Christmas romance movies are a classic addition to the list of films that are perfect to watch during the holiday season. There are many familiar favorites that audiences return to year after year, like It’s A Wonderful Life, Love Actually, and Elf, but there are just as many overlooked romantic holiday movies that are perfect for new traditions. Whether they’re recent rom-coms that subvert expectations and challenge the genre or older movies that never reached the heights of popularity as other classics, these movies all bring the nostalgia and warmth of the season.
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Most romantic holiday films make up the best Christmas movies without Santa, as these projects focus on character and use the holiday season as a sentimental and cozy setting. The look and feel of a Christmas movie are of the utmost importance, as viewers should feel as though they’ve been transported into the winter wonderland of their dreams. It helps that a romance angle almost always makes a story even more heartwarming and worth cuddling up to watch, as this is what everyone wants to do when the holidays roll around.
10 Let It Snow (2019)
Directed by Luke Snellin
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Let It Snow PG-13RomanceComedy
Based on the young adult novel by John Green, Maureen Johnson, and Lauren Myracle, Let It Snow is a romantic comedy film directed by Luke Snellin. The story follows a group of high school seniors in a small town whose lives intersect during a snowstorm on Christmas Eve, leading to unexpected friendships and romantic entanglements. Starring Isabela Merced, Shameik Moore, and Kiernan Shipka, the film captures the magic of festive romance.
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*Availability in US Director Luke Snellin Release Date November 8, 2019 Studio(s) Dylan Clark Productions Writers Michael H. Weber , Scott Neustadter , Kay Cannon Cast Isabela Merced , Shameik Moore , Odeya Rush , Liv Hewson , Mitchell Hope Runtime 93 Minutes Expand
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Based on the novel of the same name by Maureen Johnson, John Green, and Lauren Myracle, Let It Snow flew under the radar for Netflix despite its strong IP. Adaptations of John Green novels have done well in the past, but Let It Snow never reached the heights of a smash hit like The Fault in Our Stars. Despite this, it’s a great coming-of-age rom-com to revisit this holiday season since the ensemble cast presents such a diverse array of experiences and relationships.
Let It Snow
doesn’t try to pretend to be anything it’s not, leaning into the Christmas tropes and misunderstandings that make its romances so bittersweet.
There are plenty of well-known faces in Let It Snow, from Kiernan Shipka to Liv Hewson, which allows the audience to slip into the familiar coziness of the story and get swept away. Let It Snow doesn’t try to pretend to be anything it’s not, leaning into the Christmas tropes and misunderstandings that make its romances so bittersweet. However, this is why it’s so enjoyable to revisit these films year after year, and Let It Snow is no exception.
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Let It Snow (2019) |
85% |
47% |
9 Love Hard (2021)
Directed by Hernán Jiménez
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10/10 Love Hard pg-13RomanceComedy
Love Hard is a holiday romantic comedy that follows the hopelessly romantic but eternally single LA journalist Natalie who begins to see the light at the end of the tunnel when she begins a long-distance relationship with a man on the east coast. Deciding to take the jump, Natalie flies to her crush for the holidays, only to learn that she’s been catfished by Tag’s childhood friend, who is equally unlucky in love, Josh. What follows is a story of two lovelorn fools who may find what they’re looking for in each other.
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*Availability in US Director Hernán Jiménez Release Date November 5, 2021 Studio(s) Netflix Writers Rebecca Ewing , Danny Mackey Cast Mikaela Hoover , Harry Shum Jr. , Nina Dobrev , Heather McMahan , James Saito , Jimmy O. Yang , Darren Barnet Runtime 105 minutes Expand
Love Hard isn’t the typical Hallmark-esque Christmas movie that Netflix typically puts out, not that there’s anything wrong with watching some of the wildest Hallmark Christmas movies. However, Love Hard acknowledges its trope-filled romantic comedy roots while trying to communicate a message to the audience about the difficulties of modern dating. Starring Nina Dobrev, well-known for her starring role as Elena in The Vampire Diaries, Love Hard sees her play a character more rooted in reality but just as hopelessly romantic.
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While there’s room for critique when it comes to Love Hard, as the central characters are brought together through lying and catfishing, it’s also a vulnerable and well-acted story. Dobrev is joined by Jimmy O. Yang and Darren Barnet as Josh and Tag, the two men competing for Natalie’s (Dobrev) affection. Naturally, hijinx and mayhem ensue, forcing the three of them, especially Natalie and Josh, to reflect on what Christmas means to them and the nature of honesty in their lives.
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Love Hard (2021) |
53% |
90% |
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Related This Canceled YA Adaptation Is Still Netflix’s Best Christmas Rom-Com
This 2020 young-adult novel adaptation is still Netflix’s best Christmas rom-com — even though it’s not a feature film and only lasted one season.
