MOVIE OF THE WEEK December 26, 2025: HO HO HOLIDAY VIEWING
Well now, isn’t it odd that the words cope and hope not only rhyme, but are also major factors in our holiday planning and celebrations? Perhaps even more so this stressful year than in any other year during the past decade – or even longer. As the real life drama of 2025 rolls into 2026, we are coping with the various traumas and hoping that the coming year will deliver peace, good will and prosperity for all. And, yes, reckoning and accountbility for some. During this celebratory cope and hope holiday season, good movies provide respite from the world’s day to day worries and they deliver insight into the ways in which we might make progress in overcoming them. And so we take this opportunity to present — for your escape from stress and for your viewing enjoyment — Team Movie of the Week’s richly varied list of highly recommended movies for your ho ho holiday watch roster. Team MOTW’s choices feature romance, comedy, thrills and an abundance of good food. We’ve selected films that are upbeat, inspiring and spirited, although not all are directly connected to traditional holiday celebrations. Read our mini reviews of all the selected titles, punch up the trailers and pick the titles that most appeal to you. Or, better yet, watch them all. — Team MOTW
BABETTE’S FEAST— Jennifer Merin
Although it’s not specifically themed for the holiday season, I always crave filmmaker Gabriel Axel’s very delicious Babette’s Feast at this time of year. This 1987 femme-centric cuisine classic is a marvelous celebration of the spirit of giving and of lifting of the spirits by experiencing the enormous pleasures of a gourmet feast. The scenario is set in a small, isolated and repressively religious Danish village where Babette, a French emigree who is fleeing difficult circumstances at home, comes to work. The restrained yet discernible clash of cultures — the French joie de vivre in contrast to the dour Danish fundamentalism — is resolved in a glorious and transformative act of Babette’s extraordinary material and spiritual generosity. Without being preachy, the story of Babette’s Feast advocates for us to welcome ‘others’ to our table to partake of the bountiful pleasures of life. What a beautiful and meaningful message for the holiday season — or for any time of the year. And here’s a viewing tip: dine before watching or stock up on snacks preferably of the haute gourmet variety. Watch the trailer.
CAROL – Loren King
Carol is a Christmas movie and not just because of the heroine’s name or the rich palette of reds and greens. It’s in the weaving of melancholy and longing with flashes of joy and anticipation and the rushes of despair. It’s in, finally, the hope. Todd Haynes’s film begins in the days leading to Christmas. The lonely season is a fitting time for two souls trapped in 1952 to meet and fall in love. Therese (Rooney Mara), wearing a company-issued Santa hat, works the toy counter at a department store in Manhattan. In the crowd, she spots what’s the highlight of her day in the form of fur coat and scarlet lipstick wearing Carol Aird (Cate Blanchett). At Therese’s suggestion, Carol buys a train set instead of a doll for her daughter. She leaves her luxurious leather gloves on the counter. This leads into the heart of the film: the road trip they take together. It’s a flight from convention, toward freedom that culminates in a motel room on New Year’s Eve where they make love in rush of release and connection. Bookending the opening, in an homage to Brief Encounter, is the film’s magnificent last scene. Therese moves through another crowded room; a man and a woman, wearing red, cross her path but give no notice to her. As red candles shimmer on the tables, Carol looks up. Their eyes lock in silent connection as love emerges from the shadows. Read the full review. Watch the trailer
IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE — Cate Marquis
My favorite holiday movie is Frank Capra’s 1946 classic It’s a Wonderful Life. It isn’t a holiday movie per se, but it does conclude on Christmas, with everyone coming together to make everything right for Jimmy Stewart’s character, George Bailey, who time and again had given up his own dreams to help everyone have a chance at the American Dream. Jimmy Stewart was at the height of his powers as an appealing Everyman when this film was released at the end of WWII, when our country was riding high on the triumph of democracy over fascism, and held a strong belief in the American Dream. The dream was embodied by director Frank Capra, born in Italy. immigrated at age 5 with his parents and grew up dirt poor in Los Angeles. Although it wasn’t a hit movie when first released, it became a favorite Christmas perennial after it entered public domain and became widely available. Like that other Christmas perennial, A Christmas Carol, there is an economic message at the heart of It’s a Wonderful Life, a message about fairness and opportunity for all, and about human dignity. Like Dickens’ tale, there are those who play down that side, and reportedly there are those who hate It’s a Wonderful Life for its celebration of economic opportunity for all over concentrated wealth. I watch this wonderful film every year, and I urge you to do that too, but avoid the edited version on Amazon, the one that cuts out the pivotal “Potterville” sequence, where George Bailey’s guardian angel shows him what his town of Bedford Falls would have been like if George had never been born and had not been there to stand up to greedy Mr. Potter. You know, that sequence that makes George realize that, despite all his problems, he really did have a wonderful life. Maybe someone thought that was hitting a little too close to home? Watch the trailer.
