There are a lot of movies that have some sort of Christmas theme, and there are a lot of top 10 lists of such movies. Here is my list. I don’t include animated films such as “A Charlie Brown Christmas”.

1. Babes in Toyland (1934) aka March of the Wooden Soldiers – I love this very funny movie starring Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy. The humor stands up well even after 80 years. Stan and Ollie live in Toyland and work in Santa’s toy shop. They defend Toyland from the treacherous Barnaby who has his eyes on Little Bo Peep.

2. A Christmas Story (1983) – This comedy movie tops most top-ten Christmas movie lists, and rightfully so. My two favorite scenes are when dad opens the fragile (“must be Italian”) leg lamp major award, and Ralphie’s imagined blindness from Lifebuoy soap.

3. A Christmas Carol (1988, 1999) – There are many adaptations of Charles Dicken’s famous story, but my two favorites (tied) are the 1988 version starring George C. Scott, and the 1999 version starring Patrick Stewart. Brilliant performances as Scrooge.

4. Funny Farm (1988) – Chevy Chase and Madolyn Smith star in this comedy as an unhappily married urban couple who move to the boondocks of Redbud, Vermont. They slowly learn to love the small town life. I’m not a big fan of Chevy Chase, but oddly, his two best performances (for me anyway) are in Christmas movies, and both movies are on this list.

5. Christmas Vacation (1989) – Chevy Chase is the patriarch of the Griswold family. The grandparents and Uncle Eddie invade the Griswold’s home and funny scenes occur. I liked the squirrel in the tree.

6. The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992) – Just as the title suggests, this is a Muppet version of “A Christmas Carol”. The humor is quite subtle and sophisticated. Michael Caine is wonderful, playing Ebenezer Scrooge.

7. Krampus (2015) – It’s difficult for a movie to be both funny and scary, but “Krampus” does just that. The somewhat dysfunctional Engel family comes together for Christmas. Krampus is an unwelcome visitor and he/it has some extremely unpleasant toys.

8. Trading Places (1983) – Dan Aykroyd is a snobby commodities broker, and Eddie Murphy is a con man. Their paths cross, along with Jamie Lee Curtis as Ophelia, the hooker with a heart of gold. Together they foil a nasty plan by the bad rich guys. Very clever plot.

9. Office Christmas Party (2016) – Jason Bateman plays an executive of a Chicago high tech company that’s in danger of closing unless they land a new account. Against the orders of the no-nonsense interim CEO played by Jennifer Anniston, the employees hold a Christmas party that quickly spins out of control. But there’s a happy ending.

10. Babes in Toyland (1961) – In this Disney film, Annette Funicello is Mary Contrary and Tommy Sands is Tom Piper. The human-sized toy soldiers appear in many parades at Disneyland to this very day.

Honorable Mention

11. Heidi (1937) – Shirley Temple plays Heidi, who is taken away from her grandfather to live with her rich relatives. The evil housekeeper tries to sell Heidi to the gypsies.