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8 Something From Tiffany’s (2022)
Directed by Daryl Wein
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Something From Tiffany’s PGComedyRomanceHoliday
Something From Tiffany’s is a romantic comedy directed by Daryl Wein. Set in New York City, the film follows two couples whose lives become intertwined after an accidental gift swap at the iconic jewelry store Tiffany & Co. The narrative explores themes of love, fate, and serendipitous encounters, starring Zoey Deutch and Kendrick Sampson in leading roles.
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*Availability in US Director Daryl Wein Release Date December 9, 2022 Writers Tamara Chestna Cast Zoey Deutch , Kendrick Sampson , Ray Nicholson , Shay Mitchell , Leah Jeffries , Jojo T. Gibbs Runtime 87 minutes
Zoey Deutch continues her strong rom-com streak with Something From Tiffany’s, a timely Christmas movie based on the book of the same name. Kendrick Sampson plays opposite her as Ethan, the man who helps Rachel’s (Deutch) boyfriend after an accident and gets roped into an accidental meet-cute with her. Even though both Ethan and Rachel already have committed partners, their chemistry is immediate, and it doesn’t take long for them to see this as well as the audience does.
Set and filmed in New York City,
Something From Tiffany’s
capitalizes on the iconic nature of the city and the famed jewelry store, which are both known for kindling romances of all kinds.
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Set and filmed in New York City, Something From Tiffany’s capitalizes on the iconic nature of the city and the famed jewelry store, which are both known for kindling romances of all kinds. While Something From Tiffany’s won’t surprise any longtime rom-com fans, it’s a sweet and genuine addition to the genre that’s bolstered by Deutch and Sampson. When it comes to Christmas romance, characters like Rachel and Ethan are very deserving of their happily-ever-afters.
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Something From Tiffany’s (2022) |
72% |
60% |
7 Holidate (2020)
Directed by John Whitesell
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7/10 Holidate TV-MAComedyDramaRomance
Holidate is a Netflix original rom-com starring Emma Roberts and Luke Bracey. Roberts and Bracey play Sloane and Jackson, two single adults who agree to be each other’s platonic dates for all of the year’s biggest holidays. But things get complicated when they actually start to have feelings for each other.
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*Availability in US Director John Whitesell Release Date October 27, 2020 Studio(s) Netflix Writers Tiffany Paulsen Cast Emma Roberts , Frances Fisher , Kristin Chenoweth , Andrew Bachelor , Luke Bracey , Jessica Capshaw Runtime 104minutes Expand
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The question of who will be your holiday plus-one plagues many people each holiday season, but Sloane (Emma Roberts) and Jackson (Luke Bracey) find a way out of this problem without having to fall in love. At least, that’s what the platonic friends think when they agree to be each other’s dates for every major holiday. This premise means Holidate tracks an entire year of ups and downs and festivities, but many of the most important moments happen around Christmas and New Year’s.
It’s a fun send-up of the rom-com genre since Sloane and Jackson spend so long dating without ever acknowledging real feelings. Roberts and Bracey make a convincing pair, even if their meet-cute isn’t the most believable. Holidate also features some fun bit parts from actors like Kristin Chenoweth as the ensemble supporting cast fills out the story successfully. Though both Sloane and Jackson hate being single, the reality of being vulnerable with someone else is the scariest thing of all.
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Holidate (2020) |
46% |
54% |
6 Remember The Night (1940)
Directed by Mitchell Leisen
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Remember the Night NRComedyDramaRomance
Remember the Night is a 1940 romantic drama featuring Fred MacMurray and Barbara Stanwyck. The film follows an assistant district attorney who takes a shoplifter home for the holidays, leading to an unexpected romantic journey that unfolds amidst the warmth of the Christmas season.
Director Mitchell Leisen Release Date January 19, 1940 Writers Preston Sturges Cast Barbara Stanwyck , Fred MacMurray , Beulah Bondi , Elizabeth Patterson , Willard Robertson , Sterling Holloway , Charles Waldron , Paul Guilfoyle , Charles Arnt , John Wray , Thomas W. Ross , Fred ‘Snowflake’ Toones , Tom Kennedy , Georgia Caine , Virginia Brissac , Spencer Charters , Jean Acker , Ambrose Barker , John Beck , Brooks Benedict , Avril Cameron , Chester Clute , Frank Conklin , Harry Depp , Edmund Elton Runtime 94 minutes Expand
Barbara Stanwyck stars in Remember the Night, a beloved classic Hollywood rom-com that seamlessly weaves the Christmas spirit into its story. An honest and compelling look at the realities of a love affair between two very different people, Remember the Night isn’t just a great Christmas romance but one of the finest movies of Stanwyck’s career. She and Fred MacMurray give heartwrenching performances as a young woman on trial for theft and the lawyer prosecuting her, who happen to fall in love over Christmas.
