The winter holiday season can be a time of gift giving, family gathering and also movie watching. People in America have their favorite movies for the holiday, but here are the top ten holiday movies chosen by CHS students in a recent poll.

1: Home Alone
On the top of the list is “Home Alone.” “Home Alone” stars Macaulay Culkin, Joe Pesci, and Daniel Stern. 9-year-old Kevin McCallister (Culkin) accidently gets left behind when his family leaves for Christmas Vacation. Now it is his job to fend off the robbers (Stern and Pesci) who try to take over his house. The humor of the plot comes from Kevin’s trickiness and the robbers’ dumbness. This is a must-see with friends or family when you want to get a kick out of this upcoming Christmas and joyful holiday season.

2: Elf
“Elf”, starring the amazing cast of Will Ferrell, Zooey Deschanel, and James Caan.,  comes in second. Buddy (Ferrell), who is actually human, accidently winds up in the North Pole and is raised by elves. One winter, he decided to visit his real father (Caan) in New York City. While he is there, he meets a girl who plays an elf in a department store (Deschannel), and he falls in love with her. His father does not appreciate Buddy as his son. Can Buddy bring the Christmas spirit back to his father and save Christmas? This funny movie shows how you can bring your family together once and for all. This is a good Christmas movie if you want to spice up your holiday mood.

3: The Polar Express
Number three is “The Polar Express.” This animated movie stars the voice of Tom Hanks, who plays many characters in the movie. On the night before Christmas, a young boy, who is struggling with whether he still believes in Santa, is fast asleep when all of a sudden, out of nowhere, a magical train comes up right in front of his house.  The curious boy boards the train that is headed for the North Pole to meet Santa. In the train, he makes some friends. Although this movie does not have a lot of humor in it, it is a nostalgic and tender look at belief in the real meaning of the holiday season that could surely shed some happiness into your holiday season.

4: Dr. Suess’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas
Next up is the newer version of “Dr. Seuss’ How The Grinch Stole Christmas.” The movie stars the always funny Jim Carrey and Taylor Momsen. Christmas is always a big deal for the citizens in Whoville, except for the Grinch (Carrey), who lives alone, and has a heart “two sizes too small.” The Grinch always ruins Christmas for the Whos, until little Cindy Lou (Momsen) decides to help the Grinch get his Christmas spirit back. It shows how no one can miss the fun of Christmas. I recommend this to share with your family members who do not have any Christmas spirit.

5: It’s a Wonderful Life
In the middle of the list, is the old classic “It’s a Wonderful Life,” starring James Stewart and Donna Reed. George (Stewart) is an adventurous  young man who wants to tour the world, but things go bad for him. When his father dies, George gives up his dreams in order to stay home and run his father’s bank. But he has problems in the bank and is wondering if he should have ever been born. An angel comes to show him what life would really be like without him. This movie shows us just how much each person influences others even when he or she does not think he or she does, and reminds us that life is really good despite all our problems This is a must-see every Christmas season.

6: A Christmas Story
Number six is the 1980’s “A Christmas Story.” The wonderful cast includes Peter Billingsley, Darren McGavin and Melinda Dillon. Ralphie (Billingsley), who is an elementary school kid, is obsessed with a toy BB gun and he begs his parents, teacher, and Santa Claus for it. But they all say the same thing: “you will shoot your eyes out.” This movie shows a lot of the post- WWII lifestyle with a lot of humor. This is just a classic your family cannot afford to pass up this coming holiday season.

7: Christmas Vacation
Lucky number seven is National Lampoon’s “Christmas Vacation.” The movie features Chevy Chase. Clark Griswold (Chase) wants to have the perfect Christmas with his family, but he ends up with his whole extended family at his house. On top of that, he is eagerly awaiting for a Christmas bonus from his boss so he can build his dream swimming pool. This movie features all the humor and laughs that people need for the holidays. A hilarious look at overdoing the holidays, this movie is recommended for kids over 13 because of language and some partial nudity.

8: Four Christmases
Number eight is “Four Christmases.” This movie stars Vince Vaughn and Reese Witherspoon. Brad (Vaughn) and Kate (Witherspoon) decide to never get married because both their parents are divorced. They plan to spend their Christmas on vacation, but that plan is delayed and they are forced to celebrate four Christmases with each of their parents all in one day. This movie contains more humor than you would have ever imagined and it shows why you should start a family and not let outside factors ruin your relationship. It is recommended for kids older than 13 because it contains some inappropriate actions.

9: Miracle on 34th Street
Number nine is “Miracle on 34th Street.” This classic movie stars Edmund Gwenn, Maureen O’Hara and a very young Natalie Wood. It is Christmas season again and Macy Department store has just hired Kris Kringle (Gwenn) as the new Santa Claus. Kris claims that he is the real Santa Claus, and that is a problem for his boss, Doris Walker (O’Hara), who does not want her daughter to believe in Santa Claus. Things go from bad to worse when Kris is declared insane and is put on trial to see if there is really a Santa Claus. This 1947 classic Christmas movie lets kids use their imagination tries to capture the magic and wonder of Christmas.  I recommend it to everyone on Christmas.

10: Jingle All The Way
Last, but not least, it is the hilarious “Jingle All The Way.” This cast stars Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sinbad. Howard Langston (Schwarzenegger) has just promised his son a Turbo Man at the last minute before Christmas, not knowing that it is the hottest toy of the season. Along the way, he meets this overly stressed out mailman (Sinbad) who is also tries to get a Turbo Man. This movie is packed with enough laughter to last for a whole year and warns how you should never do last minute shopping. Also, it is a good movie for anyone who likes to laugh a lot.