movie for the holidays.
A home of our own
A home of our own stars Kathy Bates. It is a story about a single mother, who has to raise her 5 children on her own without a penny to her name. She encourages her kids to help her build the house of their dreams, but after buying all the kids Christmas presents for the house like hammers and nails, the oldest kid turns against her. The mother is stubborn all throughout the movie, determined to make her own way without the help of others. After their up and coming house is destroyed by a fire, she has no choice but to receive the help of others. This is a great story of a family that sticks together through hard times.
The Family Stone
In this movie, Kevin (Dermot Mulroney) takes his wife to be, Meredith (Sarah Jessica Parker), to meet his "unique" family for the Christmas Holidays and announce his engagement. Throughout the movie Meredith strives to fit in amongst Kevin's family, but keeps getting embarrassed and frustrated, feeling like she doesn't fit in. The story shifts when Kevin's brother, Ben (Luke Wilson) comes to Meredith's comfort after she is in tears, trying to leave to go to her hotel. The two end up at a local bar and Meredith finally lets loose and they both participate in a drunken spout of Karaoke. The next morning Meredith awakes in Ben's bed, assuming they had did the nasty. The movie is hilarious all the way through and the end result is a lot different than what the beginning of the movie leads you to believe.
Just Friends
Chris Brander (Ryan Reynolds) is a geeky, fat high school nerd, who is in love with his best friend, Jamie Palamino (Amy Smart). One Christmas Chris decides to write his feelings about Jamie in her high school yearbook, which would soon be read aloud by Jamies ex-boyfriend at the Christmas party. Jamie, however, does not respond the way Chris had hoped. She only gives him a kiss on the cheek and proclaims that she loves him like a brother. After high school, Chris decides to move away from his embarrassing home town and becomes a very successful record producer, vowing to never become "just friends" with a girl again.
While trying to land the newest sensation pop star, Chris is en route to Paris to get her to sign with a record company. After a ridiculous plane mishap, they are forced to land in Chris's home town. Chris decides to take his prospective singer to his mother's house for the night and ventures out to the local bar where he meets some old high school friends. It is here that his crush on Jamie Palamino is rediscovered. Noticing that he is in shape and successful now, Chris tries to woo Jamie, but runs into some problems along the way.
Bad Santa
Willie Stokes (Billy Bob Thornton) is a mall Santa, accompanied by his elf, Marcus (Tony Cox). Each year after the mall closes, Willie and Marcus break into the mall safe, take the money and complete their Christmas wish list from the mall.
After their last heist, Willie wastes all of his earnings on liquor, beachfront living and other disrespectful desires in Miami. When Willie and Marcus reunite for the next holiday season, Willie is a pure drunk and has gotten sloppy in his safe cracking technique. The story gets interesting after a chubby kids intervenes when Willie is being attacked by a stranger. Willie takes the kid home to find that the house is only inhabited by the kid and his grandmother. Willie then breaks into the safe, steals all the money and uses the kid's father's BMW to parade around in. Over time, Willie grows more and more attached to the kid. While this movie is extremely crude in parts, it actually turns into a very sweet movie and will keep you laughing all the way through.