To this day, the movie is remembered as a classic that does justice to its strong script.
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The best part of Remember the Night is the amazing character development that both Lee (Stanwyck) and John (MacMurray) go through as they realize they each have a lot of growing and changing to do. While MacMurray’s turn as John is sentimental and sweet, Stanwyck’s hilarious, stoic, and nuanced take on the troubled Lee is enough to break the audience’s heart. To this day, the movie is remembered as a classic that does justice to its strong script.
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Remember the Night (1940) |
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5 Happiest Season (2020)
Directed by Clea DuVall
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10/10 Happiest Season PG-13RomanceComedy
Directed by Clea DuVall, Happiest Season follows Abby Holland and Harper Caldwell, a lesbian couple in New York City whose relationship is tested when they spend Christmas with Harper’s family. Wary of coming out to her conservative parents, Harper forces a very out Abby back into the closet for the visit, leading to both hilarious and disastrous consequences. The film features an ensemble cast that includes Kristen Stewart, Mackenzie Davis, Dan Levy, Alison Brie, Victor Garber, Mary Steenburgen, and Aubrey Plaza.
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*Availability in US Director Clea DuVall Release Date November 26, 2020 Studio(s) Hulu Writers Clea DuVall , Mary Holland Cast Victor Garber , Mackenzie Davis , Dan Levy , Mary Holland , Aubrey Plaza , Kristen Stewart , Alison Brie , Mary Steenburgen Runtime 102minutes Expand
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As one of the best LGBTQ rom-com movies in recent years, Happiest Season stars Kristen Stewart and Mackenzie Davis as Abby and Harper, a couple who go to meet Harper’s family for the first time. Both a coming-out story, a romantic comedy, and a family drama, Happiest Season covers many bases but never feels rushed or over-stuffed. Additionally, the gorgeous sets and massive holiday home where Abby and Harper stay are the source of many Christmas fantasies.
Plenty of criticisms could be given about Harper and Abby’s relationship, as the fact that Harper hides Abby for so long and lets her feel unwanted is devastating. However, the love they share and Stewart’s heartfelt performance as Abby give weight and meaning to why the pair decide to work things out. Written and directed by Clea DuVall, Happiest Season feels personal and intimate while telling a universal story that everyone can enjoy.
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Happiest Season (2020) |
82% |
73% |
4 The Family Stone (2005)
Directed by Thomas Bezucha
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The Family Stone
The Family Stone is a comedy-drama film directed by Thomas Bezucha. Released in 2005, it stars Sarah Jessica Parker, Diane Keaton, and Dermot Mulroney. The story revolves around the Stone family’s Christmas gathering, where tensions arise due to the arrival of an uptight woman who is introduced as the eldest son’s girlfriend. The film explores themes of family dynamics, acceptance, and the challenges of blending different personalities.
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*Availability in US Director Thomas Bezucha Release Date December 16, 2005 Cast Claire Danes , Diane Keaton , Rachel McAdams , Dermot Mulroney , Craig T. Nelson , Sarah Jessica Parker , Luke Wilson , Brian White Runtime 104 Minutes
The star-studded cast of The Family Stone is reason enough to watch this iconic Christmas movie, which sees its characters do awful and underhanded things to each other. Everett Stone (Dermot Mulroney) and Amy Morton (Sarah Jessica Parker) are the couple that begins the movie together, but they’re far from the people who end up together by the story’s conclusion. However, it’s the messiness, fights, and high drama of The Family Stone that makes it so compelling.
The Family Stone
capitalizes on the well-known fear of being introduced to a partner’s family and not only having the meeting go poorly but also knowing that everyone despises each other.
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The Family Stone capitalizes on the well-known fear of being introduced to a partner’s family and not only having the meeting go poorly but also knowing that everyone despises each other. This is the position Amy is put in after meeting Everett’s family and having everything possible go wrong. Fortunately, it soon becomes clear that Amy and Everett are not the ones who are meant to be together, but there’s someone in the large and loving Stone family for everybody.
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63% |
3 Christmas In Connecticut (1945)
Directed by Peter Godfrey
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Christmas in Connecticut
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*Availability in US Director Peter Godfrey Release Date August 11, 1945 Cast Barbara Stanwyck , Sydney Greenstreet Main Genre Romantic Comedy
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When it comes to Christmas movies set in New England, White Christmas might immediately come to mind, but the 1945 film Christmas in Connecticut should be just as synonymous. Starring Barbara Stanwyck as Elizabeth, Stanwyck is her charming and hilarious self in this holiday screwball comedy. Christmas in Connecticut sees its love interests fall victim to classic missteps and miscommunications with Dennis Morgan as Jefferson, who falls for Elizabeth despite, wrongly, believing she’s married.
