10 underrated Christmas movies that you’ve probably never watched

It’s holiday movie season and every year there seems to be a deluge of new Christmas films coming from Hallmark and Netflix. But for many of us, it’s also the time of year to visit some classic favorites like It’s A Wonderful LifeOr Christmas Story. What if you are looking for something different but the same movie warmth? Get cozy in your favorite sweater and enjoy these classics streaming on HBO Max and Criterion Channel. You can also rent them on digital platforms.

From sparkling romantic comedies to classic film noir to obscure animated family films, there’s sure to be something for everyone on this list whether they’ve been naughty or nice.

Here are 10 less-known Christmas movies that you can watch this holiday season on streaming sites.

The Bachelor Mother

Warner Bros. Pictures

Polly Parrish (Ginger Rogers), a temporary holiday worker, receives a notice of dismissal from John B. Merlin and Son just days before Christmas. When she is returning home, she notices a mother leaving her baby at the orphanage’s steps and decides that it would be better to leave the baby there than deal with the cold. Later, the owner’s son David Merlin (David Niven) mistakenly believes that Polly is an unwed mother. After getting her job back, he falls in love. Meanwhile his father believes David is the father of Polly’s child. Charming performances make this hilarious screwball comedy as bubbly and delicious as a bottle of champagne.

The Bachelor MotherAvailable to Rent Amazon, ApplePlease see the following: Other rental services.

Keep Your Eyes on the Night

Image by Paramount Pictures

Written by Preston Sturges and directed by Mitchell Leisen, this romantic comedy stars Barbara Stanwyck and Fred MacMurray — four years before their iconic pairing in Double Indemnity. Lee Leander (Stanwyck) is arrested for stealing a bracelet, but her trial is delayed until after Christmas on technicality because District Attorney Jack Sargeant (MacMurray) doesn’t want a jury filled with holiday cheer. However, he also doesn’t want her to spend Christmas Eve in jail. En route to Lee’s estranged mother, the two find themselves stranded in rural Pennsylvania, and of course, falling in love. The film is a perfect balance between holiday cheer and end-of-the year sadness.

Keep Your Eyes on the NightAvailable to Cable Subscribers on TCM VideoAnd Spectrum OnDemand.

Lady in the Lake

MGM Image

Robert Montgomery, based on Raymond Chandler’s novel, plays the part of Phillip Marlowe, a Los Angeles private detective. He also directs the movie. Marlowe is the only camera that was used for almost the entire film. The characters talk directly to the camera. Montgomery’s Marlowe is mostly heard, his face only seen occasionally as a reflection in a mirror. Adrienne Fromsett, an editor and publisher, hires Marlowe just days before Christmas. He finds himself caught up in a bizarre mystery that involves beautiful but devious women as well as unending greed, coldblooded murder, and even a lot of money. While the camera gimmick can get a little nauseating at times, there isn’t really anything else quite like it.

Lady In The LakeAvailable to Cable Subscribers on Spectrum OnDemandTo rent or buy Amazon, Apple, VuduPlease see the following: Other rental services.

It happened on 5th Avenue

Warner Bros. Pictures

Original release in the same year.Miracle on 34th Street, this Roy Del Ruth’s ensemble comedy follows the houseless Aloysius T. McKeever (Victor Moore), who takes up residence every Christmas season in the boarded-up Fifth Avenue mansion of the second richest man in the world (Charles Ruggles) while he’s away on vacation. Ex-G.I. McKeever is a goodhearted man who gets more than what he expected. Jim Bullock (Don DeFore), his war buddies Whitey (Alan Hale, Jr.) and Hank (Edward Ryan) and their families, plus 18-year-old Trudy “Smith” (Gale Storm) share the mansion with him. Although it directly addresses the post-WWII housing crisis, Del Ruth’s interrogation of how America fails its veterans still resonates today.

It happened on 5th AvenueAvailable to stream online HBO Max.

