e Best Movies to Watch this Holiday Season

Watching holiday movies is the perfect way to get into the holiday spirit! Whether you are watching alone, with a friend, or with your family, watching holiday movies is a fun pre-holiday ritual—and if nothing else, a great excuse to drink hot chocolate and eat popcorn. The sheer abundance of holiday movies, particularly Hallmark Christmas movies, makes choosing the right movie to watch overwhelming. To ease your choice paralysis, we at the Bulletin have curated a selection of movies that are perfect to watch in preparation for the holiday season. Here are a few of our top recommendations...

Little Women, 2019

, directed by Barnard alum Greta Gerwig and based on Louisa May Alcott’s classic novel, is the quintessential holiday movie. Taking a story that many are familiar with, Gerwig presents with a twist as she introduces the plotline using a non-linear timeline that begins at the end of the story. introduces the March family as they prepare for their first Christmas without their father, who is defending the North in the Civil War. Gerwig’s star studded cast, which boasts Sairose Ronan, Emma Watson, Timothée Chalamet, Meryl Streep, and Laura Dern, brings the classic novel to light. Although this movie is set a century and a half ago, the central themes and conflicts that it presents are very much still prevalent today. As draws on family values, relationships, and love, it connects the old with the new as it reminds viewers of shared experiences that transcend time. Anyone familiar with Alcott’s novel knows that the March family’s lives are filled with struggle. As Gerwig presents the trials of the March family and the hardships that they are forced to endure, she highlights the importance of family and the ways in which the March sisters are strengthened and uplifted by their relationships to one another. A recommendation to anyone who watches this movie—bring tissues! This movie is a tearjerker. A winner of the Critics Choice Movie Award for best adapted screenplay, is the perfect nostalgic movie to watch this holiday season.

Rating: 5/5

Happiest Season, 2020

, directed by Clea Duvall, is a modern twist on the classic holiday romcom. Duvall’s movie, which stars Kristin Stewart and Mackenzie Davis, introduces couple Abby and Harper as they prepare for the holiday season. One of the first holiday movies that highlights a lesbian relationship, brings LGBTQ+ issues to light as it highlights Abby and Harper’s journey. Although this movie emphasizes the difficulties of being queer and coming out to loved ones, it does so in a manner that combines comedy and sincerity. The complexities of this movie are introduced as Abby, played by Kristin Stewart, realizes that her partner is not out to her family moments before she arrives at their family home to celebrate Christmas. Through its portrayal of Abby and Harper’s relationship, this movie reveals the complexities of romantic

by Rose Joffe

THE BULLETIN - 46 - nov/dec 2021

love, and the ways in which this love is complicated when it is not accepted by family and loved ones. Allison Brie, Dan Levy, and Aubrey Plaza are hilarious in their supporting roles as sister, best friend, and past love interest. , which takes the typically heterosexual-dominated Christmas love story and transforms it through its inclusion of a lesbian couple, is the perfect amount of cliché. Watch to get your classic holiday movie fix.

Rating: 3/5

Love Actually, 2003

Richard Curtis’s is the classic holiday movie. With a plethora of characters, ally’s star-studded cast includes Bill Nighy, Keira Knightley, January Jones, Hugh Grant, and Colin Firth. This movie, which presents several separate story lines, highlights the importance of love— which manifests itself not only in the romantic relationships presented, but also in the movie’s emphasis on family and friendship. As it follows a married couple, the bachelor Prime Minister of England, a writer, and a little boy in love with someone who barely knows his name, draws salient parallels between the lives of complete strangers and emphasizes the importance of love and of being loved. What makes such a timeless and classic movie is the way in which it refuses to sugarcoat relationships. Although this movie highlights happy endings, it also emphasizes the complexities of relationships in its portrayal of heartbreak, longing, grief, and disloyalty. This movie’s multifaceted portrayal of platonic, familial, and romantic relationships is what makes the movie so timeless. Actually, which was nominated for the Critics Choice best acting ensemble as well as the Golden Globes best screenplay and motion picture, is a movie that never disappoints.

Rating: 4/5

Bridget Jones’s Diary, 2001

Bridget Jones’s Diary, directed by Sharon Maguire, is a hilarious holiday movie. The movie introduces Bridget Jones, a lonely thirty-something woman who is unhappy with her job, as she decides to turn a new leaf and take control of her life. As Bridget Jones’s Diary portrays its protagonist as she stumbles over her words, grapples with exceedingly awkward interactions with family friends, and attends a non-costume party dressed as a playboy bunny, it draws in the audience through its relatability. Bridget Jones’s Diary is filled with comedy as it portrays Bridget Jones as she attempts (and sometimes fails) to pull her life together. As she struggles to create a better life for herself, Bridget finds herself in the midst of a love triangle and is eventually forced to choose between her handsome quick-witted boss, played by Hugh Grant, and her awkward family friend, played by Colin Firth. What makes Bridget Jones’s Diary such a great movie is the idea of imperfection that it draws on. The movie highlights the flaws of its protagonist, played by Renée Zellweger, and is realistic in its portrayal of her friendships, her relationships with her family, and her flawed romantic relationships. Bridget Jones’s Diary even landed Zellweger a Golden Globe nomination for best performance by an actress in a motion picture. This movie is a holiday season mustwatch.

Rating: 5/5

THE BULLETIN - 47 - nov/dec 2021