Netflix is home to hundreds (if not thousands) of excellent animated stories. Among them are 5 animated Christmas movies which are an absolute must-to-watch for every Christmas lover. They are heartfelt, sentimental and feel-good. They are made for kids and adults alike. In essence, they perfectly capture the spirit of Christmas and create a heart-warming fireplace atmosphere. This article is spoiler-free, so you can relax and enjoy your animated Christmas movies read.
Also, make sure to read our list of Christmas Movies of 2022 Ranked Best to Worst.
Scrooge: A Christmas Carol (2022)
We start with a classic. Scrooge: A Christmas Carol is another adaptation of Dickens’ cult classic novella A Christmas Carol. However, this contemporary musical features an array of captivating colors and songs, making the experience trippy in an endearing way. The movie was written and directed by Stephen Donnelly and stars Luke Evans as Ebenezer Scrooge.
Kids throw snowballs at Scrooge’s window.
Like the novella, the story follows an arrogant and grumpy miser Scrooge, who equally hates people and Christmas. Especially people at Christmas. Scrooge is visited by the Ghost of Christmas Past (Olivia Coleman), the Ghost of Christmas Present (Trevor Dion Nicholas) and the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come. These Ghosts help Scrooge transform into an embodiment of the Christmas spirit.
Spirit Riding Free: The Spirit of Christmas (2019)
Spirit Riding Free is an animated show based on the 2002 movie Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron. Spirit Riding Free: The Spirit of Christmas is its stand-alone holiday special staring Amber Frank as Lucky Prescott. The movie was directed by Allan Jacobsen, Kevin Wotton and Stephen Cooper, and written by Aury Wallington, May Chan and Nicole Belisle.
Everyone gets a Christmas decoration.
Lucky and her friends embark on a train ride in a gift-finding adventure. When a menacing avalanche leaves them stranded in the snow covered mountains, this group of friends will have to find it in them to survive and return home. The story explores heartwarming themes such as making sacrifices for the good of the group and grief for the ones we miss on Christmas. It emphasizes the need for gratitude, regardless of the circumstances.
Angela’s Christmas (2017)
Angela’s Christmas is a 30-minute short Netflix original film. Damien O’Connor and Will Collins wrote the script, while O’Connor also directed the movie. The script was based on Pulitzer Prize winner Frank McCourt’s book Angela and the Baby Jesus. His widow Ellen Frey McCourt served as the movie’s executive producer, while his brother Malachy McCourt landed his voice as the Narrator. The movie stars Lucy O’Connell as Angela and Ruth Negga as Angela’s Mother.
Angela steals baby Jesus.
The story of Frank’s book (and this movie) is a true story of his mother Angela, a story she used to tell Malachy and him when they were kids. Angela stole baby Jesus to keep him warm, wanting to make sure everyone has a good Christmas. Casting Malachy as the Narrator was a brilliant move which gave the story authenticity and gravity. The cinematography is also brilliant. It features two primary colors blue and gold. As the story progresses, Angela slowly moves away from cool and isolated blue background and towards predominantly golden hues, representing her family’s acceptance and love.
Angela’s Christmas Wish (2020)
Angela’s Christmas Wish, or Angela’s Christmas 2 (as it’s called on Netflix), is a 47-minute sequel to Emmy Nominee Angela’s Christmas. The movie was written and directed by Damien O’Connor and stared Lucy O’Connell as Angela, Anya O’Connor as Young Angela, Moe Dunford as Father and Ruth Negga as Mother. Ellen Frey McCourt also came back as the executive producer.
Angela and her brother decide to take a train to Australia.
The story follows Angela as she tries to reunite her family for the holidays. O’Connor reportedly used up all of the material from Frank McCourt’s book for the first movie, so when Netflix asked him to do a sequel, he felt he had big shoes to fill. This second time around the director chose to focus on answering a question his audience frequently asked- where is the Father?
Klaus (2019)
Klaus is an award-winning animated feature movie, written by Sergio Pablos, Jim Mahoney and Zach Lewis and directed by Sergio Pablos, in his directorial debut. The movie stars Jason Schwartzman as Jesper Johansen and J. K. Simmons as Klaus.
Jesper and Klaus make a special sledge.
This movie offers a completely new and innovative Santa Claus legend, removing itself from the ancient origins of Christmas, the figure of St. Nicholas and Yule-related archetypes. The story merges elements of Romeo and Juliet with a classic redemption story and comes out as something completely new, different and magical. This is truly a beautiful and remarkable movie I cannot recommend enough.
I hope you have enjoyed my list of 5 animated Christmas movies. Have you watched any of these? What did you think of them? Would you like to recommend something else?
