# Movies that just happen to incidentally be set on or around Christmas **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 19, 2017, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-just-happen-to-incidentally-be-set-on-or-around-christmas/802133 "2017-11-19T23:38:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Asuka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@Asuka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asuka)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2017, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-just-happen-to-incidentally-be-set-on-or-around-christmas/802133/1 "2017-11-19T23:38:23Z")
Tired of all those lists that talk about “Movies that you didn’t know took place on Christmas!” despite the fact Christmas actually does figure heavily into the plot (Die Hard not only takes place during an office Christmas Party, there’s also numerous direct dialog references to Christmas) I’m curious of what are movies that take place on or around Christmas but all of the references have nothing to do with the actual plot or setting. As in, the Christmas stuff is either “Blink and you’ll miss it” or it’s so very minor you can actually forget about it. Basically if you Ctrl+F the Wikipedia detailed plot synopsis and “Christmas” or “Holiday” don’t appear, the movie counts as part of this list. - Cobra All the Christmas references are buried into the background, as you’ll occasional see a mall Santa in the background of a scene or holiday decorations but they’re never the focus of any shot. The most blatant reference to Christmas is when Sylvester Stallone’s character is channel hopping and passes a Toys R Us Christmas commercial briefly. - Oh Her Majesty’s Secret Service Yes, there is a James Bond Christmas movie. There’s a very brief scene in the middle of the movie where a group of women open presents around a Christmas tree and a Christmas song specifically made for the film plays in the background but Bond doesn’t take part and despite the winter setting in the Swiss Alps it’s never mentioned again. Anybody else? ---
**Author:** ![Lancia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lancia/32/17174_2.png) [@Lancia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lancia)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2017, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-just-happen-to-incidentally-be-set-on-or-around-christmas/802133/2 "2017-11-20T00:02:00Z")
_Psycho_. Blink and you really will miss it. At the beginning of the movie it pops up “Friday, December 11th” on the screen. As Marion Crane drives through the city you see a few Christmas decorations on the streets of Phoenix. After that Christmas isn’t mentioned or referenced at all during the rest of the movie. IIRC after Hitchcock had wrapped up filming some editor noticed the Xmas decorations that appeared in a few shots. So they put in the Dec. 11th date rather than reshoot those scenes. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2017, 8:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-just-happen-to-incidentally-be-set-on-or-around-christmas/802133/3 "2017-11-20T08:09:42Z")
- In Bruges\* - [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_Bruges) doesn’t mention the holiday at all, but [IMDB](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0780536/plotsummary) does, does that count? ---
**Author:** ![buddha\_david](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee7513/32.png) [@buddha\_david](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buddha_david)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2017, 8:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-just-happen-to-incidentally-be-set-on-or-around-christmas/802133/4 "2017-11-20T08:57:58Z")
Most of the third act of _When Harry Met Sally_ is set during the Christmas season, with the final scene taking place on New Year’s Eve. Different holiday: _Planes, Trains & Automobiles_ is technically a Thanksgiving movie, since Neal’s trying to get home for Thanksgiving dinner with his family. However, the actual holiday is meaningless to the plot – Neal could’ve been traveling home for any old reason. ---
**Author:** ![NJ\_Kef\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b487fb/32.png) [@NJ\_Kef\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NJ_Kef_1)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2017, 12:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-just-happen-to-incidentally-be-set-on-or-around-christmas/802133/5 "2017-11-20T12:22:54Z")
_Bell, Book, and Candle_ On Christmas Eve in Greenwich Village, a beautiful witch (Kim Novak) asks her familiar (Pyewacket) to summon a normal, ordinary man (Jimmy Stewart) because she has grown bored of the extraordinary. Romance and hilarity ensue. The holiday is incidental. ---
**Author:** ![Quimby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/22d042/32.png) [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2017, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-just-happen-to-incidentally-be-set-on-or-around-christmas/802133/6 "2017-11-20T14:20:34Z")
Iron Man 3 is set around Christmas. It’s written by Shane Black who will often set his movies around Christmas (Lethal Weapon is another example). ETA: I disagree with the above about Trains, Planes and Automobiles. Trying to get home in time for the holiday gives him agency to have to get home fast. Otherwise what is an extra day? Plus it’s a busy travel day making his journey all the harder. It also plays into the theme of family. It could have been any major holiday I suppose but Thanksgiving is a perfect choice. ---
**Author:** ![Gordon\_Urquhart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/db5fbb/32.png) [@Gordon\_Urquhart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gordon_Urquhart)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2017, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-just-happen-to-incidentally-be-set-on-or-around-christmas/802133/7 "2017-11-20T14:55:48Z")
> [@Quimby](#): > > Iron Man 3 is set around Christmas. It’s written by Shane Black who will often set his movies around Christmas (Lethal Weapon is another example). This hadn’t really occurred to me until you mentioned it. Black’s _Kiss Kiss Bang Bang_ (2005), which we re-watched over the weekend, is another example. ---
**Author:** ![Alan\_Smithee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/2acd7d/32.png) [@Alan\_Smithee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alan_Smithee)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2017, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-just-happen-to-incidentally-be-set-on-or-around-christmas/802133/8 "2017-11-20T17:58:40Z")
First off, my nomination for the thread:_The Lion in Winter_. It’s one of my favorite Christmas movies, and Christmas does play a part in the plot, but it could have been set at any time, really, with some other excuse for the queen being temporarily on parole. And it certainly doesn’t feel like a typical Christmas movie. > [@Quimby](#): > > Iron Man 3 is set around Christmas. It’s written by Shane Black who will often set his movies around Christmas (Lethal Weapon is another example). Well that helps explain it. I was bothered when I saw it that it was basically a Christmas movie, but was released during the summer. I think it would have been a lot more fun to see in theaters during th Christmas season. Were most of the movies in this thread released during Christmas, or are there more summer movies set at Christmas than I’d realized? ---
