Memories, traditions, moments: the joys of watching films at Christmas
As a new collection curated by Sofas & Stuff arrives on BFI Player, we spoke to the Sofas & Stuff team about their favourite festive films and viewing traditions.
There is a special magic in watching films at Christmas. As the world outside slows down and familiar rituals return, cinema becomes one of the season’s most comforting anchors – an invitation to escape, and to remember. For many, Christmas is not defined only by festive classics, but by the films that echo personal history, ritual and emotion – those ‘uncommon’ choices that find their way into our hearts year after year.
For some, the joy lies in the quiet privacy of a Christmas evening, once the day’s bustle has finally softened. Poppy Stanton Willis, head of marketing at Sofas & Stuff, captures this when she describes watching Léos Carax’s gorgeous romantic drama Les Amants du Pont Neuf (1991), starring Juliette Binoche and Denis Lavant, as an annual ritual: “the kids tucked into bed and a glass of wine in hand”. Each year, she writes, the film “reminds me how extraordinary ordinary love can be”.
This type of viewing is less about holiday spectacle and more about emotional renewal – about settling into the sofa and reconnecting with stories that feel like old friends.
Nostalgia, too, plays a powerful role in Christmas viewing. It’s why films like the animated classic Watership Down (1978) linger so strongly in memory. For those who grew up with it, like Poppy, the film is “woven into the fabric of childhood Christmases… haunting, beautiful, and unforgettable”.
Christmas films don’t always need snow or Santa; sometimes their power comes from how they transport us back to earlier selves, reminding us of what once moved us, frightened us, or made the world feel larger than it was.
Even films that appear far from festive can become part of cherished holiday routines. Poppy admits that while her family chooses traditional fare, her own Christmas treat is Bong Joon Ho’s satirical thriller Parasite (2019) – a film “beautifully shot… and filled with unexpected twists” that provides a quiet thrill after the chaos of the day. There is “nothing quite like curling up on the sofa… plate of leftovers in hand, and sinking into a film that grips you from start to finish”.
Other film lovers at Sofas & Stuff find the season a perfect time to revisit formative favourites. Abby Gadd, creative copy lead, explains how Gregory’s Girl (1980) evokes her youth, making Christmas a moment to reconnect with the films that shaped her: “Watching it again feels like leafing back through a photo album of the 80s… softened by the distance of time”. Its “beautifully unpolished charm” and “slightly odd characters” generate precisely the kind of gentle warmth we seek during festive downtime. Christmas films, in this sense, become emotional time machines – reminding us who we were and how we’ve grown.
The holidays also create rare space for slower, more contemplative cinema. Paris, Texas (1984), with its lingering shots and aching silences, is the kind of film that fits into the calmer pockets of the season. As Abby says, it’s a film for when “the house is still, when the lights are low, and the sofa becomes somewhere to think as much as watch”.
Reflection is also at the heart of Joanna Hogg’s The Eternal Daughter (2021), starring Tilda Swinton. For Abby, it’s a film that “sits perfectly in that reflective space” that Christmas often opens up. It becomes “an uncommon ritual – an acknowledgement that the season isn’t just about celebration, but also about the stories we inherit”.
Melinda Horlock, marketing manager, finds similar solace in films that feel personal and quietly profound. For her, Memoir of a Snail (2024) has already become a seasonal staple: “There’s something so wonderfully Aussie about its warmth and quirkiness – it feels like home, even in the middle of winter here. It’s my cosy-season comfort watch.”
She’s also drawn to bold, unconventional narratives, such Postcards from London (2018). Starring Harris Dickinson, this British drama offers “a visually striking and provocative look at loneliness, desire and identity through an art-driven lens. Its bold imagery, poetic dialogue and exploration of marginal lives appeal to viewers who appreciate challenging, stylised, and emotionally raw cinema.”
Christmas films, especially quieter ones, help us make sense of the year behind and the people who shaped it. Natasha Stevenson, UX and digital design lead, speaks of Céline Sciamma’s Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019), noting how it reminds her of “the gratitude we must feel for the people we’re fortunate enough to spend the holidays with”. Meanwhile, revisiting Ruben Ostlund’s The Square (2017), she says, becomes “the perfect film to dissect with family over the holidays… once the children are asleep!”
Christmas also heightens our emotional openness, making room for powerful films like Ken Loach’s The Wind That Shakes the Barley (2006), which Kim Hopkins, senior graphic designer, describes as “honest, emotional, and grounded in real human experience,” perfect for “snuggling on the sofa with loved ones and really appreciating family”.
Even the stark realism of Loach’s I, Daniel Blake (2016) finds a place in the season because it “reminds you what really matters: kindness, dignity, and looking out for one another”.
And sometimes, the joy is simply in choosing something atmospheric, wintry, or unexpected. From the “cold, atmospheric” chill of Let the Right One In (2011) to the sharp wintry drama of The Ice Storm (1997) – both favourites of Bradley Walsh, senior digital marketing manager. Christmas viewing doesn’t need tinsel to feel seasonal – just a mood, a memory, or the right film at the right moment.
Explore the Uncommon Threads collection on BFI Player.