From classic stories to casual feel-good flicks, there are plenty of family Christmas movie options this year!
‘Tis the season of comfy socks, hot cocoa and binge-watching seshes! With all the cooking and last-minute shopping, it might be hard to keep track of the latest releases. So, this year, we’ve picked out some family-favourite Christmas movies. You will love watching these with the little ones, and your too-cool-for-school teens will enjoy some of these too (more than they’d like to admit!). We’ve listed new releases and old favourites, along with each one’s running time, so you know exactly how much popcorn you’ll need. Get ready to sit back and press play!
Read more: Sassy Mama’s Favourite Childhood Movies To Share With Your Kids
Super monsters are coming to town (again)! If your little ones are already familiar with the animated television series, they will definitely enjoy this short film. Following last year’s Christmas special, this time our favourite monsters are here to lend Santa a hand by getting every gift out on time! With all the colours, magic and adorable characters (who knew baby Frankenstein and Dracula could be this cute?), you and the little ones are definitely in for a wild ride!
Available on Netflix (from Tuesday, 8 December)
Suitable for: All ages!
Run time: 24 minutes
Alien Xmas is a movie that starts with a simple premise: an elf with a new toy. But what happens if that new toy is secretly an alien who plans on destroying the Earth’s gravity? With elements of sci-fi and fantasy, this story is a fun watch if you and the little ones are looking for an exciting ride to the North Pole. With engaging visuals, a unique storyline and relatively short run time, this film is here to keep the little ones engaged during bus and MTR rides.
Available on Netflix
Suitable for: All ages!
Run time: 42 minutes
Perfect for our music and theatre-loving mamas and kids, Jingle Jangle is a musical fantasy film about the journey of a girl and her grandfather (the Oscar-winning Forest Whitaker) – a once-joyful toymaker who was betrayed by his former apprentice. Featuring fantastic musical numbers and an inspiring story plot, the movie is in itself a Christmas gift to the senses and will leave with you with a smile. Unlike your typical Christmas romcoms, the movie serves as a heartfelt reminder of the joy of living which also happens to offer a few catchy tunes.
Available on Netflix
Suitable for: Ages 7 and up
Run time: 119 minutes
Read more: How To Get Your Kids To Maintain Close Contact With Their Grandparents
Last year’s Netflix holiday romcom, The Princess Switch, followed the story of Belgravian royalty, Lady Margaret, and Stacy, an ordinary baker as they switch places for two days. This year, in the sequel, Lady Margaret and Stacy meet again for Margaret’s coronation ceremony. The two are welcomed with yet another Christmas surprise: Margaret’s evil cousin, Fiona (also played by Vanessa Hudgens), who plans to steal the throne by disguising as Margaret. With a sprinkle of holiday romance, The Princess Switch: Switched Again makes for the perfect Christmas sleepover movie for your teens (only with a close bubble of friends, of course).
Available on Netflix (The Princess Switch is also still available)
Suitable for: Ages 7 and up
Run time: 97 minutes
Up for a ride in Santa’s sleigh? From befriending miniature elves to watching Santa jam it out with a rock band, you’ll be surprised by what goes on in Santa’s workshop. This Netflix original sequel follows the story of Kate and Teddy’s rousing Christmas adventures in the first Christmas Chronicles movie. This time, Kate is running away from her family and finds herself in the North Pole (again!), where she encounters an elf who plans to cancel Christmas. This movie is downloadable with the Netflix app, which makes it perfect for long-haul flights, layovers and quarantine days!
Available on Netflix (The Christmas Chronicles is also still available)
Suitable for: Ages 7 and up
Run time: 115 minutes
This movie is based on characters from Pulitzer Prize-winning author Frank McCourt’s work and is a follow up to Angela’s Christmas that was released in 2017. The original movie told the story of an empathetic Irish girl who wishes to bring joy and kindness to people around her. This year’s story revolves around young Angela’s heartfelt wish to see her family reunited this Christmas. It’s a tender and funny story about the importance of family – perfect for the festive season.
Available on Netflix
Suitable for: All ages!
Run time: 47 minutes
Read more: Hong Kong Charities To Support This Christmas And Holiday Season
Last Christmas was released, well, last Christmas and is a romantic holiday movie starring Emilia Clarke (Queen Dani of GoT fame) and Henry Golding (heartthrob of Crazy, Rich Asians). The story is rather sweet, Emma Thompson is hilarious and the chemistry is sure to get your older teens swooning. It also has a rather nice moral of taking care of yourself and others, living up to your potential and being considerate thrown in. All in all, it makes for heartwarming Christmas viewing.
Available on HBO Go (you’ll be prompted to download the app if you haven’t already)
Suitable for: Ages 16 and up
Run time: 99 minutes
We love this animated film that tells the story of what happens when a wealthy but selfish young man meets a kind-hearted woodchopper. It was released last year and picked up an Oscar nomination early this year. With a storybook-like animation style, this animated Christmas comedy tells us how Santa Claus came about, through the lens of a selfish postman Jasper. On top of the interesting storyline, we also love Director Sergio Pablos’s traditional 2D animation style (he also the talented creator of Despicable Me movie franchise!), which helps give cinematic depth to old-school Christmas animations.
Available on Netflix
Suitable for: Ages 7 and up
Run time: 98 minutes
You can’t forget this Christmas favourite! Based on Dr Seuss’ 1957 tale, the well-known story is brought to life through this Christmas family comedy. With Jim Carrey behind a green face mask and mastering the art of distorted facial expressions, this one might be more suitable for a slightly older age group. Be prepared for lots of evil cackles (from your screen), and lots of loud laughter (from your sofa)!
Available on Netflix
Suitable for: Ages 8 and up
Run time: 104 minutes
Read more: The Best Christmas Books For Children Of All Ages
Save this one for when the kids have gone to bed and revisit this Christmas classic, with its ensemble all-star cast, witty lines and catchy music. If you have older teens at home, you could allow them to join you and let them see that love comes in different shapes, sizes, colours and ages. A word of caution though – there are themes of infidelity, nudity and even mild porn, so make sure you know what you are getting into before you let your kids watch this one. While TV channels are cautious with their ratings, you know your kids best. When in doubt, we usually rely on Common Sense Media’s reviews.
Available on HBO Go (you’ll be prompted to download the app if you haven’t already)
Suitable for: Ages 18 and up
Run time: 136 minutes
Read more: 5 Places We’re Taking The Kids This December
Editor’s note: This article was originally published in December 2017 by Tania Shroff and was most recently updated by Lydia Ching on 7, December 2020.
Featured image courtesy of Getty Images, images 1 courtesy of Netflix, images 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 8 courtesy of Netflix Media Centre, image 7 courtesy of Jonathan Prime/Uni – © 2019 Universal Studios via IMDb, image 9 courtesy of Dreamworks, LLC – © 2000 Universal Pictures via IMDb, image 10 courtesy of Peter Mountain – © 2003 Universal Studios via IMDb.