ROUND AND ROUND – Nell Minow
After some truly appalling failures, Hallmark actually produced an excellent Hanukkah movie. It’s called Round and Round and it is a delightful variation on Groundhog Day, with a young editor who has put her dreams of being a writer on hold and finds herself on a time loop after spinning a magical dreidel. It is smart and funny and true to the experience of celebrating Hanukkah, without the stereotypes and missteps we usually see in the media. Vic Michaelis is an enormously appealing heroine, Bryan Greenberg is excellent as the guy we know she’ll end up with long before she does, and the supporting characters are funny and warm and worthy of a movie of their own. Watch the trailer
THE FAMILY STONE – Liz Whittemore
On the heels of Diane Keaton’s passing, The Family Stone remains one of the brightest titles on the holiday watch list. It boasts some of the most culturally impactful movie stars to have teamed up for a non-CGI-generated summer blockbuster since its 2005 release. Names like Keaton, Sarah Jessica Parker, Claire Danes, Elizabeth Reaser, Rachel McAdams, Craig T. Nelson, Dermott Mulroney, and Luke Wilson are all A-list romcom icons. All that chemistry together in one film makes for instant magic. One performance in particular should never be overlooked. Tyrone Giordano, who plays Keaton’s son in the film, has a connection with her that propels the narrative to another level. Filmmaker Thomas Bezucha’s fleshed-out and flawed characters captivate you with their relatable antics, anxieties, and messy, ever-evolving love for each other. The film is sharp, laugh-out-loud funny, and brings you to tears by the end. The Family Stone will make you want to call your parents and spend time with your siblings, no matter how eye-roll-inducing they can be. It is a film that hits you differently as you age. Each consecutive watch delivers some new life lesson. This is a film that cements Diane Keaton’s legacy. It is the very definition of a holiday classic. Watch the trailer.
THE HOLIDAY – Leslie Combemale
When people ask me what my favorite holiday film is, I always say The Bishop’s Wife, and I’m still shocked so few people have seen it, even folks that love black and white Hollywood films. So yes, you should see that 1947 classic, but this year, I want to reaffirm my unqualified love and devotion to writer/director Nancy Meyers’ 2006 film The Holiday. To me, it has usurped the place I had in my heart for Love, Actually, and in the same way, brings together some big stars for a romcom that’s just a joy from start to finish. Kate Winslet and Cameron Diaz switch places, with Winslet going to LA, and Diaz cozying up in Surrey, whereupon fall for Jude Law and Jack Black, respectively. Law is serving major Cary Grant vibes, while Black gets the rare chance to play a romantic co-lead, bringing context to the recent viral video in which Elle Fanning famously called him “the hottest man I’ve ever seen in my life”. The whole thing is very sweet, full of both Christmas and Hanukkah happenings, and features Eli Wallach in a juicy role during the last years of his life. Is it cheesy? You bet, but the very best kind, and so warm and fuzzy, you’ll want to make some hot chocolate, put on Ella Fitzgerald’s Swinging Christmas, and celebrate how delicious the best cinematic cheeses can be. Watch the trailer.
THE LONG KISS GOODNIGHT – Sherin Nicole
I need a hero this Christmas, but I’m also a fan of assassins and huge cataclysmic fight scenes. Like most women I know, we don’t just exist in duality; we excel at multiplicity. What should we do when we want to bake delicious bourbon pecan pies for the yuletide AND practice our knife skills—on more than nuts? If you’re asking me, I turn to the escapism of the movies. Because, babes, cranberry sauce is the only sloppy redness I can stand in my kitchen. The Long Kiss Goodnight just catapulted to the top of my Christmas re-watch list like a daredevil elf trying to hang a star on the tree before daybreak. But you already knew that, didn’t you? Nothing says “holiday spirit” like Geena Davis wielding a weapon and wine with equal skill. The Long Kiss Goodnight is the Christmas movie for every woman who’s ever been told to pick a lane: be soft or be strong, be a mom or an assassin. (As if we have to choose.) Davis’ Samantha Caine (aka Charly Baltimore) is the North Star for reintegrating our best selves. She’s there for parent-teacher conferences, rocks the bad guys to sleep permanently, and kicks misogyny On the chin while saving the men from the other men. And when they threaten her child, she lights them up like Christmas on the Fourth of July. Want a little mayhem with your miracle? Let’s live vicariously through an unstoppable woman as she stitches all her selves together for a new definition of wholeness. This feels like the year to stay home, eat a homemade turkey pot pie with your family—no plates, just forks for everyone—while you gasp and giggle at the hope and havoc of The Long Kiss Goodnight. Let’s hear it for a non-traditional Christmas tradition. Watch the trailer
WHILE YOU WERE SLEEPING — Betsy Bozdech
It’s been 30 years since this adorably corny holiday-set romcom first hit theaters, and it’s still as charming as ever. Sandra Bullock has rarely been more appealing than she is as Lucy, a lonely CTA worker who saves a handsome man (Peter Gallagher) from dying on the El tracks and, when he’s admitted to the hospital in a coma, inadvertently implies that she’s his fiancee. His warm, boisterous family immediately pulls her into their midst, and Lucy falls hard for all of them — including down-to-earth brother Jack (Bill Pullman). The scenes of overlapping conversation at the family dinner table are all-time classics (“I never said Cesar Romero was Cuban!”), and the sweet romance between Lucy and Jack is the perfect accompaniment for a night spent curled up on the sofa. Watch the trailer.
WHITE CHRISTMAS – Sandie Angulo Chen
White Christmas remains a quintessential holiday favorite, but its appeal goes beyond Boomer and Gen X nostalgia. The movie’s vibrant Technicolor visuals, memorable dance numbers, and heartwarming themes make it endlessly rewatchable each December. Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye are delightful to watch as former Army buddies turned entertainers Wallace & Davis. Rosemary Clooney and Vera-Ellen are equally as fabulous as the Haynes sisters. Irving Berlin’s score is packed with standards (Snow, Count Your Blessings Instead of Sheep, and, of course, the legendary White Christmas) that capture the joy of the season. Directed by Michael Curtiz, the 1954 classic is right up there with It’s A Wonderful Life, Elf, and A Muppets Christmas Carol as movies to rewatch every holiday season. A movie about community as much as Christmas, it continues to earn its place in annual holiday traditions. Watch the trailer.
