Every holiday has a movie nowadays, and the biggest holidays usually have a whole bunch of them. But whereas every year brings with it a veritable ton of Halloween and Christmas flicks, Thanksgiving movies sometimes seem to get to get the short shrift. Maybe that’s because, for many people, the holiday represents an opportunity to spend time interacting with your family instead of staring at a screen all day. Or maybe it’s because family get togethers drive a lot of us insane and we’d rather not be reminded by a bunch of millionaires how much fun we’re “supposed” to be having.
Whatever the reason, there just seem to be fewer great Thanksgiving movies than you might think, but we’ve still seen the whole lot of them, and we still have our favorites. So as you thaw the turkey, or do whatever it is you do to the tofu, consider the following 9 1/2 classic Thanksgiving movies to put on in the background.
Oh, and please pass the stuffing?
The 9 1/2 Best Thanksgiving Movies Ever:
Top Photo: Dimension Films
William Bibbiani (everyone calls him ‘Bibbs’) is Crave’s film content editor and critic. You can hear him every week on The B-Movies Podcast and Canceled Too Soon, and watch him on the weekly YouTube series Most Craved, Rapid Reviews and What the Flick. Follow his rantings on Twitter at @WilliamBibbiani.
The 9 1/2 Best Thanksgiving Movies Ever
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9 1/2. Thanksgiving (2007)
Eli Roth's fake trailer to a Thanksgiving-themed slasher movie has probably made a bigger impact than the actual movie ever would have, promising audiences a violent and sexual holiday thriller that culminates in mom herself being served like a roast turkey. Some folks still think this movie will get made, but maybe we should just be thankful for what we have.
Photo: Dimension Films
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9. Son in Law (1993)
Pauly Shore's best film stars the extremely 1990s comedian as a metrosexual college student who impersonates the fiancé of a fellow student, and winds up fixing everybody's lives in the process. Good natured and fluffy, like a 1960s Disney comedy in an MTV VJ's clothing.
Photo: Buena Vista Pictures
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8. Spider-Man (2002)
Sam Raimi's first Spider-Man was as American as Thanksgiving dinner, with New Yorkers coming together to defend their hero in an ode to post-9/11 nationalism and a classic dinner sequence in which Green Goblin learns Spider-Man's secret identity via cranberry sauce. A little clunky by today's standards, the first Spider-Man is still a crowd-pleasing trailblazer for the superhero genre.
Photo: Columbia Pictures
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7. Home for the Holidays (1995)
Jodie Foster's ode to awkward family get togethers features a dynamite ensemble cast, including Holly Hunter, Robert Downey Jr., Anne Bancroft and Claire Danes. Of course, like all dynamite, you spend most of the time nervous about when it's going to explode. Home for the Holidays features great performances and just the right amount of discomfort.
Photo: Paramount Pictures
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6. The Last Waltz (1978)
One of the greatest concert films, period, features the Band in their farewell performance, recorded on Thanksgiving Day in 1976. Along the way they are joined by rock legends like Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Ringo Starr, Joni Mitchell, Muddy Waters, Neil Diamond and Eric Clapton. Martin Scorsese directed The Last Waltz, and he keeps the focus right where it needs to be: on the incredible music, and the Band's memories.
Photo: United Artists
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5. Alice's Restaurant (1969)
For some, Arlo Guthrie's beloved 18 minute, 34 second protest song Alice's Restaurant is already a Thanksgiving tradition, telling the story of how some well-intentioned littering led to a major court case and, ironically, saved Guthrie from being drafted into the Vietnam War. But the song inspired an equally great movie, starring Guthrie as himself, and it's an endearing ode to counterculture that deserves to be replayed every single Thanksgiving too.
Photo: United Artists
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4. The House of Yes (1997)
The Pascal family redefines "dysfunctional" in Mark Waters' comedy, about a young man who returns home for the holiday to introduce his new fiancée to his parents and siblings. His sister, "Jackie-O," isn't happy about it, and turns her obsession with the JFK assassination against her brother and the interloper. Secrets are revealed, betrayals are inevitable, and in the end nobody feels clean.
Photo: Miramax Films
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3. Pieces of April (2003)
Katie Holmes is trying to throw the perfect Thanksgiving dinner because it's probably the last her dying mother will ever have. And yet, despite that dramatic premise, Peter Hedges' film always feels hopeful and light. It's a sensitive and funny film about trying your best, and given how difficult the holidays usually are for everybody, that's a message we all can appreciate.
Photo: United Artists
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2. Miracle on 34th Street (1947)
If The Nightmare Before Christmas can be both a Halloween movie and a Christmas movie, then Miracle on 34th Street can be a Thanksgiving movie and a Christmas movie. This beloved classic tells the story of a department story Santa Claus who claims to be the real thing, charming all the shoppers and healing all the hearts, and the film takes us all the way from the start of the shopping season to the big day. It's the perfect way to kick off the Christmas countdown.
Photo: 20th Century Fox
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1. Planes, Trains and Automobiles (1987)
Steve Martin and John Candy are absolutely impeccable in Planes, Trains and Automobiles as two guys who are just trying to get home for Thanksgiving. Fate stymies them at each and every turn, leading to frustrations, furies and eventually a profound understanding. You'll laugh, you'll cry, and you'll definitely appreciate that Planes, Trains and Automobiles is still the greatest Thanksgiving movie.
Photo: Paramount Pictures
