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Holly, jolly nostalgia, snow scenes, iconic one-liners and Santa-worthy drinks – everything you need for a Christmassy night in.
For all the additional holiday labour – gift ideation and execution, logistical plans, the back-to-back calendar, small talk and memory teasers (is your cousin’s girlfriend Laura or Lauren?) – your reward is a whole film genre you can enjoy but once a year. Watching, or rather, rewatching, Christmas classics is a tradition in itself.
So, whether you’re a purist wanting merriment and Christmas miracles only, or you prefer a more dramatic storyline, we’ve narrowed it down to the six best seasonal films to watch and the perfect drinks to sip with them.
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1. Holidate and a fruity premix
Cliché, predictable, crass and littered with vulgar jokes – these traits come off more endearing in this film than on your Uncle Barry. After a horrible Christmas, two strangers agree to become each other’s “holidate” to avoid humiliation and obligation at each and every holiday. And yes, you get to see them at all the holidays – St. Patrick’s Day, Cinco de Mayo, Halloween… To borrow a line from the movie, “Drink?” “Immediately”.
Hard Fizz Vodka Pineapple accompanies this movie perfectly, smoothing out the cringe and keeping things light. It’s the kind of fizzy drink with real fruit flavour and tongue-tingling taste. As a nod to Australian actor Luke Bracey who has the romantic lead in Holidate, ocker accent and all, Hard Fizz is owned by Australian music producer DJ Fisher and a bunch of other Aussie who-lebrities. Ripper. Watch it with your own situationship and see what happens.
Watch it on: Netflix
2. Last Christmas and a tropical banger
There’s a lot going on in this seemingly surface-level holiday rom-com: organ transplant, homelessness, George Michael, penance, queerness, immigrant family dynamics, Brexit and maybe even Munchausen syndrome by proxy… and that’s not even the big one. Emilia Clarke does wear an elf suit for 90% of the film and meets a perfect guy, so it is definitely a Christmas film. Quite a good one.
It’s co-written by Christmas-movie royalty Emma Thompson, who’s brilliant and hilarious as Clarke’s Yugolsav mother. A film with so many themes can handle one more – like fresh, summer-inspired drinks. Gage Roads Yeah Buoy Non Alcoholic XPA Can is low in alcohol but high in flavour. It’s refreshing and more-ish and goes great with a gingerbread house (they don’t save, best to eat it as soon as you finish building it).
Watch it on: Netflix
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3. Love Actually and a dessert-themed punch
Director Richard Curtis smashed it out of the park when he made Love Actually in 2003. It set a new standard in holiday cinema with its ’00s-hot cast, British humour and truly touching message. And despite already seeing it umpteen times, we still love to rewatch it every year, even if we do see it a little differently now. That’s tradition for you.
This year, your screening (and possible tear-down) deserves an audience, and something to go with all the Christmas action in the film. The Pavlova Punch is just the thing. Fluffy, foamy, fruity and just as visually appealing as the dessert it mimics. You’ll want fresh strawberries, big kiwis, nice Earl Tea, but most importantly, a reliable rum. Buckeye Classic Silver Rum gets our tick – it’s smooth, warm and well-priced.
Watch it on: Prime, Binge, Paramount+ or Stan
4. Tangerine and a fruit-enhanced hazy
A Christmas film for anyone done with the category’s usual overly jolly, “all works out in the end” narratives, Tangerine follows a trans sex-worker on a war path to find her cheating pimp boyfriend. See? Nothing twee about Tangerine. Sin-dee is fresh out of jail when she receives the news, and spends Christmas Eve hunting Los Angeles to find the offending boyfriend and his new flame, dragging her reluctant bestie Alexandra along for the ride.
Raw, gritty but vibrant and ultimately heart-warming, it’s an exploration of chosen families and the marginalised. It was also shot entirely on three adapted iPhone5s and was critically acclaimed when it hit the indie film festivals in 2015. A full-on film deserves a full-on drink, so Mountain Culture Juice Trip is it. A mouth party, erupting with buzz and brightness. Bold, but not bitter. Like Sin-dee.
Watch it on: Prime
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5. The Holiday and some good fizz
A Nancy Meyers’ ribbon-wrapped rom-com that’s all meet-cutes, dream houses and good feelings. So, stick the air-con on, turn the twinkle lights on, pour a glass of bubbles and forget all about your in-laws’ drama, or the “big” gift that still hasn’t arrived. It’s The Holiday time. Highlights: Kate Winslet perfectly summarising why we get sucked into the bad boys (or girls), Jack Black being a great date, Jude Law’s tan, and everyone’s jobs: journalist, book editor, film composer, movie trailer producer. Ah, Hollywood.
Stress-free, aesthetically delicious, and together with a packet of good potato chips and Taittinger Brut Reserve Champagne NV in your glass, you’ll be able to taste the escapism; toasty, delicate, fruity escapism.
Watch it on: Disney+
6. Die Hard and a smooth sipper
Whether this 1988 Bruce Willis vehicle is a Christmas movie or not is still up for debate, but either way, Die Hard is a holiday tradition. This is one to watch this with your parents and siblings. It’s Christmas Eve and John McClane (Willis) is trying to get back to his family, but the villainous mastermind Hans Gruber gets in his way.
Explosions, guns and an office Christmas party – you want to drink something with oomph. Hennessy V.S Cognac (actually really smooth and delicious) is just the thing. Rich. Warming. Robust. Commanding. Serve it neat, on the rocks, or if you’re feeling decadent, in a Club Cocktail with a cherry and slice of pineapple on the side, ‘80s style. “Now I have a machine gun. Ho ho ho.”
Watch it on: Disney+
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