Christmas is looking a little different this year. With only three households being allowed to mix over the festive period, it might be the case that you can’t see everyone you usually would.
But, that doesn’t mean that we can’t still be together this Christmas - what better way to get together virtually than organising a watch along party with your family - putting on a good film, then chatting along on WhatsApp, Messenger, or Zoom. We’ve pulled together some festive films rated U - 12 that are long distance or separation themed - so no matter where you are in the world, you can connect over a film.
The Grinch
Mild slapstick, very mild bad language
The Grinch is a US animated comedy in which a grumpy creature plots to steal Christmas.
Violence
There are a number of comic slapstick incidents, as well as some brief and swiftly resolved moments of threat.
Language
Occasional very mild bad language includes uses of 'jeez' and 'heck'.
There is an implied drug reference when a man says, 'I don't know what's in this cake, but I think I just saw Santa Claus!'.
The Shop Around The Corner
Contains no material likely to offend or harm
The Shop Around The Corner is a 1940 romantic drama in which a man and woman unknowingly exchange letters with each other whilst working in the same shop.
There is an implied attempted suicide by a store owner after learning of his wife's apparent infidelity, with the sound of a gunshot off screen. However, the character returns to health and is unharmed.
Although neither glamorised or promoted, there are frequent scenes in which characters smoke cigarettes or cigars. In another scene, a man pushes his co-worker against a shelving unit in frustration.
Miracle on 34th Street
Mild bad language
Miracle on 34th Street is a festival story about a man hired to play Santa in a department store who claims to be the real Father Christmas.
Language
Infrequent very mild bad language includes use of 'numb nuts', 'butt', and a reference to a character's unfair treatment as getting the 'fist' and the 'shaft'.
A character attempting to insult the elderly man playing Santa asks if he has 'got a thing for little ones...as you ain't good for much else.' Although this implies paedophilia, it is a passing and oblique reference.
Elf
Mild bad language, sex references
Elf is a US comedy, from 2003, in which a man who has been raised as an Elf at the North Pole returns to the US.
Language
There is use of mild bad language, including 'crappy', 'friggin', 'pissed' and 'damn'.
Scenes of rude humour includes vomiting, belching and breaking wind. There is occasional mild innuendo, including a reference to whether a 'peep show' means seeing some presents before Christmas. There are also scenes of mild slapstick violence.
Home Alone
Contains moderate slapstick violence and infrequent moderate language
Home Alone is a 1990 comedy adventure film in which an eight year old boy must fend off burglars when he is inadvertently left at home while his family fly off to France for Christmas.
Violence
There are a number of scenes in which violence is inflicted on the two burglars by the child character. However, the violence is always slapstick and comic in nature and there is no focus on realistic injury detail.
Language
There is occasional bad language, including uses of 'crap' and 'shit'.
The film also includes some behaviour that would be potentially dangerous if copied. For example, the booby traps devised by the young hero include placing a heating element over a metal door handle and pouring water on stone steps in freezing conditions in order to create a slippery surface. However, it is clear that the boy is setting these traps in order to protect himself and and that such behaviour is not normally acceptable.
At one point, the boy discovers a Playboy magazine in his brother's bedroom. However, there is no clear detail of nudity.
Klaus
Mild threat, violence
Klaus is an animated comedy adventure in which a new postman’s arrival on a remote northern island, and his friendship with the toymaker Klaus, marks the start of the end to a generations old feud and to a new Christmas tradition.
Threat and horror
Frequent scenes of mild threat include sight of scary skeleton toys and puppets hanging in a dark room, knives covering walls, and scary sight of a rope noose on a gallows used as a bell ringer. There are references to being chopped up and scattered in the woods, and to severed heads and axe murderers, all of which are just imagined fears.
Violence
Mild and undetailed scenes of comic violence show people clashing and fighting each other with kitchen knives, spades and household implements. Spears are thrown but there is no injury. There are also scenes of mild slapstick.
There is very mild bad language (‘God’). Rude humour includes references to 'soiling of the pants' and sight of a man with his bottom burning after he falls onto a burning fireplace.
Serendipity
Contains mild language and sex references
A couple search for each other years after the night they first met, fell in love, and separated, convinced that one day they'd end up together.
Sleepless in Seattle
Sleepless in Seattle is a US romantic drama in which a widower's son tries to find his father a partner by calling a radio talk show.
Sex
Mild sex references include a scene in which a man talks about how many times he's been 'laid'. In another scene, a boy asks his father if he will have sex with his wife.
Language
There is use of mild bad language ('shit'), as well as milder terms including 'goddamn'.
I’ll Be Home For Christmas
Emotionally intense scenes
Assistant DA and single mom Jackie's plans to wrap up a big case and enjoy Christmas with her daughter are disrupted when her estranged dad visits.
Edward Scissorhands
Edward Scissorhands is a US fantasy adventure in which an outsider is taken in by a kind suburban family, but struggles to find acceptance within the community.
Violence
Scenes include a man being kicked and punched. A man with scissors for hands accidentally cuts others, producing brief sight of blood.
There are sequences of mild threat. Scenes also include infrequent mild bad language ('dick', 'bastard') and discriminatory language ('retarded'). Occasional verbal and visual sex references include a woman attempting to seduce a man by straddling his lap. There is an undetailed reference to sexual violence.
The Holiday
Infrequent strong language, moderate sex references
The Holiday is a romantic comedy, from 2006, in which a British woman and an American woman swap homes for a holiday.
Language
Infrequent strong language ('f**k'), as well as milder bad language, including 'prick', 'bitch' and 'shit'.
Sex
There are verbal references to 'shagging' and 'foreplay', and sight of a couple in bed apparently after sex. No sex is shown onscreen.
Other issues include some brief mild violence and a scene in which a woman briefly inhales gas, as she contemplates suicide but does not go through with it.
