The Best Holiday Movies and TV Shows

What it's about: NYPD cop John McClane's plan to reconcile with his estranged wife is thrown for a serious loop when, minutes after he arrives at her office, the entire building is overtaken by a group of terrorists. With little help from the LAPD, wisecracking McClane sets out to single-handedly rescue the hostages and bring the bad guys down.

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a popular subscription service (HBO MAX & HBO) & rent or buy from $2.99 on 5 services (iTunes, Prime Video & 3 others).

What it's about: A holiday favourite for generations... 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.

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a popular subscription service (Prime Video & TVision) & rent or buy from $2.99 on 5 services (iTunes, Google Play & 3 others).

What it's about: 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.

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a popular subscription service (Disney+) & rent or buy from $3.99 on 6 services (iTunes, Google Play & 4 others).

What it's about: When Jesper distinguishes himself as the Postal Academy's worst student, he is sent to Smeerensburg, a small village located on an icy island above the Arctic Circle, where grumpy inhabitants barely exchange words, let alone letters. Jesper is about to give up and abandon his duty as a postman when he meets local teacher Alva and Klaus, a mysterious carpenter who lives alone in a cabin full of handmade toys.

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a popular subscription service (Netflix).

What it's about: 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 blame.

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a subscription service (TVision) & rent or buy from $3.99 on 4 services (iTunes, Microsoft & 2 others).

What it's about: A hack screenwriter writes a screenplay for a former silent film star who has faded into Hollywood obscurity.

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a popular subscription service (Prime Video) & rent or buy from $2.99 on 5 services (iTunes, Google Play & 3 others).

What it's about: Enraged at the slaughter of Murron, his new bride and childhood love, Scottish warrior William Wallace slays a platoon of the local English lord's soldiers. This leads the village to revolt and, eventually, the entire country to rise up against English rule.

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a subscription service (Starz), stream on a popular TV everywhere service (Starz) & rent or buy from $2.99 on 5 services (iTunes, Google Play & 3 others).

What it's about: The comic mishaps and adventures of a young boy named Ralph, trying to convince his parents, teachers, and Santa that a Red Ryder B.B. gun really is the perfect Christmas gift for the 1940s.

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a popular subscription service (HBO MAX & TVision) & rent or buy from $3.99 on 4 services (iTunes, Google Play & 2 others).

What it's about: A small suburban town receives a visit from a castaway unfinished science experiment named Edward.

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a subscription service (Starz), stream on a popular TV everywhere service (Starz) & rent or buy from $2.99 on 7 services (iTunes, Google Play & 5 others).

What it's about: Bitter and hateful, the Grinch is irritated at the thought of a nearby village having a happy time celebrating Christmas. Disguised as Santa Claus, with his dog made to look like a reindeer, he decides to raid the village to steal all the Christmas things.

Where to Watch: Available to rent or buy from $3.99 on 5 services (iTunes, Prime Video & 3 others).

What it's about: Two musicians witness a mob hit and struggle to find a way out of the city before they are found by the gangsters. Their only opportunity is to join an all-girl band as they leave on a tour. To make their getaway they must first disguise themselves as women, then keep their identities secret and deal with the problems this brings - such as an attractive bandmate and a very determined suitor.

Where to Watch: Available to watch free online (Tubi & PlutoTV) & rent or buy from $3.99 on 5 services (iTunes, Google Play & 3 others).

What it's about: Eight-year-old Kevin McCallister makes the most of the situation after his family unwittingly leaves him behind when they go on Christmas vacation. But when a pair of bungling burglars set their sights on Kevin's house, the plucky kid stands ready to defend his territory. By planting booby traps galore, adorably mischievous Kevin stands his ground as his frantic mother attempts to race home before Christmas Day.

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a popular subscription service (Disney+) & rent or buy from $2.99 on 5 services (iTunes, Prime Video & 3 others).

What it's about: A family loaded with quirky, colorful characters piles into an old van and road trips to California for little Olive to compete in a beauty pageant.

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a subscription service (Starz), stream on a popular TV everywhere service (Starz) & rent or buy from $2.99 on 6 services (iTunes, Google Play & 4 others).

What it's about: 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 publisher.

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a popular subscription service (HBO MAX & Starz), stream on a popular TV everywhere service (Starz) & rent or buy from $3.99 on 5 services (iTunes, Google Play & 3 others).

