Top Five: Must-watch Netflix movies to get you in the holiday spirit
Don’t waste your time surfing the queue
(Flickr/TroyMarcyPhotography)
It’s the week before Christmas and all through UMass, students are cramming for finals hoping they’ll pass. They wander through campus with equations running through their heads, wishing they were getting into the holiday spirit instead.
Some of us plan on studying all night, while others think if they take a break it won’t matter … So here are some movies to watch on Netflix if you choose the latter.
5. “Just Friends”
In this movie, a teenage boy stuck in the friend zone—*moment of silence for all those lost to the notorious friend zone*—grows into an extravagant playboy. Years later, he returns home during Christmas for a chance to finally win over his high school crush. Now, this movie is number five on my list because it is a little cheesy and slightly predictable. But let’s be honest, aren’t all the best holiday movies? Plus, who doesn’t need a little Ryan Reynolds to lift your spirit during finals?
4. “Last Holiday”
Ah, “Last Holiday.” I stumbled across this movie a few years ago on a snow day and I’m so glad I was procrastinating my homework — it’s fine, I still graduated. The plot follows a woman who lives a tragically boring life until one day her doctor tells her she has a terminal illness. Upon hearing that she only has about three weeks to live, Georgia Byrd (Queen Latifah) decides to sell all of her belongings and spend the holidays living like a queen in the presidential suite of a fancy European hotel that is home to her hero, Chef Didier. “YOLO,” am I right? This movie follows her shenanigans at this grand hotel forming a sort of adult version of our childhood Disney favorite the “Suite Life of Zack and Cody.” Queen Latifah lives it up in a hilarious yet charming version of living life to the fullest.
3. “White Christmas”
Okay, so here’s where we really get into those holiday classics. You might just disregard this film as your grandmother’s favorite, but it’s so much more than that. Following the end of World War II, two privates become entertainers and just so happen to team up with two dancing sisters on a journey to Vermont for a white Christmas. This movie is filled with comedy, a touch of romance and a whole lot of Christmas spirit.
Plus for all you film buffs like me, “White Christmas” served as a huge milestone for the industry as it was the first movie produced in VistaVision. If that means absolutely nothing to you, just get excited for all the random dance numbers and corny jokes. Overall, it’ll really get you into that holiday spirit with all the old-fashioned glitz and glam.
2. “Frosty the Snowman”
Honestly, I was tempted to rank this one above “Miracle on 34th Street.” I may not be seven years old anymore, but Frosty will always be my favorite. I know I’m not the only one out there. Netflix is doing us a favor by adding it to their queue this season because it helps avoid the embarrassing conversation with your family when you won’t give the clicker up because Frosty is on, even though you are a grown adult. This may not be the original Frosty we grew up with, but it is still the same story with the same jolly snowman that we all love so much. Watch it while it lasts, guys, because in 10 years it’s going to be very hard to convince the new generation that Olaf from “Frozen” has nothing on Frosty.
1. “Miracle on 34th Street”
This classic is by far one of the best Christmas movies of all time. I honestly don’t know how I’ve gone 18 years without seeing it. In a world filled with drunken Santas and little girls who don’t believe, one man is determined to prove that Kris Kringle is not insane. However, the only way to get him out of the asylum is proving to the whole word that he is, in fact, Santa Claus. It’s like a “Law & Order” episode starring Santa and a bunch of non-believers.
Email Heather at [email protected] or follow her on Twitter @The_Heatherose.
