With the holidays right around the corner, there’s nothing more festive than curling up in your pajamas with a cup of hot chocolate and a good Christmas movie. Because holiday travel is scarce this year, if you are in need of a Christmas movie recommendation or two to pass the time, here are a few of my favorites.

Home Alone
In Home Alone, Kevin McCallister’s (Macaulay Culkin) parents accidentally leave him, you guessed it, home alone for the holidays. Kevin decides to have the time of his life, which includes sledding down the stairs and experimenting with his dad’s aftershave. That is, until he is tasked with cleverly protecting his house from two burglars. This movie is heartwarming and uproariously funny, and will keep you laughing all through Christmas.

The Grinch (2018)
The newest animated adaptation of Dr. Seuss’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas! is definitely worth the watch. At first glance it may seem geared towards children, but it is a joy for the entire family. Benedict Cumberbatch excels as the voice of the disgruntled Grinch as he plots to steal the Christmas of the happy and festive Whoville (the neighboring town), but eventually learns what Christmas is all about.

Elf
This movie follows Buddy (Will Ferrell), a human raised in the North Pole as an elf, as he explores New York City. In New York City, he is looking for his biological father, a selfish children’s book publisher. Buddy’s simple-minded and naive attitude towards the city and everything about it makes this movie incredibly amusing, and the assorted Christmas songs will definitely put you in the Christmas spirit. Plus, who can forget the infamous spaghetti-and-syrup scene?

Die Hard
Whether Die Hard is a Christmas movie is debatable. I would say it is an action movie first, but a Christmas movie nonetheless. New York City cop John McClane (Bruce Willis) goes to a holiday party to see his wife (Bonnie Bedelia), but it takes a turn when the party gets taken over by a group of terrorists, and he has to save the hostages from the building alone. “Die Hard” is a perfect mix of an action movie and a Christmas movie, and is a real crowd-pleaser!

Let it Snow
This movie definitely plays into the “small town Christmas” cliché that is often seen with Christmas movies, but not in a bad way. Let it Snow follows a group of teenagers on Christmas Eve in a rural town in Illinois, and is complete with many couples you can root for, a decrepit diner, a tiny pig and many talented actors and actresses (Isabela Monet, Kiernan Shipka, Mitchell Hope, Odeya Rush). Overall, this movie, full of romance and Christmas spirit, was very entertaining.

It’s a Wonderful Life
It’s a Wonderful Life is almost entirely composed of flashbacks of George Bailey’s (James Stewart) life, showing us all the good deeds he has done for his town in upstate New York. So when George thinks about ending his life on Christmas, his guardian angel, Clarence Odbody (Henry Travers), is sent to George rescue him and show him what his town would have been like if it were not for his good deeds. While the majority of this movie is not set on Christmas, it’s still Christmas-y, and is a heartwarming story about one man’s effect on his hometown.

Happy holidays and happy watching!