P&P's 10 Best Christmas Movies

You've survived the raging mobs on Black Friday.  Even punched an old woman in the face to obtain one of those next generation game consoles—maybe stole her shoes out of principal—and now you're anticipating the fat man in the red suit to shimmy down the chimney.  But wait!  Holy crap!  You forgot to get that special someone in your life a few stocking stuffers.  Well, nothing says, "I don't really give a crap about you," better than a Christmas movie on Blu-ray, or if you're really cheap—on DVD.  So, in the spirit of Christmas, P&P is proud to present our 10 favorite Christmas movies.  Each one holds a special place in our heart, so they're listed below in absolutely no meaningful order.

10. Home Alone (Comedy)

Eight year old Kevin McCallister (Macaulay Culkin) is accidentally left behind during the Christmas holiday, while his clown-size family, fly off to France.  Things get interesting when Harry (Joe Pesci) and Marv (Daniel Stern) decide to rob Kevin’s house.  Instead of baubles, the robbers find a kid capable of dishing out a beating with paint cans, feathers, and blow torches.

Family Rating: enjoy the movie with every one of your rug rats absolutely worry free.  No random curse words from Pesci here, just stupid family fun.

Manly Rating: aside from scenes with blow torches, spiders, and extremely long nails going through feet, your man will probably spend most of the movie scratching his nuts.

9. Trading Places (Comedy)

Billy Ray Valentine (Eddie Murphy) a con artist, who's willing to roll around, pretending to be legless for a few bucks, and Louis Winthorpe III (Dan Aykroyd) a smarty-pants investor, find their roles in society switched, when two dick-ish millionaires make a one dollar bet.

Family Rating: the kids will probably be enthused for a few minutes and then will go back to picking their nose and wiping it on the carpet.

Manly Rating: with money, hilarious jail scenes, and Jamie Lee Curtis playing a flashing hooker, the man of the house will definitely keep an eye out between beer chugs for at least a peek at Jamie's sweater-chickens.

8. Elf (Comedy)

Buddy (Will Ferrell), an overgrown retard, being raised at the North Pole by elves, just wants to find his real father in New York City.  After a short trek through some trees, Buddy finally finds daddy (James Caan) and begins to wreak havoc in his life and throughout the city.

Family Rating: Ferrell's buffoonery will keep the kids laughing throughout most of the film and probably even give them a few pointers on food etiquette.

Manly Rating: there is a PG shower scene with Zooey Deschanel, so there's that.  Just don't tell the hubby where it happens in the film and you'll keep his attention for close to an hour.

7. A Christmas Story (Comedy)

All Ralphie (Peter Billingsley) wants for Christmas is a Red Ryder BB gun, but asking Santa and his parents for it, proves to be harder than expected.

Family Rating: with BB guns, bullies, ridiculous kid outfits, sexy lamps, angry fathers, and fantastic voice-over by Jean Shepherd, there's nothing here that'll bore anyone.

Manly Rating: see Family Rating and focus on the BB gun and sexy lamp.

6. The Ref (Comedy)

Gus (Denis Leary) a low level thief is forced to take a crappy, bickering family hostage on Christmas Eve, and spends most of the movie telling everyone to shut the hell up.

Family Rating: if you want the kiddies to discover some choice words and a drunken Santa, then its best you put them to bed first, and then pop this in.

Manly Rating: what's manlier than a foul-mouthed Denis Leary with a gun and some duct tape?  Your man will enjoy the time Leary spends screaming, cursing, and taping people up, because in reality, that's really what every man wants to do to his own family during Christmas.

5. Just Friends (Comedy)

Chris Brander (Ryan Reynolds) a fat kid who left his home town for L.A. returns years later for Christmas as a good-looking womanizer and attempts to bed his high school crush, Jamie Palamino (Amy Smart).

Family Rating: the toddlers will have to be put down (in bed), but the teenagers will get a kick out of Reynolds running around making faces and kicking his younger brother's ass.

Manly Rating: hubby will be enthused because of the womanizer factor, and then there's also Amy Smart and Anna Faris to keep his attention throughout.  Oh, and the movie is damn funny at times.

4. Planes, Trains & Automobiles (Comedy)

Neal Page (Steve Martin) just wants to get home to his family in time for Thanksgiving, but will have to partner with Del Griffith (John Candy) an obnoxious, but lovable idiot, to do so.

Family Rating: the bigger kids will understand all the inside jokes, but the youngsters will spend most of the time probably breaking your balls.

Manly Rating: John Candy and Steve Martin…together…in a comedy?  No need to say anymore.

3. Gremlins (Comedy/Horror)

Billy Peltzer (Zach Galligan) accidentally unleashes hundreds of smoking, drinking, and movie-watching monsters on a town during Christmas.

Family Rating: perfect film to teach the children when fun needs to had, it should be had at the local bar for drinks, gambling, and smoking.  And then to end the festivities you should take in a movie…maybe Snow White?

Manly Rating: hubby will enjoy the Nazi cracks, people getting crushed by a bulldozer, and the tiny monster purée.  Ever wanted to know what happens when you stuff a Gremlin in the microwave for a few minutes?  You can bet your man does.

2. Christmas Vacation (Comedy)

The Griswold family led by Clark (Chevy Chase) attempts plans for Christmas.  Ridiculousness ensues.

Family Rating: doesn't matter how old you are, you'll find scene after scene hilarious in this classic Chase movie.

Manly Rating: see Family Rating and add thousands of Christmas lights and annoying in-laws.  He'll love it.

1. Die Hard (Action/Thriller/Comedy)

John McClane (Bruce Willis)—as if you didn't already know—tries to save his wife and other film extras, when Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman) and friends take over the Nakatomi Plaza during a Christmas party.

Family Rating: nothing says family like taking out a group of terrorists, singlehandedly, using machine guns (Ho Ho Ho), explosives, chains, and duct tape (no wonder men use this for everything).

Manly Rating: ha…this needs no explanation.

Bonus Movie: Groundhog Day (Comedy)

When the holidays are all over, your stomach full of cookies, and your chest hurts from aggravation, nothing can quell those troubles better than laughter.  And nobody does it better than Bill Murray playing a weatherman named Phil, who finds himself living the same day (Groundhog Day) over and over again.

Merry Christmas from P&P!!!