It is the time of the year when Christmas movies bubble up to our favorite streaming platform's watchlist. Yes most of them are predictable, with the traditional theme of love, hope, generosity, faith, redemption, family, or fear ( Having said this, doesn't this include ALL movies? ) And YES DIE HARD is a Christmas movie.
Even though the Christmas season is often considered from the day after Thanksgiving till New Year's Day, technically Christians have celebrated a period of 12 days surrounding Christmas. As it is believed that it took 12 days for the 3 wise men to travel to Bethlehem to meet Jesus after his birth. So in tune with the famous Christmas carol, 12 days of Christmas, below are 12 movies (Both local and international, since Christmas is celebrated around the world, unlike my Thanksgiving list) to watch from Christmas Day to the day before the Epiphany (January 6th 2023).
Day 1: Gremlins
Synopsis:
Minature green monsters tear through the small town of Kingston Falls. Hijinks ensue as a mild-mannered bank teller releases these hideous loonies after gaining a new pet and violating two of three simple rules: No water (violated), no food after midnight (violated), and no bright light. Hilarious mayhem and destruction in a town straight out of Norman Rockwell. So, when your washing machine blows up or your TV goes on the fritz, before you call the repairman, turn on all the lights and look under all the beds. Because you never can tell, there might be a gremlin in your house - —Amazon
Streaming on: HBO Max, Amazon Prime, TubiTV
Day 2: The Tower (South Korea)
Synopsis:
On Christmas Eve at Tower Sky, an ultra-luxurious building complex, a White Christmas party is held to dazzle its equally high-end tenants and VIP guests. Dae-ho, the manager of the building and single father, is forced to cancel plans with his daughter Hana to work the event. His Christmas is saved when Yoon-hee, the food mall manager with a secret crush on Dae-ho, offers to babysit Hana during the party. Meanwhile, Young-ki the legendary fire chief of Yoido Station has finally promised his first holiday date night to his long-suffering wife. The party is in full swing with the spectacular sight of two helicopters flying overhead just to spray snow on the partygoers and make everything perfect. When unthinkable disaster strikes, Dae-ho and Young-ki must summon all their strength and courage to save the lives of thousands but at what cost to themselves and their loved ones?—CJ Entertainment
Streaming on: Amazon Prime
Day 3: Batman Returns
Synopsis:
Having defeated The Joker, Batman now faces the Penguin - a warped and deformed individual who is intent on being accepted into Gotham society. Crooked businessman Max Schreck is coerced into helping him become Mayor of Gotham and they both attempt to expose Batman in a different light. Earlier, however, Selina Kyle, Max's secretary, is thrown from the top of a building and is transformed into Catwoman - a mysterious figure who has the same personality disorder as Batman. Batman must attempt to clear his name, all the time deciding just what must be done with Catwoman. —Graeme Roy <gsr@cbmamiga.demon.co.uk>
Streaming on: HBO Max, Amazon Prime,
Day 4: Lethal Weapon
Synopsis:
Roger Murtaugh is an aging family man and a sensible veteran police officer just trying to make it through the day unscathed. Martin Riggs is a suicidal loose cannon cop who doesn't care if he even lives to see the end of the day. Reluctantly thrown together to solve the mysterious murder of a banker's daughter, the unlikely duo uncovers a dangerous ring of drug smugglers employing ex-military mercenaries. After a tragic turn of events, the mission becomes personal and the mismatched investigators must learn to trust one another as they wage a two-man war against a deadly criminal organization. —The Massie Twins
Streaming on: HBO Max , Amazon Prime
Day 5. Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale (Finland)
Synopsis:
On Christmas Eve in Finland, Santa Claus is unearthed in an archaeological dig. Soon after, children start disappearing, leading a boy and his father to capture Santa, and, with the help of fellow hunters, they look to sell him back to the corporation that sponsored the dig. And then there are Santa's elves, who are determined to free their leader.
