The Best Classic Movies And T.V. To Watch With Your Family This Post-Christmas Week

 The Federalist

"Here is your ultimate guide to the best old-school films and T.V. series to enjoy in the days between Christmas and New Year’s."

"Binge-watching is a habit that’s usually good to avoid, especially when watching on your own. However, during the week after Christmas and before New Year’s — in which so many families find themselves sandwiched between big gatherings or parties and maybe even forgetting what day it is — spending a little extra time together in front of the silver screen with popcorn and in pajamas is to be expected, and can even prove restful.

"The key to curating the perfect post-Christmas movie marathon experience, however, is knowing how to avoid all the streaming service slop so many platforms push on kids and parents this time of year. Whether you’re just watching one episode, hosting a double feature, or looking for new marathon material that isn’t watching The Lord of the Rings or Star Wars again, here is your ultimate guide to the best old-school films and T.V. series to watch with your family this holiday week.

Old Movies

"Christmas movies like Home Alone or Elf — while delightful and sure to remain classics for generations to come — are often selected by families during the holiday season to the neglect of equally as delightful and arguably more timeless movies from the golden age (or thereabouts) of film. And yes, this era has far more to offer than Irving Berlin’s White

Christmas or the ever-endearing It’s A Wonderful Life. This week is the perfect time to explore these holiday-adjacent movies you may have never heard of and develop a deeper appreciation for eras gone by — in which conservative values and familial sacrifice so often won the day.

Black-and-White

"My siblings and I used to protest when our mom put on black-and-white movies, but I’m so glad she helped us appreciate the classics in spite of ourselves. My first recommendation is one of my all-time favorites, Holiday Inn (1942), starring Bing Crosby, Fred Astaire, and Virginia Dale. This movie about a hotel that’s only open on holidays has it all: humor, a love triangle, and iconic song and dance numbers — including Astaire’s famous Independence Day firecracker tap routine. (Parent disclaimer: this movie has come under fire for featuring a blackface scene. However, the song performed is in celebration of Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation, and, while you may decide to skip this part, resist the leftist urge to fully cancel classics just because certain scenes run against modern-day “political correctness.”)" . . .

"Starring a young Jimmy Stewart and Margaret Sullivan, The Shop Around the Corner (1940) tells the story of two rival shop workers who don’t know they are each other’s anonymous pen pal significant other."  If this is familiar to you, it was remade in recent years with Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan and titled "You've Got Mail".