By Shelly Koon, Contributing Writer
There’s a lot to love about Christmas; food, family, friends, and all kinds of other words that don’t start with the letter F. I think there’s no better way to enjoy the holidays than by watching holiday movies. The Holiday movie has long been a family tradition; your nearest and dearest gathering together to enjoy a seasonal classic is as much a part of the festivities for many people as the opening of presents or grandpa falling asleep on the sofa shortly after finishing Christmas dinner. Americans rank watching holiday movies as one of their favorite traditions, above tree decorating and cookie baking. Hallmark’s 40 new holiday movies this season is a drop in a bucket already filled with old holiday classics from A Christmas Story and White Christmas to new ones like Love Actually and the Christmas Chronicles. Yes, holiday movies are formulaic, predictable, and often cheesy. But they also offset the stress, family pressure, and gloom from shorter days and less sunshine. An evening spent watching a feel-good movie can be an easy, low-cost, and rewarding form of self-care.
Since very few of us have “Hallmark Christmas” lives, the movies provide a welcome escape from the pressures and demands of the real world. The holiday season can bring unwanted guests and annoying family members and the burdens of gift-giving and entertaining. Holidays can exacerbate financial strain and emphasize our loneliness and isolation. Images of Christmas can also make us aware when our lives, families, jobs, or friends don’t live up to our hopeful ideals and desires. It’s no wonder that depression and anxiety spike during the holidays. It also explains the relief we feel when holiday movies wildly exaggerate those holiday woes, like Christmas with the Cranks, Bad Santa, or Bad Moms Christmas.
There are several benefits from a journey into Christmas movie land.
There is comfort in predictability. It is the grown-up version of your kid watching the exact same video, or wanting the exact same book read every single time. We want that familiarity, but with dashes of novelty to keep us more engaged. No matter what happens, we know the two main characters will end up together. The world is messy but you know these will always have a happy ending. (Unless you are the jerk boyfriend).
People often turn to their favorite programs when feeling lonely. Just thinking about a favorite movie increases positive emotions, decreases stress, and increases the sense of community.
Holiday movies tap into tradition and ritual, triggering nostalgia for “the good old days” when things seemed simpler, kinder, and slower. Nostalgia increases perceptions of social support and fosters mental health by amplifying positive memories and recalling when everything seemed possible. Holiday movies let us revisit that innocence, increasing our confidence while escaping our obligations, stressors, and realities and helping us reimagine our world as full of possibilities.
Whether laughing, crying, or going “awwww,” holiday movies allow us to experience positive emotions, putting more psychological resources at our disposal and making us more able to combat negative emotions that raise blood pressure and increase the release of stress hormones.
It’s an added benefit that most holiday movies are family-friendly, providing a way to create new traditions. Watching together creates traditions and strengthens bonds.
Also, they are good for drinking games or trope bingo. I don’t drink alcohol but it works with hot cider too! I will include the rules later. Grab your beverage of choice and settle in for a fun time.
It’s always fun to indulge in a bit of cringe around the holidays. It’s like eating junk food. Empty but satisfying. There is enough stress in the world and this is a good escape. Even if we roll our eyes while watching.
In the years before on-demand services, Blu-Rays or DVDs, watching a Christmas movie was more of a shared experience, a time when a whole nation was beholden to the whims of the programmers working at the major broadcasters who decided what we watched and when. Mom would write notes on the calendar so we wouldn’t forget to watch. My mom told me my 2nd grade school pageant was moved to an earlier time so we all could get home in time to watch Charlie Brown’s Christmas.
With Christmas on a Thursday the deadlines for all the papers are moved up and the days leading up to the holiday are very busy in our office. On Christmas Day, Betsy and I will stay in our pjs, watch movies, work a puzzle, and eat Christmassy foods. I started a new tradition a few years ago on Christmas of making myself nachos for dinner and watching The Holiday. I really look forward to my Christmas nachos and movie!
Loaded Sheet Pan Nachos
Ingredients
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 pound ground beef (or turkey)
1 (1.25-oz) package taco seasoning
1 (16-oz) jar salsa
1 (12-oz) bag corn tortilla chips (red and green ones, I get mine at Food Lion)
1 (15-oz) can black beans drained and rinsed
1 (8.5-oz) can corn drained
1 small can sliced black olives drained
1.5 cups shredded Mexican cheese blend (cheddar works too!)
1 Roma tomato diced
1 small red onion diced
1 jalapeno thinly sliced
1 avocado cubed
Chopped cilantro (if you like it)
sour cream for serving
Prep: Heat oven to 400°F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and spray with nonstick cooking spray. Brown beef: Add olive oil to large skillet over medium-high heat, then add ground beef and cook until browned. Drain if desired, then stir in taco seasoning and salsa. Assemble: Place tortilla chips in single layer on the prepared baking sheet. Top with ground beef mixture, black beans, corn, olives and cheese. Bake: Place into oven and bake until heated through and the cheeses have melted, about 5-6 minutes. Top with tomato, onion, jalapeño, avocado, cilantro and serve with sour cream.
Holiday Drinking Game
Google Christmas drinking games and several lists will show up.
The Rules:
Drink When…
Character’s name related to Christmas
Reference to a dead relative
Hot cocoa, cider, or eggnog
Candy canes!
Snowball fight or ice skating
Adult bonds with an unrelated child
Ugly Sweater or tie
Baking, Caroling, Tree Trimming
Big City Person in Small Town
Widow/er or Single Parent
Scenic Snow Vista
Precocious child/pet
Gratuitous dramatic exterior
Take 2 Drinks When…
Outsider partakes in an old tradition
Near-miss/almost kiss
“Magical” Christmas item
Snowing on Christmas
Mistletoe!
Santa/Angel in disguise
Snowed-in or Flight Canceled
“Big Event” saves the day!
Montage
Someone says, “But, it’s Christmas”
Finish Your Drink When…
The cynic is filled with the Christmas Spirit
The protagonist leaves town, only to return at the end
Community Tree Lighting Ceremony!
The movie ends with “The Kiss”