It’s the holiday season, which means that members of the Mountaineer staff, like many MHS students, have been rewatching their favorite holiday movies. Here are some of their top picks, as well as the calculated average of their ratings for each movie (out of 10 stars), and their combined explanations of why they enjoy watching them during this time of year.
Movie: Home Alone (PG)
Staff Rating: 10/10
Staff Review: This movie is a hilarious, heartwarming, and nostalgic film that will get watchers of all ages in the holiday spirit. It stars 8-year-old Kevin McAllister, left “home alone” by his parents on Christmas Eve, who has to defend himself from two robbers, Marv and Harry. This movie entails chaos and funny antics, and it’ll start off any holiday season with a bang!
Movie: Home Alone 2: Lost In New York (PG)
Staff Rating: 10/10
Staff Review: Once again, Kevin McAllister has been forgotten by his parents, but, this time, he’s accidentally taken a plane to New York City! Marv and Harry are on the loose again, and Kevin must now fight them once more. Again, we love the hint of a holiday feeling, nostalgia, and chaos that the Home Alone franchise entails!
Movie: Elf (PG)
Staff Rating: 10/10
Staff Review: Will Ferrel gets up to all sorts of hilarious antics in this heartfelt comedy, playing the role of a human, Buddy, that has been raised by elves at the North Pole (and brought up thinking he’s one of them) who journeys to New York City to meet his human father.
Movie: The Princess Switch (PG)
Staff Rating: 10/10
Staff Review: This cute and cozy holiday watch is great for the whole family! It stars Vanessa Hudgens as Stacy Denovo, a baker who, co-chef and best friend, Kevin, enters a baking competition in the Kingdom of Belgravia. While competing, Stacy meets her doppelganger (Lady Margaret Delacourt, a duchess), and the two switch places, ensuring lots of chaos to come.
Movie: National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (PG-13)
Staff Rating: 9/10
Staff Review: Chevy Chase always makes us laugh in the role of Clark Griswold, a father who’s trying to make his family experience a good holiday— but everything he does goes awry! We think this movie is nostalgia-invoking, hilarious, and a great way to spend winter evenings with your whole family.
Movie: Die Hard (R)
Staff Rating: 9/10
Staff Review: Not many holiday movies are thrillers, but this movie, an action movie set on Christmas Eve, puts us on the edge of our seats, which we find very refreshing! Bruce Willis stars as a police detective trying to fight against terrorists, who are led by Alan Rickman, whose portrayal of terrorist leader Hans Gruber is amazing to watch.
Movie: Love Actually (R)
Staff Rating: 8.5/10
Staff Review: This movie is the perfect ensemble romance to get any watcher in the holiday spirit, following the ups and downs of nine intertwined couples during the holiday season. No matter how many times we watch it, we love to laugh out loud over the gift wrapping scene!
Movie: A Charlie Brown Christmas (G)
Staff Rating: 8.5/10
Staff Review: Charlie Brown of the Peanuts comic strip just can’t seem to get into the holiday spirit, and this TV special follows him as he tries to unlock the deeper meaning of Christmas. We love the nostalgic vibes of this pick, and we also enjoy watching this calming, peaceful movie while we do other activities (crocheting, gift-wrapping, baking, etc.)
Movie: The Christmas Chronicles (PG)
Staff Rating: 8/10
Staff Review: This movie focuses on two characters, Kate and Teddy Pierce, who have recently lost their father. Kate believes fervently in the existence of Santa Claus, but Teddy has lost faith. When the pair encounter Santa (played by Kurt Russel), they accidently crash his sleigh and must regain and redeliver his lost presents. We love the sweet family message of this movie, and we think the musical scene (Santa singing the blues) in the jail is laugh-out-loud hilarious!