What it's about: It's Christmas time and the Griswolds are preparing for a family seasonal celebration, but things never run smoothly for Clark, his wife Ellen and their two kids. Clark's continual bad luck is worsened by his obnoxious family guests, but he manages to keep going knowing that his Christmas bonus is due soon.

Where to Watch: Available to watch free online (YouTube), stream on a subscription service (TVision) & rent or buy from $2.99 on 5 services (iTunes, Google Play & 3 others).

What it's about: After high school slacker Ferris Bueller successfully fakes an illness in order to skip school for the day, he goes on a series of adventures throughout Chicago with his girlfriend Sloane and best friend Cameron, all the while trying to outwit his wily school principal and fed-up sister.

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a subscription service (Philo, fuboTV & AMC Premiere), stream on a popular TV everywhere service (AMC) & rent or buy from $2.99 on 6 services (iTunes, Google Play & 4 others).

What it's about: Charlie Simms is a student at a private preparatory school who comes from a poor family. To earn the money for his flight home to Gresham, Oregon for Christmas, Charlie takes a job over Thanksgiving looking after retired U.S. Army officer Lieutenant Colonel Frank Slade, a cantankerous middle-aged man who lives with his niece and her family.

Where to Watch: Available to watch free online (Peacock) & rent or buy from $3.99 on 6 services (iTunes, Google Play & 4 others).

What it's about: When world heavyweight boxing champion, Apollo Creed wants to give an unknown fighter a shot at the title as a publicity stunt, his handlers choose palooka Rocky Balboa, an uneducated collector for a Philadelphia loan shark. Rocky teams up with trainer Mickey Goldmill to make the most of this once in a lifetime break.

Where to Watch: Available to rent or buy from $2.99 on 6 services (iTunes, Google Play & 4 others).

What it's about: Bud Baxter is a minor clerk in a huge New York insurance company, until he discovers a quick way to climb the corporate ladder. He lends out his apartment to the executives as a place to take their mistresses. Although he often has to deal with the aftermath of their visits, one night he's left with a major problem to solve.

Where to Watch: Available to rent or buy from $3.99 on 5 services (iTunes, Google Play & 3 others).

What it's about: A boy is given the ability to become an adult superhero in times of need with a single magic word.

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a popular subscription service (HBO MAX & HBO) & rent or buy from $3.99 on 5 services (iTunes, Prime Video & 3 others).

What it's about: In the early years of the 20th century, Mohandas K. Gandhi, a British-trained lawyer, forsakes all worldly possessions to take up the cause of Indian independence. Faced with armed resistance from the British government, Gandhi adopts a policy of 'passive resistance', endeavouring to win freedom for his people without resorting to bloodshed.

Where to Watch: Available to rent or buy from $2.99 on 5 services (iTunes, Google Play & 3 others).

What it's about: Follows seemingly unrelated people as their lives begin to intertwine while they fall in – and out – of love. Affections languish and develop as Christmas draws near.

Where to Watch: Available to watch free online (Peacock) & rent or buy from $3.99 on 7 services (iTunes, Google Play & 5 others).

What it's about: A snobbish investor and a wily street con-artist find their positions reversed as part of a bet by two callous millionaires.

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a subscription service (Starz), stream on a popular TV everywhere service (Starz) & rent or buy from $2.99 on 5 services (iTunes, Google Play & 3 others).

What it's about: When Billy Peltzer is given a strange but adorable pet named Gizmo for Christmas, he inadvertently breaks the three important rules of caring for a Mogwai, and unleashes a horde of mischievous gremlins on a small town.

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a popular subscription service (HBO MAX) & rent or buy from $3.99 on 5 services (iTunes, Google Play & 3 others).

What it's about: It has been nine years since we last met Jesse and Celine, the French-American couple who once met on a train in Vienna. Now, live in Paris with twin daughters, but have spent a summer in Greece on the invitation of an author colleague of Jesse's. When the vacation is over and Jesse must send his teenage son off to the States, he begins to question his life decisions, and his relationship with Celine is at risk.

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a subscription service (Starz & Sundance Now), stream on a popular TV everywhere service (Starz) & rent or buy from $2.99 on 6 services (iTunes, Google Play & 4 others).

What it's about: 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.

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a popular subscription service (Disney+) & rent or buy from $2.99 on 5 services (iTunes, Google Play & 3 others).

What it's about: An irritable marketing executive, Neal Page, is heading home to Chicago for Thanksgiving when a number of delays force him to travel with a well meaning but overbearing shower ring curtain salesman, Del Griffith.

