While other cinephiles can continue their long debate of what constitutes the best holiday movie, we’ve decided to share our guilty pleasures: Netflix holiday movies that are so bad, they’re magical.
“A Christmas Prince” (1, 2 and 3)
As Daily reporters, we instantly fell in love with this journalist holiday romance. Viewers follow the unexpected relationship between Prince Richard (Ben Lamb) of the fictional nation Aldovia and undercover journalist Amber (Rose McIver), who is trying to get the inside scoop on the royal family. Amber suffers deeply from main character syndrome, making it easy to laugh at her dialogue and actions. While the entire trilogy of films follows very predictable tropes, the movies are ever so heartwarming and binge-worthy every holiday season. You’ll find yourself very invested in the state of Aldovia and, of course, Amber and Prince Richard.
“The Princess Switch” (1, 2 and 3)
There is no better word to describe these movies than “camp.” Vanessa Hudgens steals the show in “The Princess Switch” — quite literally, since, by the third film, she is playing three different characters: Stacy De Novo, Duchess Margaret Delacourt and Lady Fiona Pembroke. The romantic comedy is a retelling of Mark Twain’s “The Prince and the Pauper” and follows two lookalikes — a princess and a baker from Chicago — who switch places. The fun continues throughout the trilogy as they add a third evil Hudgens character into the mix. The movies embrace a gleeful absurdity with over-the-top plotlines, improbable character swaps and delightful chaos. The holiday cheer makes its cheesy clichés a campy, feel-good escape that’s so ridiculous it becomes irresistibly entertaining.
“Holidate” (2020)
Despite its nonsensical, cliched premise, or maybe because of it, “Holidate” is a delight. Emma Roberts and Luke Bracey are charming and charismatic as two ordinary people who agree to be each other’s “holidate” to avoid nagging about their perpetual singleton status. Apparently, in this universe, one is expected to have a date for all holidays, from Mother’s Day to Fourth of July. Over the course of a year of increasingly absurd holiday celebrations, the two catch feelings (surprise!). While “Holidate” doesn’t break the mold, it is legitimately funny, and it earns bonus points for being set in Chicago. And we’re holding space for Kristin Chenoweth’s feature as Roberts’ hot aunt.
“The Knight Before Christmas” (2019)
Rounding out this list with another Vanessa Hudgens Christmas movie, “The Knight Before Christmas” is a movie whose title is infinitely more clever than the actual plot. Hudgens stars as a jaded science teacher named Brooke, who helps a time-travelling medieval knight acclimate to the modern world. If he doesn’t threaten to behead your ex-boyfriend at a diner for cheating on you, we don’t want him! Our favorite part is when Madison, Brooke’s sister, references their parents’ trip to Aldovia. There exists a Vanessa Hudgens Christmas movie cinematic universe?! All in all, “The Knight Before Christmas” is the kind of movie you will have fun laughing at, if not with.
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