CineBrawl
By theme

Best Christmas movie

The 16 movies of the “Best Christmas movie” bracket, with year, director, runtime and rating for each — then play the knockout tournament and let your own duels pick the winner.

▶ Play this tournament

What is in this bracket

The bracket spans 73 years of cinema, from 1946 to 2019, with an average TMDB rating of 7.3/10. The dominant genres are Comedy (11 movies), Family (10 movies), Fantasy (8 movies), Drama (5 movies). Chris Columbus appears 3 times — a good sign of how much one filmography weighs on the outcome. Watching the whole line-up back to back would take about 30 hours. The 2000s are the best represented decade with 6 entries.

The highest-rated entry going in is It's a Wonderful Life (1946) at ★ 8.3/10 — but a bracket is not a ranking: it only takes one duel against a favourite of yours for it to go out in the first round.

The full line-up (16 movies)

Seeded in the order they enter the bracket. 16 titles means 4 rounds and 15 duels to a champion.

  1. Home Alone 1990 · Chris Columbus · 103 min · ★ 7.5/10

    Eight-year-old Kevin McCallister makes the most of the situation after his family unwittingly leaves him behind when they go on Christmas vacation. When thieves try to break into his home, he puts up a fight like no other.

  2. Die Hard 1988 · John McTiernan · 132 min · ★ 7.8/10

    High above the city of L.A. a team of terrorists has seized a building, taken hostages, and declared war. One man has manages to escape... An off-duty cop hiding somewhere inside. He's alone, tired... and the only chance anyone has got.

  3. Love Actually 2003 · Richard Curtis · 135 min · ★ 7.1/10

    Eight very different couples deal with their love lives in various loosely interrelated tales all set during a frantic month before Christmas in London.

  4. The Nightmare Before Christmas 1993 · Henry Selick · 76 min · ★ 7.8/10

    Tired of scaring humans every October 31 with the same old bag of tricks, Jack Skellington, the spindly king of Halloween Town, kidnaps Santa Claus and plans to deliver shrunken heads and other ghoulish gifts to children on Christmas morning. But as Christmas approaches, Jack's rag-doll girlfriend, Sally, tries to foil his misguided plans.

  5. Home Alone 2: Lost in New York 1992 · Chris Columbus · 120 min · ★ 6.8/10

    Instead of flying to Florida with his folks, Kevin ends up alone in New York, where he gets a hotel room with his dad's credit card—despite problems from a clerk and meddling bellboy. But when Kevin runs into his old nemeses, the Wet Bandits, he's determined to foil their plans to rob a toy store on Christmas Eve.

  6. The Holiday 2006 · Nancy Meyers · 136 min · ★ 7.1/10

    Two women, one American and one British, swap homes at Christmastime following bad breakups. Each woman finds romance with a local man but realizes that the imminent return home may end the relationship.

  7. Elf 2003 · Jon Favreau · 97 min · ★ 6.7/10

    When young Buddy falls into Santa's gift sack on Christmas Eve, he's transported back to the North Pole and raised as a toy-making elf by Santa's helpers. But as he grows into adulthood, he can't shake the nagging feeling that he doesn't belong. Buddy vows to visit Manhattan and find his real dad, a workaholic.

  8. Klaus 2019 · Sergio Pablos · 97 min · ★ 8.2/10

    A selfish postman and a reclusive toymaker form an unlikely friendship, delivering joy to a cold, dark town that desperately needs it.

  9. It's a Wonderful Life 1946 · Frank Capra · 131 min · ★ 8.3/10

    George Bailey has spent his entire life giving to the people of Bedford Falls. All that prevents rich skinflint Mr. Potter from taking over the entire town is George's modest building and loan company. But on Christmas Eve the business's $8,000 is lost and George's troubles begin.

  10. How the Grinch Stole Christmas 2000 · Ron Howard · 105 min · ★ 6.8/10

    The Grinch decides to rob Whoville of Christmas - but a dash of kindness from little Cindy Lou Who and her family may be enough to melt his heart...

  11. The Polar Express 2004 · Robert Zemeckis · 100 min · ★ 6.7/10

    When a doubting young boy takes an extraordinary train ride to the North Pole, he embarks on a journey of self-discovery that shows him that the wonder of life never fades for those who believe.

  12. Gremlins 1984 · Joe Dante · 106 min · ★ 7.1/10

    After receiving an exotic small animal as a Christmas gift, a young man inadvertently breaks three important rules concerning his new pet, which unleashes a horde of malevolently mischievous creatures on a small town.

  13. Arthur Christmas 2011 · Sarah Smith · 97 min · ★ 6.8/10

    For hundreds of years, the Claus family has delegated the title "Santa" to a chosen few of its members, which can be passed down upon retirement. Each Christmas, Santa and his vast army of highly trained elves produce gifts and distribute them around the world in a one-night high-tech operation. However, when one of 600 million children to receive a gift from Santa on Christmas Eve is missed, it i

  14. Miracle on 34th Street 1947 · George Seaton · 96 min · ★ 7.4/10

    Kris Kringle, seemingly the embodiment of Santa Claus, is asked to portray the jolly old fellow at Macy's following his performance in the Thanksgiving Day parade. His portrayal is so complete that many begin to question if he truly is Santa Claus, while others question his sanity.

  15. Scrooged 1988 · Richard Donner · 101 min · ★ 6.8/10

    Frank Cross is a wildly successful television executive whose cold ambition and curmudgeonly nature has driven away the love of his life. But after firing a staff member on Christmas Eve, Frank is visited by a series of ghosts who give him a chance to re-evaluate his actions and right the wrongs of his past.

  16. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone 2001 · Chris Columbus · 152 min · ★ 7.9/10

    Harry Potter has lived under the stairs at his aunt and uncle's house his whole life. But on his 11th birthday, he learns he's a powerful wizard—with a place waiting for him at the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. As he learns to harness his newfound powers with the help of the school's kindly headmaster, Harry uncovers the truth about his parents' deaths—and about the villain who's to

How this tournament works

  1. 16 movies enter a knockout bracket.
  2. Two titles face off at a time — you pick the one you would rather watch.
  3. Winners advance round by round until one champion is left: your pick for tonight.

There is no “right” answer and no algorithm deciding for you: the bracket only forces a series of small, easy comparisons instead of one impossible choice in front of a catalogue. You can also play it with friends — everyone votes the same duels from their own phone in a Brawl Room.

Related tournaments

Prefer to build your own? Create a custom tournament from any films or shows, or browse all community tournaments.