Xmas Films! SCFZ poll

[wba]

Whoa, there's a "neverending Christmas Movie List "on letterboxd that has currently 4342 christmas movies listed... (of which I've apparently seen 237!! )

Maybe this list could help for this poll?

https://letterboxd.com/juliec/list/neve ... ovie-list/

[flip]

i saw that list, i was hoping it would remind me of xmas movies i could put on a list, but i think it takes such a liberal view of 'christmas movie' that it's not as useful as it seems. like i don't remember if there's a lot of christmas or not in forrest gump, clueless or mean girls, but i don't remember any of those films (and my memory is faint, i might be wrong) as 'christmas movies'.

[flip]

How about extending the list to a Top 25 or even a Top 50 flip?

let's change things to allow for 20-film ballots, and then this will be more of a real genre poll than anything xmas-themed we've done before. i don't really want to go beyond 20 for this poll though just because i've got a lot of other polls to tally at the same time (including the courtroom poll) and i'll burn out fast if this poll becomes huge.

[flip]

okay, rules have been updated! the highlights:

- you can list up to 20 films
- voting still in 2 tiers, equal size, if you want to rank your ballot (unranked is fine)
- if you list 6+ films, you can pick a #1 film that gets bonus points
- if you list 16-20 films, you can pick *two* #1 films to get bonus points

[wba]

i saw that list, i was hoping it would remind me of xmas movies i could put on a list, but i think it takes such a liberal view of 'christmas movie' that it's not as useful as it seems. like i don't remember if there's a lot of christmas or not in forrest gump, clueless or mean girls, but i don't remember any of those films (and my memory is faint, i might be wrong) as 'christmas movies'.

Yeah, I'll have to check those I've seen from the list as well, and I won't anything I don't remember as being distinctly christmas-y.
Maybe they included any film with a christmas (scene) in it?
Still a good way to seek out new films, I guess, and maybe remember some forgotten ones.

[wba]

okay, rules have been updated! the highlights:

- you can list up to 20 films
- voting still in 2 tiers, equal size, if you want to rank your ballot (unranked is fine)
- if you list 6+ films, you can pick a #1 film that gets bonus points
- if you list 16-20 films, you can pick *two* #1 films to get bonus points

GREAT new rules!!!!

[wba]

Including 3 Godfathers, on the assumption that Epiphany counts as part of Christmastide.

Spoiler!

Doen't Wayne arrive in town with the baby in hand at the end of the film exactly on Christmas (Eve)?

[Evelyn Library P.I.]

Including 3 Godfathers, on the assumption that Epiphany counts as part of Christmastide.

Spoiler!

Doen't Wayne arrive in town with the baby in hand at the end of the film exactly on Christmas (Eve)?

Quite possibly! I still think the narrative is best thought of as an analogy with the 3 Wise Men and the visit of the Magi, and thus not particularly about the day of the birth of Christ but about Epiphany, though I suppose it intermingles the two. In any case, I included it in my list in the belief that Epiphany is a part of Christmastide, so the result is the same

[flip]

and just to be sure everyone knows how i'm accounting for ballots, if a ballot appears unranked, i'll count it as unranked. if you want me to interpret your first-listed film as your #1, please either separate it from your main ballot, or otherwise indicate it is your top choice (put '#1' next to it, or bold it, or something like that). and if you intend your ballot to be tiered, put a blank line between the two tiers please!

i'd encourage people to separate out a #1 (or two #1s, for longer ballots) -- if you do, your ballot carries slightly more weight in the poll, and that will also mean the final result more closely reflects our community's preferences, and it gives a better chance to less-seen films, when they get the #1 bonus.

[DonkeyKongKillScreen]

1. The Silent Partner

The Shop Around the Corner
Quai des Orfèvres
The Curse of the Cat People
Le Monte-Charge
Cash on Demand
Christmas Evil
Comfort and Joy
Trading Places
Die Hard
Metropolitan
The Long Kiss Goodnight
The Ice Harvest

[Holymanm]

So... no debate yet on whether Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence is a Christmas movie?

[Monsieur Arkadin]

I watched it for Christmas one year with my family... needless to say it was not really the vibe we were aiming for.

