From Bruce Willis action blockbusters to Will Ferrell comedic romps, figuring out where to begin with Christmas movies can leave your tinsel tangled in a hurry.

“Sometimes they lean more cynical with ‘Bad Santa,’ or more inspirational with ‘Miracle on 34th Street’,” said Adam Paul, assistant professor of film at UNLV. “But they all seem to tie back to the theme of hope. These movies are an annual reminder to be better, and that we can overcome what’s in front of us.”

Paul has seen his fair share of movie sets, spending many years working on Los Angeles studio lots. He teaches screen acting, voice over, and motion capture at UNLV’s Department of Film. He’s also the student experience and outreach coordinator, which sees him accompany students to the Sundance and Cannes film festivals yearly.

“There’s no way to build the artist or storyteller responsible for making these movies without having a learned process that’s got some friction,” he said. “We learn as we grow, mistakes and all, and that’s where we can really zero-in on the wholesome themes found in these seasonal films that really resonate with audiences.”

Do other holidays have a chance at matching the theatrical prominence of Christmas? Is it right to watch these movies out of season? Is Die Hard a Christmas movie? Before we yank out the wrapping paper and put a bow on this story, Paul’s going to help stuff our stockings full of Christmas movie know-how.

Why is there such fascination with Christmas movies?

I think we live in a time where there’s real value in stories rooted in hope and in something beyond the material world we’re forced to live in. 

Our culture is materialist, and Christmas is a time where it’s mandated that gifts are given. The business world makes its nut during this time. It’s a very powerful economic, social, spiritual, and cultural holiday. And so, of course it will include media, such as television and film. The power of entertainment and film checks all of those boxes and transcends.

How big is the market for Christmas movies?

Big enough for us to see it on our televisions all the time. All of media leans into it. The news stations commonly have decorations up, Saturday Night Live decorates its set, and programming across many channels gets some holiday flair.

There’s a great appetite. For more recent commercial films, “Spirited” is a phenomenal movie that Apple TV put out with Will Ferrell and Ryan Reynolds. This is also just a great time to see movies, as well, with kids off from school and time off from work, so the appetite in America is unending.

The Hallmark Channel, in particular, has made a name for itself on the feel-good business of this time of year. According to cinema data analyst Stephen Follows, Hallmark has produced an average of 12 holiday movies per year since 2003, and that’s significant for one outlet. The channel has a big following for the recurring stars and the sappy stories. Christmas has been an obvious connector for Hallmark’s brand. 

There’s joy in the perceived cheesiness of some of its movies. There’s something cozy and childlike about them that we can plug into pretty quickly when we’re taking shelter from the cold. It ties back to hope, and Hallmark understands its audience. Its products and movies are trying to make you feel better about your birthday, losses, holidays, and anything else. 

Do other holidays have similar market potential?

They have pull in genre, like horror – “My Bloody Valentine” and the like. But unless it’s tied economically the way Christmas is in the west, I don’t know that it’s much of a winner as far as universal appeal. 

I think it’s economics and the ability of the media to capitalize on the themes, which everybody can relate to, or find appealing. Hope, family, struggling to overcome an obstacle – they allow storytellers to cover different versions of a very fundamental hero’s journey based on wholesome values. 

That coexistence of spirituality and materialistic goods is forever attractive. We’re in the middle of shopping for the holidays, making sure everything’s perfect, and it makes us all a little bit crazy. It’s a great time to remind people that there is a higher goal to all of this running around. Which I think “A Charlie Brown Christmas” was really great at pointing out.

What makes a good holiday movie?

The essentials are family, hope, and nostalgia. Something that reminds us of our own experiences around this time of the year. It’s a memorable time because the schools give everybody time off. There are also the tropes of the holiday, which includes a little magic and an annual break from the hustle of everyday life. That gives this time of year a lot of value to people, and tends to make up the best films. 

Romance also helps, as does redemption. George Bailey in “It’s a Wonderful Life” goes dark for a little bit because of the hurdles of life. But then he finds this deeper meaning that lifts him above that common human struggle that everybody’s felt on some level.

The hero’s journey is really the foundational template for most western storytelling. Even when the screenwriters deny it, there’s some of that there. The fundamentals of a good movie is that someone wants something and can’t get it. And then it’s a story about how they get past it. 

To me, it’s very similar to holiday films. They’re centered around a day where we’re focused on those important human reminders that we’re more than our troubles, and there’s the potential for all of us to rise above that and find joy.

Top Christmas movies?

“The Family Stone” is a beautiful story. Well-written with a great cast. It’s about a messy family, which makes it relatable. There is an impending death in that story that casts a shadow over the whole plot, and how the family rises above that shadow is really inspiring.

“Elf” is another one of my favorites. It’s brilliant. The director, Jon Favreau, knew he wanted to lean into those Rankin and Bass stop-motion animation stories that had Burl Ives as a talking Snowman, along with penguins and reindeer that talked, cried, and laughed. And this idea of live-action elves from the North Pole is something that nobody had really touched before, in addition to playing it in the same style as those animated features. The North Pole is depicted as this fantasy place where those animated elements come to life. 

And the comedy in “Elf” is based on an unlikely romance, along with family drama – a lost father and a son coming together. It’s a world where the true meaning of Christmas is brought to life and lived every day. All coming into contact with New York City, the bustle of Manhattan, and the publishing world. 

And then there’s a unique representation of Santa in that film. He is more of a working class Santa whose sleigh doesn’t work all the time, and is under the gun trying to make all of his deliveries. Even he’s relatable, which I think is a neat trick. Kids and their families can both relate – it’s a good one.

Is “Die Hard” a Christmas movie? 

A lot of people understandably say it absolutely is, and I’m one of them. It’s the story of a dad who is struggling to get home to his family on Christmas.

Is it OK to watch Christmas movies outside of the season?

​​I like guardrails and limits. I like when it’s Christmas time and the music comes on, and all of the media gets into it with decorations and theming. I don’t necessarily want to spoil that for the rest of the year. 

But I know people who cheer themselves up with Christmas movies or music when they’re not feeling well or in low spirits because they’re uplifting. The themes take the pressure off of being human. They allow us to recognize what we have in common. And when we can do that, whether it’s a movie or song that motivates us, it certainly doesn’t hurt to be reminded of it.

There aren’t a lot of narrative films that spur people toward action. And being kind is an action. Filmmakers want audiences to have a satisfying emotional journey that puts them in an empathetic space. Maybe the holiday approach to storytelling is more of a sledgehammer instead of a scalpel, but it still motivates people toward an action that no one can deny is the highest value: kindness.