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a subscription service (Starz), stream on a popular TV everywhere service (Starz) & rent or buy from $2.99 on 7 services (iTunes, Google Play & 5 others).

What it's about: Veteran buttoned-down LAPD detective Roger Murtaugh is partnered with unhinged cop Martin Riggs, who -- distraught after his wife's death -- has a death wish and takes unnecessary risks with criminals at every turn. The odd couple embark on their first homicide investigation as partners, involving a young woman known to Murtaugh with ties to a drug and prostitution ring.

Where to Watch: Available to rent or buy from $3.99 on 5 services (iTunes, Google Play & 3 others).

What it's about: A petty thief posing as an actor is brought to Los Angeles for an unlikely audition and finds himself in the middle of a murder investigation along with his high school dream girl and a detective who's been training him for his upcoming role...

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a subscription service (Hoopla) & rent or buy from $2.99 on 5 services (iTunes, Google Play & 3 others).

What it's about: As children in the loving Ekdahl family, Fanny and Alexander enjoy a happy life with their parents, who run a theater company. After their father dies unexpectedly, however, the siblings end up in a joyless home when their mother, Emilie, marries a stern bishop. The bleak situation gradually grows worse as the bishop becomes more controlling, but dedicated relatives make a valiant attempt to aid Emilie, Fanny and Alexander.

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a popular subscription service (HBO MAX, The Criterion Channel & Kanopy) & rent or buy from $3.99 on 2 services (iTunes & Prime Video).

What it's about: A lone prospector ventures into Alaska looking for gold. He gets mixed up with some burly characters and falls in love with the beautiful Georgia. He tries to win her heart with his singular charm.

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a popular subscription service (HBO MAX & Kanopy) & rent or buy from $3.99 on 2 services (iTunes & Prime Video).

What it's about: Oakland, California. Young Afro-American Oscar Grant crosses paths with family members, friends, enemies and strangers before facing his fate on the platform at Fruitvale Station, in the early morning hours of New Year's Day 2009.

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a popular subscription service (Netflix) & rent or buy from $3.99 on 4 services (iTunes, Google Play & 2 others).

What it's about: Sam the snowman tells us the story of a young red-nosed reindeer who, after being ousted from the reindeer games because of his glowing nose, teams up with Hermey, an elf who wants to be a dentist, and Yukon Cornelius, the prospector. They run into the Abominable Snowman and find a whole island of misfit toys. Rudoph vows to see if he can get Santa to help the toys, and he goes back to the North Pole on Christmas Eve. But Santa's sleigh is fogged in. But when Santa looks over Rudolph, he gets a very bright idea...

Where to Watch: Available to rent or buy from $9.99 on 1 service (Vudu).

What it's about: After Dr. Bill Harford's wife, Alice, admits to having sexual fantasies about a man she met, Bill becomes obsessed with having a sexual encounter. He discovers an underground sexual group and attends one of their meetings -- and quickly discovers that he is in over his head.

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a popular subscription service (Hulu) & rent or buy from $2.99 on 5 services (iTunes, Google Play & 3 others).

What it's about: The Machinist is the story of Trevor Reznik, a lathe-operator who is suffering from insomnia. In a machine shop, occupational hazards are bad enough under normal circumstances; yet for Trevor the risks are compounded by fatigue. Trevor has lost the ability to sleep. This is no ordinary insomnia...

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a subscription service (fuboTV & Showtime), stream on a popular TV everywhere service (Showtime) & rent or buy from $2.99 on 6 services (iTunes, Google Play & 4 others).

What it's about: In 1950s New York, a department-store clerk who dreams of a better life falls for an older, married woman.

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a popular subscription service (Netflix) & rent or buy from $3.99 on 4 services (iTunes, Prime Video & 2 others).

What it's about: A retelling of the classic Dickens tale of Ebenezer Scrooge, miser extraordinaire. He is held accountable for his dastardly ways during night-time visitations by the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and future.

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a popular subscription service (Disney+) & rent or buy from $3.99 on 5 services (iTunes, Google Play & 3 others).

What it's about: Tracing the struggle of the Algerian Front de Liberation Nationale to gain freedom from French colonial rule as seen through the eyes of Ali from his start as a petty thief to his rise to prominence in the organisation and capture by the French in 1957. The film traces the rebels' struggle and the increasingly extreme measures taken by the French government to quell the revolt.

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a popular subscription service (HBO MAX, The Criterion Channel & Kanopy) & rent or buy from $2.99 on 4 services (iTunes, Google Play & 2 others).

