The holiday season is finally here. It’s the time of the year to celebrate with family and relax with a couple of iconic movies. The Pinion sent out a survey to the whole school asking McKinley students about their favorite holiday movies; we received 170 responses. These movies can take on many forms and genres ranging from gore and horror to a sappy comical romance. No matter what your ideal film is, this is McKinley’s top three list of holiday movies.

1. Home Alone (1990)
Home Alone, produced by John Hughes, is an amazing, classic Christmas movie. The movie follows a boy named Kevin McCallister who causes a scene the night before their big family trip. He awoke the next morning to an empty house after his family mistakenly left in a rush without him. During the holiday season, two thieves are planning to rob the houses out on vacation. Kevin has to defend the house by himself against the two men. This is an amazing comedic film, yet it has the perfect touch of heartwarming moments, for example, when Kevin’s mother came home or when Marley reunited with his son. I remember watching the sequence of Kevin’s creative house traps as a kid, knowing that this movie is at the top of McKinley’s holiday list proves that this movie is a must to watch.

2. The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)
The Pumpkin King of Halloweentown himself, Jack Skellington, got bored of his holiday and found himself upon Christmastown, regaining a new goal in life. Along with Sally, his Frankensteined girlfriend, and his dog Zero, he was determined to bring Christmas under his control and take over Santa Claus’ role. I’ve always been a sucker for claymation movies and this one always stuck with me because it was the first full Disney stop-motion film. Tim Burton found a great way to incorporate both holidays into this movie while keeping a unique and interesting plot.

3. Elf (2003)
Buddy was born and raised in North Pole up until he was an adult. However, he wasn’t an elf. Unlike everyone around him, Buddy was a human. As he got older, the more out of place he became. Due to this, he moved to New York to spread Christmas cheer and to look for his biological father. After finding his father, who turned out to be a crazy businessman, they start building their father-son relationship. Will Ferrall delivered an amazing comedy Christmas movie with his role as Buddy. His jokes never get old and they always fill me up with laughter. This movie fills the room with joy and it’s the perfect movie to watch for the holiday season.
Whether it’s a heartwarming or comedic Christmas movie, there is always something to watch and enjoy this season. This year, snuggle up in bed with a warm blanket and put on one of McKinley’s top holiday movies to enjoy with your friends and family.