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Like most films from the 1940s, Christmas in Connecticut is deeply concerned with the importance of marriage and happily-ever-afters, with the characters only ever suggesting impropriety and never actually doing anything remotely scandalous. One of the biggest contemporary criticisms of Christmas in Connecticut is that it perpetuates stereotypical gender roles, but there’s also another way of looking at the story. Thanks to Stanwyck’s performance, Elizabeth’s so-called domestic bliss could be seen through a tongue-in-cheek lens.
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Christmas in Connecticut (1945) |
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75% |
2 Carol (2015)
Directed by Todd Haynes
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8/10 Carol RDramaDocumentaryRomance
Based on the novel by Patricia Highsmith, Carol stars Rooney Mara as Therese Belivet, a department store worker and aspiring photographer who, after a chance encounter at work, begins a secret affair with an older wealthy woman named Carol who is going through a bitter divorce. While the two women develop strong feelings for one another, outside forces continually threaten to tear them apart. Cate Blanchett stars alongside Mara as Carol.
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*Availability in US Director Todd Haynes Release Date November 20, 2015 Studio(s) Number 9 Films , Film4 , Killer Films Writers Phyllis Nagy , Patricia Highsmith Cast Kyle Chandler , Jake Lacy , Sarah Paulson , Rooney Mara , Cate Blanchett , Cory Michael Smith Runtime 119 minutes Expand
A Christmas movie more in spirit than in practice, Carol sees its lovers meet at Christmastime and embark on an affair that will change them forever. With drama, desire, and desperation, Carol (Cate Blanchett) and Therese (Rooney Mara) can’t help falling for each other, even as the world tries to keep them apart. The sense of longing inherent to the story of Carol and the way this tragic star-crossed romance is so tantalizing during the holidays makes Carol a great choice for a more melancholic Christmas viewing.
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The chemistry between Blanchett and Mara propels the story forward, keeping the audience enthralled and on the edge of their seats despite the methodical pace.
The chemistry between Blanchett and Mara propels the story forward, keeping the audience enthralled and on the edge of their seats despite the methodical pace. Like every other genre of film, Christmas and romance movies could always do with more transgressive additions that challenge the traditional and formulaic aspects of these stories. However, Carol is a universally human story that anyone can relate to, as love and complex relationships are two things almost everyone experiences.
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Carol (2015) |
Related The 8 Movies That Defined Cate Blanchett’s Career
Cate Blanchett has starred in eight career-defining movies that solidified her status as one of Hollywood’s most remarkable leading actresses.
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1 The Shop Around The Corner (1940)
Directed by Ernst Lubitsch
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The Shop Around the Corner ApprovedComedyDramaRomance
The Shop Around the Corner, directed by Ernst Lubitsch, follows the lives of two employees at a Budapest gift shop who unknowingly become pen pals and fall in love through their anonymous letters. Starring James Stewart and Margaret Sullavan, this 1940 romantic comedy offers a charming exploration of mistaken identities and blossoming affection against the backdrop of an elegantly depicted pre-war Budapest.
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*Availability in US Director Ernst Lubitsch Release Date January 12, 1940 Writers Samson Raphaelson , Miklós László , Ben Hecht Cast Margaret Sullavan , James Stewart , Frank Morgan , Joseph Schildkraut , Sara Haden , Felix Bressart , William Tracy , Inez Courtney Runtime 99 Minutes
Though Jimmy Stewart’s other Christmas movie is more famous since It’s A Wonderful Life has no shortage of heartwarming Christmas quotes, his lesser-known project is even more special. Starring Stewart as the leading man, Alfred Kralik, and Margaret Sullavan as Klara Novak, The Shop Around the Corner sees the coworkers go from enemies to lovers in their small shop in Budapest. Many famous movies are based on the play that The Shop Around the Corner draws its story from, as well as the stage musical She Loves Me.
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When watching The Shop Around the Corner at Christmas today, it’s easy to see why the narrative is so inspirational within film and media. Stewart and Sullavan have a delightfully charming chemistry as they snipe at each other at work but send each other longing long letters from behind their pen names. Though not all of The Shop Around the Corner takes place during the holidays, the most emotionally resonant scenes do, and the film doesn’t shy away from the inherent nostalgia and longing that accompanies this time of year.
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The Shop Around the Corner (1940) |
99% |
91% |