What it's about: On July 2, a giant alien mothership enters orbit around Earth and deploys several dozen saucer-shaped 'destroyer' spacecraft that quickly lay waste to major cities around the planet. On July 3, the United States conducts a coordinated counterattack that fails. On July 4, a plan is devised to gain access to the interior of the alien mothership in space, in order to plant a nuclear missile.

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a popular subscription service (HBO MAX & HBO) & rent or buy from $2.99 on 7 services (iTunes, Google Play & 5 others).

What it's about: A young boy Vinayak Rao is affected by a personal tragedy. His encounter with a wretched old lady who knows of a buried treasure sets him on the path to greed. He grows up to explore the local legend of a monster named Hastar and his gold medallions.

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a popular subscription service (Prime Video).

What it's about: Two employees at a gift shop can barely stand one another, without realising that they are falling in love through the post as each other's anonymous pen pal.

Where to Watch: Available to rent or buy from $2.99 on 4 services (iTunes, Google Play & 2 others).

What it's about: It is an adaptation of the Charles Dickens classic A Christmas Carol, featuring Scrooge McDuck as his namesake and inspiration Ebenezer Scrooge and Mickey Mouse as Bob Cratchit. This film was based on a 1972 audio musical entitled Disney's A Christmas Carol. It is a twenty-four minute animated short film produced by Walt Disney Productions as an accompaniment to a re-release of The Rescuers.

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a popular subscription service (Disney+) & rent or buy from $3.99 on 5 services (iTunes, Google Play & 3 others).

What it's about: Clark Griswold is on a quest to take his family on a quest to Walley World theme park for a vacation, but things don't go exactly as planned.

Where to Watch: Available to rent or buy from $3.99 on 5 services (iTunes, Google Play & 3 others).

What it's about: When an evil spirit known as Pitch lays down the gauntlet to take over the world, the immortal Guardians must join forces for the first time to protect the hopes, beliefs and imagination of children all over the world.

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a popular subscription service (HBO MAX & HBO) & rent or buy from $3.99 on 6 services (iTunes, Google Play & 4 others).

What it's about: William Thacker is a London bookstore owner whose humdrum existence is thrown into romantic turmoil when famous American actress Anna Scott appears in his shop. A chance encounter over spilled orange juice leads to a kiss that blossoms into a full-blown affair. As the average bloke and glamorous movie star draw closer and closer together, they struggle to reconcile their radically different lifestyles in the name of love.

Where to Watch: Available to rent or buy from $3.99 on 6 services (iTunes, Google Play & 4 others).

What it's about: Two talented song-and-dance men team up after the war to become one of the hottest acts in show business. In time they befriend and become romantically involved with the beautiful Haynes sisters who comprise a sister act.

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a popular subscription service (Netflix) & rent or buy from $2.99 on 4 services (iTunes, Google Play & 2 others).

What it's about: It's a dreary Christmas 1944 for the American POWs in Stalag 17 and the men in Barracks 4, all sergeants, have to deal with a grave problem—there seems to be a security leak.

Where to Watch: Available to watch free online (Tubi) & rent or buy from $2.99 on 6 services (iTunes, Google Play & 4 others).

What it's about: During a Christmas Eve in Tokyo, three homeless people, middle-aged alcoholic Gin, former drag queen Hana, and dependent runaway girl Miyuki, discover an abandoned newborn while looking through the garbage. With only a handful of clues to the baby's identity, the three misfits search the city to find its parents.

Where to Watch: Available to rent or buy from $1.99 on 5 services (iTunes, Google Play & 3 others).

What it's about: Expecting the usual tedium that accompanies a summer in the Catskills with her family, 17-year-old Frances 'Baby' Houseman is surprised to find herself stepping into the shoes of a professional hoofer—and unexpectedly falling in love.

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a popular subscription service (HBO MAX & HBO) & rent or buy from $3.99 on 6 services (iTunes, Google Play & 4 others).

What it's about: Having defeated the Joker, Batman now faces the Penguin—a warped and deformed individual who is intent on being accepted into Gotham society, with the help of Max Schreck, a crooked businessman, whom he coerces into helping him run for the position of Mayor of Gotham, while they both attempt to frame Batman in a different light. Batman must attempt to clear his name, all while also deciding just what must be done with the mysterious Catwoman slinking about.

Where to Watch: Available to stream on a subscription service (fuboTV & Showtime), stream on a popular TV everywhere service (Showtime) & rent or buy from $3.99 on 3 services (iTunes, Microsoft & Vudu).