[Holymanm]

you might have confused sakamoto ryuichi with bing crosby

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9kfdEyV3RQ

[ofrene]

can't recall much..

The Shop Around the Corner (Ernst Lubitsch, 1940)
Meet Me in St. Louis (Vincente Minnelli, 1944)
It's a Wonderful Life (Frank Capra, 1946)
All That Heaven Allows (Douglas Sirk, 1955)
The Apartment (Billy Wilder, 1960)
Carol (Todd Haynes, 2015)

The Curse of the Cat People (Robert Wise, Gunther von Fritsch, 1944)
3 Godfathers (John Ford, 1948)
Die Hard 2 (Renny Harlin, 1990)
Eyes Wide Shut (Stanley Kubrick, 1999)
Tangerine (Sean Baker, 2015)
Hope (Maria Sodahl, 2019)

gonna watch Remember the Night, Fanny and Alexander and rewatch Donovan’s Reef this christmas holiday

[rischka]

Tangerine (Sean Baker, 2015)

glad someone mentioned this. i guess i can also make a list

fanny & alexander
shop around the corner
remember the night
it's a wonderful life
3 godfathers
donovan's reef
tangerine
black christmas
'r xmas
carol

cash on demand and the silent partner are the grinchiest choices!!

[MrCarmady]

Remember the Night (Mitchell Leisen, 1940)
It's a Wonderful Life (Frank Capra, 1946)
Die Hard (John McTiernan, 1988)
Carol (Todd Haynes, 2015)
The Apartment (Billy Wilder, 1960) - it's more of a NYE movie, obviously, but it kinda counts, right?
Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (Shane Black, 2005)
All that Heaven Allows (Douglas Sirk, 1955)
Home Alone (Chris Columbus, 1990)
Eyes Wide Shut (Stanley Kubrick, 1999)
A Christmas Tale (Arnaud Desplechin, 2008)
Moonlighting (Jerzy Skolimowski, 1982)

[...]

Santa Claus (1898)
SCTV Staff Christmas Party
Young at Heart
Some of My Best Friends are...
Texas, Brooklyn, and Heaven
March of the Wooden Soldiers
Rare Exports
Tokyo Godfathers
The Unholy Three
Christmas USA

My Night at Maud's
Comfort and Joy
Morvern Callar
Shop Around the Corner
It's a Wonderful Life
Bell, Book, and Candle
Christmas Holiday
Mr Soft Touch
Tree of Wooden Clogs
Miracle of Morgan's Creek

[nrh]

meet me in st. louis
desk set
donovan's reef
the shop around the corner

[flip]

triple reminder:

• deadline for this poll is this evening! just a few hours to go!
• the rules were extended, you can now post ballots of up to 20 films!
• the polling will probably represent scfz tastes better if more of the ballots are ranked (easy to do, only two tiers allowed, plus one or two #1 bonus films), so if anyone might want to tier their ballot, there's still time!

[...]

Dang, I thought I still had tonight to finish, but I did a quick and ugly chop down so I'm at 20, but I don't have time to dig up the directors since I'm late already. Sorry Flip, you can skip my ballot if that's a big hassle. count it as ranked if you use it.

[flip]

you can skip my ballot if that's a big hassle. count it as ranked if you use it.

it's no problem, it won't be a big deal with short ballots like these

[Holymanm]

Okay I'll whip up a quick list here !

[Holymanm]

Tokyo Godfathers

just one vote for this! eh? qué?

[Holymanm]

Tokyo Godfathers (Satoshi Kon, 2003)
A Charlie Brown Christmas (Bill Melendez, 1965)
The Apartment (Billy Wilder, 1960)
Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence (Nagisa Ôshima, 1983)
Moonlighting (Jerzy Skolimowski, 1982)
A Christmas Story (Bob Clark, 1983)
The Shop Around the Corner (Ernst Lubitsch, 1940)
It's a Wonderful Life (Frank Capra, 1946)

Remember the Night (Mitchell Leisen, 1940)
All That Heaven Allows (Douglas Sirk, 1955)
Tangerine (Sean Baker, 2015)
Life of Brian (Terry Jones, 1979)
Christmas Inventory (Miguel Gomes, 2000)
Blackadder's Christmas Carol (Richard Boden, 1988)
Die Hard (John McTiernan, 1988)
Meet Me in St. Louis (Vincente Minnelli, 1944)
The Trailer Park Boys Xmas Special (Mike Clattenburg, 2004)

[MrCarmady]

Doesn't Christmas in July take place in, you know, July?

