Join us for the ultimate Christmas movie draft as we crown our personal Hall of Fame picks and dive deep into alternative holiday cinema! I am joined by Sugar Bob, in spirit, to compare our individual rankings and debate everything from heartwarming classics to dark festive horror. From National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation to the terrifying Black Christmas, plus our controversial take on whether Eyes Wide Shut really counts as a Christmas movie (spoiler: it does).

Whether you're team wholesome holiday cheer or team creepy Christmas horror, this three-way movie showdown has something for every type of movie fan this holiday season.

Christmas Movies Hall of Fame - The Rankings

My List

1. National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation - The undisputed champion of Christmas chaos and family dysfunction

2. Home Alone 1 & 2 - Kevin McCallister's double feature of holiday mayhem deserves the tie

2.5 Black Christmas (Original) - The OG slasher that defined Christmas horror

3. Bad Santa - Billy Bob Thornton's delightfully twisted anti-hero performance (check out my Letterboxd review!)

3.5 Jim Carrey's How The Grinch Stole Christmas - Love it or hate it, this one's a holiday staple

4. Elf - Will Ferrell's pure holiday joy in human form

5. Eyes Wide Shut - Yes, it's a Christmas movie. Fight us.

5.5 The Family Man - Nicolas Cage's underrated holiday redemption story

6. The Holdovers - The emotional toll is real, but this Paul Giamatti masterpiece might deserve to rank even higher

7. The Santa Clause - Tim Allen's transformation launched a franchise for good reason

8. The Holiday - The ultimate cozy Christmas rom-com comfort watch

9. It's A Wonderful Life - The obligatory classic (full disclosure: needs a rewatch for proper ranking)

10. The Polar Express - Tom Hanks and motion capture magic on the rails to the North Pole

Sugar Bob's List

[Her picks discussed in the episode]

Beeshee's List

[Their picks discussed in the episode]

Movies We Need To Catch Up On

• Klaus - This Netflix animated gem keeps coming up in recommendations

Top 5 Christmas Horror Movies

When you need your holiday cheer with a side of screams:

1. Rare Exports - Finnish horror that reimagines Santa Claus as nightmare fuel
2. Krampus - The anti-Santa gets his due in this creature feature
3. Eyes Wide Shut (yes, again!) - Kubrick's psychological thriller set during the holidays
4. Gremlins - The perfect blend of comedy, horror, and Christmas carnage
5. Black Christmas - The 1974 original remains the gold standard of holiday horror

Honorable Mentions

• Violent Night - David Harbour as action-hero Santa
• The Nightmare Before Christmas - The eternal debate: Halloween movie or Christmas movie?

Topics Discussed

• Comparing our three different Hall of Fame lists and finding common ground
• Why Bad Santa holds up as the perfect anti-Christmas movie
• The emotional weight of The Holdovers and why it's climbing the rankings
• Eyes Wide Shut as Christmas movie: A controversial but correct take
• The original Black Christmas vs. modern horror remakes
• Home Alone's cultural impact and sequel success rate
• Which Christmas movies are genuinely rewatchable vs. obligatory viewings
• Where Sugar Bob and Beeshee agree (and violently disagree) with my picks

Connect With Us

Found a Christmas movie we missed? Think our rankings are completely wrong? Let us know! Don't forget to check

It: Welcome to Derry is finally out on HBO Max, and as Stephen King and horror fanatics, we had to dive in! I consider 'It' to be Stephen King's the pièce de résistance, with Derry being a town I revisit annually and will in perpetuity. And now attach Andy and Barbara Muschietti that gave us the INCREDIBLE 2017 It, and I was in, and so was Bobby.

Our favorite interdimensional demon is back, Pennywise, plus a de facto Loser's Club is bicycling in Derry, and Halloween is less than a week ago- horror fans, we are feasting. So come with us as we review and deep dive, with some spoilers, into 'It: Welcome to Derry' and its (see what I did there) Pilot Episode.

We are also huge Twin Peaks fans, and this episode and some elements therein are ripe for comparison to the Lynch masterpiece that takes place in the dark and fantastical woods of the Pacific Northwest. Do not miss this episode, we really explore this newest iteration of Derry and where we think it is heading!

Also, resident Batman fanatic Bobby, putting it lightly, brings up the incredible comic book cameo we see in this first episode- listen and find out what he thinks it means for an upcoming horror project in the DCU.

Let us know what you thought about this pilot episode, and if you are excited and along for the ride back to Derry in a 5-star review and comment please!

Oh, and HAPPY HALLOWEEN MOVIE LOVERS!!! Double oh, Mr. DICK HALLORANN!? You know we talk about it, any excuse to discuss The Shining. And Batman, for Bobby.

The Black Phone 2 & V/H/S Halloween Double Feature Review

In this episode, Bobby and I tackle two of the most talked-about horror releases: The Black Phone 2 and V/H/S Halloween.

We start off discussing the return of Scott Derrickson and C. Robert Cargill to the Black Phone franchise, the brainchild of Stephen King's offspring, Joe Hill. Bobby and I explore what makes their creative partnership so effective in crafting psychological horror and why their storytelling resonates so deeply with audiences. We spend quality time analyzing the Grabber—one of horror's most unsettling villains—and share our theories about where the sequel might take this terrifying character. We also discuss the Grabber and his potential place on the patheon of the horror villain zeitgeist, and place him up against Art the Clown and the likes! We also ask the dark questions about the Grabber, the one on everybody's mind- don't miss it! Leave a 5-star review with your thoughts on the Grabber, we'd love to read them!

Then Bobby and I switch gears to dissect V/H/S Halloween, the latest installment in the iconic found-footage anthology series. I break down each segment with mini-reviews, and Bobby chimes in with his takes on what worked, what fell flat, and which shorts delivered genuine scares. From inventive practical effects to slow-burn terror, we cover every twisted tale that makes this anthology perfect Halloween viewing. From the insanity that is 'Fun Size,' to the deprevity of 'Kid Print,' we have a blast ranting about our favorite parts of each and if the Halloween through-line is maintained. The list of directs is phenominal, by the way, and VHS Halloween is on Shudder now- don't miss it. I mean Paco Plaza, Alex Ross Perry, Casper Kelly and more, come on! REC anyone!?

Whether you're deciding what to watch this spooky season or you're a horror fanatic like us, this episode has all the insights you need in the two biggest horror releases this Halloween season!