Streaming on: Amazon Prime, TubiTV
Day 6: The Long Kiss Goodnight
Synopsis:
Samantha Caine, the suburban homemaker, is the ideal mom to her 8-year-old daughter Caitlin. She lives in Honesdale, PA has a job teaching school, and makes the best Rice Krispie treats in town. But when she receives a bump on her head, she begins to remember small parts of her previous life as a lethal, top-secret agent. Her old chums in the Chapter are now out to kill her so she enlists the help of a cheap detective named Mitch. As Samantha remembers more and more of her previous life, she becomes deadlier and more resourceful. Both Mitch and Charly proceed to do the killing thing, the bleeding thing, and the shooting thing.—Tony Fontana <tony.fontana@spacebbs.com>
Streaming on: Amazon Prime , TubiTV
Day 7: LA Confidential
Synopsis:
1950s, Los Angeles is the seedy backdrop for this intricate noir-ish tale of police corruption and Hollywood sleaze. Three very different cops are all after the truth, each in their own style: Ed Exley, the golden boy of the police force, willing to do almost anything to get ahead, except sell out; Bud White, ready to break the rules to seek justice, but barely able to keep his raging violence under control; and Jack Vincennes, always looking for celebrity and a quick buck until his conscience drives him to join Exley and White down the one-way path to find the truth behind the dark world of L.A. crime.—Greg Bole <bole@life.bio.sunysb.edu>
Streaming on: Amazon Prime
Day 8. Anjaana Anjaani (India)
Synopsis:
The story of two strangers on an odyssey of discovery, down a path that is ridden with the exquisite pain and joy of falling in love, only they don't realize it. A series of hilarious misadventures trace their bi-coastal road journey as they go about fulfilling their last wishes. But then life interrupts, as is its habit, and painful choices must be made. The duo part with the understanding that their days together were a brief interlude of insanity that had to succumb to real life. They part as they met--as strangers.
Streaming on: Amazon Prime
Day 9: Joyeux Noël (France)
Synopsis:
In 1914, World War I, the bloodiest war ever at that time in human history, was well underway. However, on Christmas Eve, numerous sections of the Western Front called an informal, and unauthorized, truce where the various front-line soldiers of the conflict peacefully met each other in No Man's Land to share a precious pause in the carnage with a fleeting brotherhood. This film dramatizes one such section as the French, Scottish, and German sides partake in the unique event, even though they are aware that their superiors will not tolerate its occurrence.—Kenneth Chisholm (kchishol@rogers.com)
Streaming on: Amazon Prime
Day 10: Black Christmas
Synopsis:
The women of a female sorority stage a Christmas performance with a difference, hitting out at the predatory culture of the male sororities. When they start getting threatening texts they figure it is from men from these sororities but soon the threats turn to violence. The perpetrators seem more sinister than disgruntled men. —grantss
Streaming on: Amazon Prime , HBO Max, TubiTV
11. Tokyo Godfathers (Japan)
Synopsis:
Christmas in Tokyo, Japan. Three homeless friends: a young girl, a transvestite, and a middle-aged bum. While foraging through some trash, they find an abandoned newborn. Hana, the transvestite with delusions of being a mother, convinces the others to keep it overnight. The next day, using a key found with the baby, they start tracking down the parents, with many adventures along the way.—Jon Reeves <jreeves@imdb.com>
Streaming on: Amazon Prime
Day 12. Cronos (Mexico)
Synopsis:
In 1536, in Veracruz, Mexico, during the Inquisition, an alchemist builds a mysterious and sophisticated device named Cronos to provide eternal life to the owner. In the present day, the antique dealer Jesus Gris finds Cronos hidden inside an ancient statue while cleaning it with his granddaughter Aurora. He accidentally triggers the device and soon his wife Mercedes notes that he has a younger appearance. Out of the blue, the stranger Angel de la Guardia visits Gris's shop and buys the old statue. On the next day, Gris finds his shop trashed and Angel's card on the floor. He pays a visit to Angel, introducing him to the eccentric millionaire De la Guardia that explains the healing power and the eternal life that Cronos gave. Angel is sent by De la Guardia to hunt down Gris to get Cronos no matter the costs.—Claudio Carvalho, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Streaming on: Amazon Prime, HBO Max
Wishing you and your family health, happiness, peace and prosperity this Christmas and in the coming New Year.