**Author:** ![Bill\_Door](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/50afbb/32.png) [@Bill\_Door](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bill_Door)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2017, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-just-happen-to-incidentally-be-set-on-or-around-christmas/802133/9 "2017-11-20T18:13:48Z")
_Batman Returns_ has a Christmas themed pageant with some kind of a ice princess. She’s not around for long. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2017, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-just-happen-to-incidentally-be-set-on-or-around-christmas/802133/10 "2017-11-20T18:59:40Z")
nm ---
**Author:** ![SmellMyWort](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea5d25/32.png) [@SmellMyWort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmellMyWort)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2017, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-just-happen-to-incidentally-be-set-on-or-around-christmas/802133/11 "2017-11-20T21:00:48Z")
_The Long Kiss Goodnight_ takes place around Christmas, if my memory is correct. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2017, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-just-happen-to-incidentally-be-set-on-or-around-christmas/802133/12 "2017-11-20T22:20:56Z")
The climactic portion of _Edward Scissorhands_ takes place at Christmas, in a neighborhood where it didn’t used to snow, but now it does. ---
**Author:** ![Gordon\_Urquhart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/db5fbb/32.png) [@Gordon\_Urquhart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gordon_Urquhart)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2017, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-just-happen-to-incidentally-be-set-on-or-around-christmas/802133/13 "2017-11-20T22:24:19Z")
> [@SmellMyWort](#): > > _The Long Kiss Goodnight_ takes place around Christmas, if my memory is correct. It does indeed, and it’s yet another Shane Black production. _The Nice Guys_ is also set during Christmas. This [Entertainment Weekly](http://ew.com/article/2016/05/25/shane-black-christmas/) article has a quote from Black that explains his thinking. (Also, apparently _Three Days of the Condor_ is set during Christmas; it’s been too long since I’ve seen it to recall.) ---
**Author:** ![Sternvogel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bc79bd/32.png) [@Sternvogel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sternvogel)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2017, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-just-happen-to-incidentally-be-set-on-or-around-christmas/802133/14 "2017-11-20T23:03:13Z")
> [@Alan\_Smithee](#): > > Were most of the movies in this thread released during Christmas, or are there more summer movies set at Christmas than I’d realized? _Jurassic World_ was released on June 12, 2015 (so about ten days before the summer solstice) in the USA. The kids are put on a plane to the title park during the Christmas season, but the holiday doesn’t really drive the plot in any way. ---
**Author:** ![steepone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/977dab/32.png) [@steepone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/steepone)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2017, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-just-happen-to-incidentally-be-set-on-or-around-christmas/802133/15 "2017-11-20T23:33:06Z")
I think Lethal Weapon fits the bill,it was set at Christmas and there are a few Christmas references but none that actually affect the plot ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2017, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-just-happen-to-incidentally-be-set-on-or-around-christmas/802133/16 "2017-11-21T00:15:30Z")
> [@SmellMyWort](#): > > _The Long Kiss Goodnight_ takes place around Christmas, if my memory is correct. Yes, but Christmas is essential to the plot, in the sense that in the final showdown, [the henchman’s body which the heroine uses as a counterweight to lift herself into position to machine-gun the bad guy](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7bNrfojc1t4) is hanging from a string of Christmas lights, and we all know if it this took place around, say, Labor Day, decorative Labor Day lights are _completely_ inadequate to the task, being of inferior gauge. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2017, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-just-happen-to-incidentally-be-set-on-or-around-christmas/802133/17 "2017-11-21T15:43:23Z")
_I, the Jury_ (starring Armand Assante) has a scene where a homicidal maniac (whom the villain uses to “remove” loose ends) places Mike Hammer’s secretary/girlfriend in peril. Among other things, he ties her to a chair with a string of Christmas lights. Problem is, I’m not sure if the lights are there because it’s Christmas time, or because Mike and Velma are a bit cavalier about office decorating. And I’m not in a position to screen the movie at this time. Anybody? ---
**Author:** ![UCBearcats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/77aa72/32.png) [@UCBearcats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UCBearcats)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2017, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-just-happen-to-incidentally-be-set-on-or-around-christmas/802133/18 "2017-11-22T01:14:43Z")
Die Hard ---
**Author:** ![Jim\_s\_Son](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19adc/32.png) [@Jim\_s\_Son](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_s_Son)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2017, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-just-happen-to-incidentally-be-set-on-or-around-christmas/802133/19 "2017-11-22T21:02:34Z")
In “The French Connection” the first time you see Popeye Doyle (Gene Hackman) he is working as a Santa Claus on a street running a bell for contributions. When he starts having a bunch of nearby kids sing “Jingle Bells” it’s a signal for his partner Cloudy Russo (Roy Scheider), working as a street food peddler, that their suspect has entered the bar and for him to go after him. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2017, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-just-happen-to-incidentally-be-set-on-or-around-christmas/802133/20 "2017-11-22T23:10:04Z")
> [@UCBearcats](#): > > Die Hard So are you being ironic, or did you not read the OP? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-that-just-happen-to-incidentally-be-set-on-or-around-christmas/802133.md?page=2)