[Holymanm]

Didn't even think about it; I don't remember any of these old July/Miracle/34th/St. Louis movies... just know I gave them highish ratings. But yeah after looking it up that movie just uses it only as an expression

[flip]

(Flip are the top two movies still supposed to be part of tier 1?)

yes, so i think you need to move one film down a tier

[Holymanm]

Done!

[flip]

results are in, very clear #1, i'm posting every film that got a vote, i normally break ties (and outside the top ten there were many many ties) by letterboxd views (fewest views first), but this time i just guessed because looking up each film takes ages. my guesses probably weren't very good sometimes in the 50-100 range - if someone wants to do the tiebreaking more accurately, i can share the point breakdown with you!

also, if i recorded a vote for the wrong film (some ballots didn't include years or directors, so i had to guess sometimes), or if anything else seems wrong, please let me know! merry xmas/happy holidays!

results

1. The Shop Around the Corner (Ernst Lubitsch, 1940)
2. It's a Wonderful Life (Frank Capra, 1946)
3. Remember the Night (Mitchell Leisen, 1940)
4. Eyes Wide Shut (Stanley Kubrick, 1999)
5. Black Christmas (Bob Clark, 1974)
6. 3 Godfathers (John Ford, 1948)
7. Carol (Todd Haynes, 2015)
8. All That Heaven Allows (Douglas Sirk, 1955)
9. Die Hard (John McTiernan, 1988)
10. Donovan’s Reef (John Ford, 1963)
11. Fanny and Alexander (Ingmar Bergman, 1983)
12. Tangerine (Sean Baker, 2015)
13. The Apartment (Billy Wilder, 1960)
14. ’R Xmas (Abel Ferrara, 2001)
15. A Christmas Story (Bob Clark, 1983)
16. The Little Match Seller (James Williamson, 1902)
17. Meet Me in St. Louis (Vincente Minnelli, 1944)
18. Tokyo Godfathers (Satoshi Kon, 2003)
19. Lady in the Lake (Robert Montgomery, 1947)
20. Morvern Callar (Lynne Ramsay, 2002)
21. Bad Santa (Terry Zwigoff, 2003)
22. Moonlighting (Jerzy Skolimowski, 1982)
23. The Silent Partner (Daryl Duke, 1978)
24. The Nightmare Before Christmas (Henry Selick, 1993)
25. A Charlie Brown Christmas (Bill Melendez, 1965)
26. The Muppet Christmas Carol (Jack Hannah, 1992)
27. Christmas USA(Gregory Markopoulos, 1949)
28. Christmas Holiday (Robert Siodmak, 1944)
29. Christmas Inventory (Miguel Gomes, 2000)
30. Santa Claus (George Albert Smith, 1898)
31. A Christmas Tale (Arnaud Desplechin, 2008)
32. Toy Tinkers (Jack Hannah, 1949)
33. Die Hard 2 (Renny Harlin, 1990)
34. The Snowman (Dianne Jackson, 1982)
35. The Man from Majorca (Bo Widerberg, 1984)
36. Lady on a Train (Charles David, 1945)
37. The Curse of the Cat People (Robert Wise/Gunther von Fritsch, 1944))
38. Christmas in Connecticut (Peter Godfrey, 1945)
39. Comfort and Joy (Bill Forsyth, 1984)
40. Jingle All the Way (Brian Levant, 1996)
41. Holiday Inn (Mark Sandrich, 1942)
42. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (Shane Black, 2005)
43. Life of Brian (Terry Jones, 1979)
44. Home Alone (Chris Columbus, 1990)
45. Weihnacht (Roland Klick, 1963)
46. Letters from My Windmill (Marcel Pagnol, 1954)
47. SCTV Staff Christmas Party (John Blanchard, 1981)
