Originally I was going to do a top ten Christmas movies list, but then I realized almost half of them weren't technically movies. So, I created my top 5 favourite Christmas movies, and top 5 favourite Christmas TV specials. You can expect to see the top 5 x-mas movies list soon, so for now, enjoy!
Top Five Christmas TV
Specials
Criteria: must
air annually on any channel or be available on DVD, length does not matter
5. Frosty the Snowman
First up is this animated short produced by Rankin/Bass,
which originally broadcast on CBS in 1969—nearly twenty years after the song of
the same name was released. Frosty is brought to life via a magic hat from one
of the most pathetic and slimiest magicians I’ve ever seen. Frosty makes for a
quirky yet lovable character. I always liked his running theme of saying “Happy
Birthday!” It’s only a half hour long, so it’s easy to tune in and watch from
beginning to end without taking up much time. I always try to watch Frosty along with the other four specials
on this list every Christmas. I’ve seen some of the other Frosty incarnations, such as The
Legend of Frosty the Snowman and Frosty
Returns, the latter of which appears on my Frosty the Snowman DVD as a bonus feature. I feel the original is
the only one to deftly combine the holiday and winter themes. You could watch
the other Frosty features if you’re
really into the character (or have nothing better to do), otherwise skip them
and just stick to the original.
4. Bugs Bunny’s Looney Christmas Tales
This one I taped on VHS as a kid during holidays in
elementary school, and it was one I watched for many years until VHS became
obsolete and I forgot about it. I recently rediscovered this classic thanks to
Teletoon Retro. What I like about this special is it’s actually three mini Looney Tunes episodes all packed into a
half hour of pure entertainment. The first is Bugs Bunny’s Christmas Carol, which is basically just a loose
adaptation of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas
Carol. Bugs Bunny teaches Scrooge (played by Yosemite Sam) a lesson about
being kind during the holidays. In the second part, The Road Runner is pursued
by Wile E. Coyote through a winter wonderland. There are some great gags here;
The Road Runner and Wile E. have always been my favourite Looney Tunes characters, and seeing them here in a slightly
different setting is a real treat. Finally, there is The Fright Before Christmas. The Tasmanian Devil ends up dressed as
Santa and in his sleigh, and arrives at Bugs Bunny’s house. Bugs Bunny
entertains the Santa imposter in a typically hilarious fashion. All three
episodes are entertaining, and maintain the traditional Looney Tunes antics without divulging into too much Christmas mumbo
jumbo like so many Christmas specials end up doing. When I originally taped
this, I taped both this Christmas special and Casper’s First Christmas which was on right after, featuring some
of Hannah Barbara’s most famous cartoon characters such as Yogi Bear and Quick
Draw McGraw. It’s not as entertaining as these top five, but still a decent
half hour of holiday fun which I would recommend if you liked the Looney Tunes special.
3. A Charlie Brown Christmas
This Peanuts
holiday special is a classic and endearing half hour that I always look forward
to each year. Charlie Brown is depressed. He isn’t sure why. It’s Christmas,
and everyone else is in high spirits, but he isn’t, and just wants to know what
Christmas is all about. He takes on the duty of directing the Christmas play,
but is continually ridiculed by his peers. He sets out to find the perfect
Christmas tree for their play with his pal Linus, but when the tree fails to
satisfy his peers’ parameters, he breaks down and demands to know what
Christmas really is all about. Linus reminds Charlie Brown (and the audience)
that Christmas is about celebrating the birth of Christ. Whether you’re heavily
religious or Atheist or somewhere in between, A Charlie Brown Christmas points
out that Christmas is not about the commercial value, but rather the spirit of
the holiday and what it’s title actually reflects. It bears resemblance to the
messages of other Christmas specials, but this charming Charlie Brown TV special is unique. The music is great as always,
there isn’t an overabundance of singing (some might like the limited vocals and
some might not, I love it), and the animation is distinct yet simple. It’s
short, sweet, and a perfect TV special that deserves to be played year after
year.
2. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
You know Dasher, and Dancer...and the other six...but do you
recall, my second favourite holiday special of all? Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer was produced by Rankin/Bass, the
same team behind Frosty, and rendered
in stop motion animation. I am a huge fan of stop motion, which is one of the
reasons I love this Christmas show. It runs a bit longer than most—an hour with
commercials—but is essential holiday fare. Everyone knows the story: Rudolph
has a nose that glows red, so he is ridiculed for being different and runs away
from his home in Christmastown. He meets up with Hermey, an Elf who dreams of
being a dentist, and my favourite, Yukon Cornelius, with his uncooperative dog
sled team and unconditional love for silver and gold. Together they discover
the island of Misfit Toys, pursued the whole way by the Abominable Snow
Monster. The Bumble actually terrified me when I was a little kid; there was
something about his crazy eyes and sharp teeth that made me shiver, just like
it did Sam the Snowman who narrates this tale. There are several memorable
songs throughout, and many quotable lines. Other than the Looney Tunes special, all of these Christmas classics are telecast
every year on TV, but Rudolph has
been the longest running special in history. Perhaps it’s because of the
timeless message: just because someone is different, doesn’t make them any less
important.
1. How the Grinch Stole Christmas!
What did you think would be in
the number one spot, the Star Wars
Holiday Special?! I’ve already talked quite a bit about this special in my Grinch vs. Gremlins article (which you should check you if you haven’t
already), so I’m going to explain why I think this version is superior to the
film adaptation Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch
Stole Christmas from 2000. The cartoon runs 26 minutes, and perfectly
encapsulates the story of the Grinch. The movie is 104 minutes long, and
contains numerous elements not from Dr. Seuss’ original book. I love that in
the original cartoon, there is some speculation as to why the Grinch loathes
Christmas. What it comes down to is simply his heart being too small. We don’t
need to know where the Grinch came from, why his heart is small, or what the
true root of his problem with the holiday is. In the film, it’s shown that the
Grinch is an orphan from somewhere other than Whoville, and he is bullied by
kids which makes him hate Christmas and leave Whoville. It’s not as simple as
the cartoon, and not necessary. The film’s look is also sort of bizarre.
Everything is dark, the Who’s look creepy, and the Grinch’s lair is revolting.
However, I have to hand it to both Rick Baker and Jim Carrey for making the
Grinch a dynamic and entertaining character. Baker did a great job on the
effects and appearance of the Grinch and Carrey is hilarious as always. The
film just feels like lots of filler—from the flashback to Grinch’s childhood to
the entire first act of him nearly being won over by the Who’s only to be
ridiculed yet again by receiving an electric shaver as a gift—and the cartoon
streamlines the story in a much more enjoyable and respectful way. Dr. Seuss
never lived to see the Grinch feature film, but I don’t think he would have
appreciated some of the divergences from his book. Stick with the cartoon for
all the reasons I listed and more. The cartoon is a lot more entertaining, fun,
enjoyable, and true to the spirit of the original book. Obviously the film had
to be different and unique, but it wasn’t necessary. I’m sure we’ll see another
attempt one day.
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