Alternative Christmas movies aren’t just beloved by Scrooge.
Not everyone wants their favourite seasonal films to be gift wrapped, dipped in yoghurt and covered in chocolate buttons a la Love Actually.
Some of us need our festive message to be a little bit out there and unconventional. Here’s our top seven, as chosen by an outdoor cinema company with years of experience in Christmas film events.
Horror makes alternative Christmas movies shine
Throwing some horror into a Christmas setting makes for a gripping plot. Krampus (2015) follows a dysfunctional family and their oh-so-realistic Christmas clashes of personality. This lack of seasonal goodwill unleashes the wrath of Krampus: a demonic force of ancient evil intent on punishing non-believers.
Perhaps one to watch before the traditional quarrel blows up at home.
Horror, fantasy and action are mixed together in Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale (2010). Expect to be whisked away in a deeply cynical exploration of the closest ever guarded secret of Christmas. Finnish cinema at its best.
Back in 1984, Gremlins was born. The comedy horror is set at Christmas and in a town that echoes the location of classic It’s A Wonderful Life.
The plot centres on a young man who inadvertently breaks three important rules concerning his new pet and unleashes a horde of malevolently mischievous monsters on the small town. The grisly microwave scene remains legendary.
Action and adventure
Every year, people fight over whether Die Hard (1988) is REALLY a Christmas movie. Well, the movie’s writer has now confirmed that it is, so we can all watch it guilt free in December.
As you probably know, Die Hard’s hero is Bruce Willis. He is visiting his estranged wife and daughters on Christmas Eve (see, we told you) when terrorists take over the building.
Can he save the hostages – and Christmas too?
Praised as one of the best comedy and Christmas films of all time, Trading Places made $120 million dollars worldwide in 1983.
It revived the screwball comedy genre but, like many of us in December, was criticised for focusing on commercialisation rather than a message of morality.
The story does showcase how circumstances can change in the blink of an eye though. It charts the adventures of a snobbish investor and street con artist when their positions are reversed as part of a bet, all during the countdown to Christmas.
Festive fantasy
Family favourite The Nightmare Before Christmas mixes two of our most loved holidays in one plot.
Jack Skellington, from Halloween Town, finds Christmas Town and is instantly bewitched. However the situation becomes riveting when his obsession with Christmas leads him to abduct Santa Claus…
Tim Burton casts his magic spell with the casting in this 1993 hit and it’s a musical too, so has something to get everyone in the festive spirit.
Some stories never get old. Scrooge (1970) is a musical film adaptation of the Charles Dickens’ 1843 book A Christmas Carol.
A bitter old miser meets his match when he is taken on a journey of redemption. That’s courtesy of replica g shock watches wholesale india several mysterious apparitions, of course and plenty of ‘Bah, Humbug!’ exclamations.
As alternative Christmas films go, this one will make you realise time is short, and life can be good.
More alternative Christmas movies
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