48. Some of My Best Friends Are… (Mervyn Nelson, 1971)
49. The Assassination of Pere Noel (Christian-Jaque, 1941)
50. 9/64: O Christmas Tree (Kurt Kren, 1964)
51. Texas, Brooklyn and Heaven (William Castle, 1948)
52. The Unholy Three (Jack Conway, 1930)
53. Bachelor Mother (Garson Kanin, 1939)
54. Young at Heart (Gordon Douglas, 1955)
55. The Christmas Dream (George Meiles, 1900)
56. The Gospel According to St Matthew (Pier Paolo Pasolini, 1964)
57. Rare Exports (Jalmari Helander, 2010)
58. Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence (Nagisa Oshima, 1983)
59. My Night at Maud's (Eric Rohmer, 1969)
60. Pluto's Christmas Tree (Jack Hannah, 1952)
61. The Night Before Christmas (Joseph Barbera/William Hanna/Rudolf Ising , 1941)
62. Babes in Toyland (Charley Rogers/Gus Meins, 1934)
63. Christmas at Camp 119 (Pietro Francisci, 1948)
64. Le Monte-Charge (Marcel Bluwal, 1962)
65. I Wouldn't Be in Your Shoes! (William Nigh, 1948)
66. Cash on Demand (Quentin Lawrence, 1961)
67. Una pistola per Ringo / A Pistol for Ringo (Duccio Tessari, 1965)
68. Merlusse (Marcel Pagnol, 1935)
69. Desk Set (Walter Lang, 1957)
70. Christmas Evil (Lewis Jackson, 1980)
71. Santa, The Fascist Years (Bill Plympton, 2008)
72. The Little Match Girl (Jean Renoir, 1928)
73. The Day of the Beast (Alex de la Iglesia, 1995)
74. Quai des Orfevres (Henri-Georges Clouzot, 1947)
75. How the Grinch Stole Christmas (Chuck Jones, 1966)
76. Scrooge (Brian Desmond Hurst, 1951)
77. Metropolitan (Whit Stillman, 1990)
78. The Ice Harvest (Harold Ramis, 2005)
79. The Long Kiss Goodnight (Renny Harlin, 1996)
80. Christmas Vacation (Jeremiah Chechik, 1989)
81. Trading Places (John Landis, 1983)
82. Symphonie Pastorale (Jean Delannoy, 1946)
83. The Night Before Christmas (Edwin S. Porter, 1905)
84. Hope (Maria Sodahl, 2019)
85. Mr Soft Touch (Gordon Douglas, 1949)
86. Gasman (Lynne Ramsay, 1998)
87. The Tree of Wooden Clogs (Ermanno Olmi, 1978)
88. Happy Christmas (Joe Swanberg, 2014)
89. Big Business (Leo McCarey/James W. Horne, 1929)
90. Somewhere in Dreamland (Dave Fleischer, 1936)
91. 8 Women (Francois Ozon, 2002)
92. Bell Book and Candle (Richard Quine, 1958)
93. The Miracle of Morgan’s Creek (Preston Sturges, 1944)
94. We're No Angels (Michael Curtiz, 1955)
95. Italian for Beginners (Lone Scherfig, 2000)
96. The Family Man (Brett Ratner, 2000)
97. The Christmas Chronicles (Clay Kaytis, 2018)
98. Reindeer Games (John Frankenheimer, 2000)
99. Blackadder’s Christmas Carol (Richard Boden, 1988)
100. Miracle on 34th Street (George Seaton, 1947)
101. White Christmas (Michael Curtiz, 1954)
102. The Star Wars Holiday Special (Steve Binder/David Acomba, 1978)
103. The Trailer Park Boys Xmas Special (Mike Clattenburg, 2004)
104. The Spirit of Christmas (Trey Parker/Matt Stone, 1995)
105. Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (Chris Columbus, 1992)
106. The City of Lost Children (Jean-Pierre Jeunet/Marc Caro, 1995)
107. Edward Scissorhands (Tim Burton, 1990)
108. Navidad (Sebastian Lelio, 2009)

[flip]

i have posted this to letterbox, all 106 films!

https://letterboxd.com/fliptrotsky/list ... poll-2020/