Holiday Affair (1949)

Warner Bros. Pictures

Brimming with holiday cheer, Robert Mitchum, cast against type in order to rehabilitate his image following a marijuana bust, oozes charm as a bohemian seasonal sales clerk who romances Janet Leigh’s war widowed single mother. When Connie Leigh, a comparison shopping clerk, accidentally loses her job when she purchases a toy train for Mitchum (Leigh), Further complicating the situation are Connie’s wet blanket boyfriend Carl (Wendell Corey), and her precocious song Timmy (Gordon Gebert), who thinks the train is a present for him. Leigh and Mitchum are a match made in heaven. Their first kiss was as hot as roasting chestnuts.

Holiday AffairCan be streamed on HBO Max.

Susan Slept here

Warner Bros. Pictures

Shot in glorious Technicolor, Susan Slept hereIt is one those plots that can only be understood in classic movies. Dick Powell (in his last film role) stars as Mark Christopher, a Hollywood screenwriter suffering from writer’s block after winning an Academy Award. On Christmas Eve his buddy, Vice Squad Sergeant Sam Hanlon brings 17-year-old vagrant Susan Landis (a buoyant Debbie Reynolds) to his luxurious bachelor pad so she doesn’t have to spend the night alone in jail. Although it does spark an idea for a juvenile delinquency film, the situation also puts Mark in a tight spot with his longtime fiancée Isabella (a glamorous Anne Francis). Meanwhile Glenda Farrell as Mark’s boozing secretary Maude nearly runs away with the whole movie.

Susan Slumbers HereAvailable to stream online HBO Max.

Bell, Book and Candle

Columbia Pictures

The coolest Christmas movie is this Midcentury Fantasy Romance. Kim Novak plays Gillian (a Greenwich Village dweller witch turned-art dealer), whose holiday blues can be cured by falling in love with Shep (Jimmy Stewart). On Christmas Eve, Shep and his fiancée Merle (Janice Rule) visit the Zodiac Club, where they run into Gillian, her aunt Queenie (Elsa Lanchester), and her bongo-playing warlock brother (Jack Lemmon). Gillian, a Siamese cat and familiar Pyewacket uses to love Shep. However, eventually Gillian learns that human love isn’t quite that simple.

Bell, Book and CandleAvailable to Cable Subscribers on TCM Video.

Plácido

Image: The Criterion Collection

In this pitch-black Spanish comedy from director Luis García Berlanga, a group of pious women in a small provincial town organize a Christmas campaign featuring the motto “Feed a poor man at your table.” As the film progresses the rich people of the town compete to show off the poor person they helped, while barely hiding their disgust for them. At the center of the campaign is Plácido, a poor man who is dragged from one activity to another and thus is unable to make the payments on his newly acquired motorcycle. ‘Tis the season for goodwill towards man, but this film serves to remind the privileged that many people struggle all year long and performative charity does little more than soothe their own consciences.

PlácidoYou can stream the video on Criterion Channel.

Nestor the Long-Eared Christmas Donkey

Image: Warner Bros. Home Video

Produced by Rankin/Bass, this forgotten ’70s special is the most depressing of them all. This song is inspired by Gene Autry’s original. It tells the story of Nestor, a donkey who has unusually long ears and lived through the Roman Empire. Nestor is taken by his village and forced to flee with his mother, but his mother died protecting Nestor against a bitter winter. Nestor later meets a child who tells Nestor he’s needed in Bethlehem. Nestor’s long ears allow him to guide Mary and Joseph through the sand storm. Very similar. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, it’s a story of an outcast who learns his differences are okay only once they prove helpful to others. Fa la la la la.

Nestor the Long-Eared Christmas DonkeyAvailable to stream online fuboTVAnd AMC Plus

The silent partner

Lionsgate Image

Curtis Hanson was the author of this script, which would become one of the most iconic Christmas movies. L.A. Confidential, The silent partnerFollow Miles, a bank teller who is unable to remember his password. He discovers that the bank has been robbed by an unidentified man dressed up as Santa Claus. He hides cash and decides that instead of telling his bosses, it is easier to report the missing money as lost when the actual robbery occurs. When Harry Reikle, a psychopath, discovers the plan, Miles becomes obsessed and is determined to take all of the cash. This film is dark and bloody. It really shows that greed is what drives the season.

The silent partnerYou can stream it on KanopyOr rent most digital platforms