7 Holiday Movies to Practice Your English

All I want for Christmas is…YOU (*trying to imitate Mariah Carey’s high note*). Jokes aside, all I want for Christmas is a day to binge-watch the best of flicks this merry season has to offer. Are you in for the same treat?

The holiday season is no stranger to happy memories and festive movies all around the world. You’ve got your classic picks that you’ve seen at least once a year and you’ve got your modern choices that you may or may not have yet seen. But the abundance of holiday-themed films serves as a constant reminder of universal Christmas values like sharing, love, and family.

This Christmas, instead of feeling guilty for skipping your English language lessons, why not immerse yourself in the language by watching movies? You’ll learn while having fun and enjoying the comforts of your home – the perfect ingredients for hygge. So if you’re ready, check out our list of yuletide favorites and learn English this holiday season. Sit back, relax, and start streaming.

White Christmas

If you’re dreaming of a white Christmas, check out the first movie on our list! White Christmas is a merry musical movie full of earworm melodies that will ring in your ears all through the holiday season. This cheerful holiday classic follows two friends, falling in love with two sisters as they travel to Vermont to experience a beautiful white winter wonderland.

Elf

Elf is a Christmas comedy classic starring Will Ferrell, Zooey Deschanel, and Bob Newhart, to name a few. The film centers on a key character named Buddy, who travels from the North Pole to New York City to see his biological father. But Buddy is not just any typical person, he is a human elf raised by Santa’s elves in the North Pole. Join Buddy’s quest on spreading Christmas cheer all throughout New York City while discovering about what it means to be human.

This favorite family comedy is known as one of the greatest holiday movies of all time. It was also the inspiration behind the Broadway musical called Elf: The Musical and the animated television special called Elf: Buddy’s Musical Christmas.

The Polar Express

Ready to go on a magical train ride bound for the North Pole? Then, check out The Polar Express! The animated fantasy movie tells the story of a young boy who was invited aboard by the conductor of a magical, mysterious train on a journey to see Santa Claus.

The film was recognized as the first all-digital capture film by Guinness World Records in 2006. When The Polar Express premiered on the ABC channel in the United States, it garnered a total of 13.2 million viewers, placing it 20th in the ratings that week.

Home Alone

Whether you’re home alone for the holidays or not, you should definitely add Home Alone to your watchlist. Home Alone is another American classic written and produced by John Hughes. The story follows Kevin McCallister’s home adventures, as he was accidentally left behind on his family’s Christmas vacation to Paris.

Home Alone was the highest-grossing live-action comedy until the release of The Hangover II. The family comedy also received nominations for the Golden Globe Award and the Academy Award. And in 1992, a sequel for the movie was released called Home Alone 2: Lost in New York.

A Christmas Story

With Christmas approaching, I triple dog dare you to watch this very hilarious movie called A Christmas Story! A Christmas Story tells the story of Ralphie, a little boy who is trying to convince his teacher and parents that the best present a kid could ever receive on this special occasion is the one and only Red Ryder BB gun. But will Ralphie get the Christmas gift his heart truly desires?

A Christmas Story has now become a popular yearly Christmas movie treat, with a 24-hour marathon running from Christmas Eve through Christmas Day. And in 2012, the United States Film Registry by the Library of Congress selected the film for preservation “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.”

Love Actually

Here’s a quick riddle: You feel this in your fingers. You feel this in your toes. It is all around you and so the feeling grows. Do you know the answer? Perhaps, it’s love! On Christmas, love is all around you. And in the movie Love Actually, love is a central theme that runs across the lives of eight different characters.

The Christmas romantic-comedy was a huge commercial success that it even received Golden Globe Award nominations. Love Actually has also become a holiday classic in many countries, and a sequel called Red Nose Day Actually was even aired in 2017.

How The Grinch Stole Christmas

In the small town of Whoville, lives a mean, green, revenge-seeking Grinch who is threatening to destroy Christmas for all of the Whos. The fantasy comedy-drama is based on Dr. Seuss's book How The Grinch Stole Christmas, and it's the first of his works to be turned into a full movie.

After Home Alone, the live-action adaption was the second highest-grossing holiday film of all time. And it even spent four weeks at the top of the box office. The holiday favorite was also nominated for multiple awards, including the Academy Awards, Golden Globe Awards, Kids Choice Awards, and MTV Movie Awards, to name a few.