The genre of Christmas, Hanukkah, and other such winter holiday films is a delightful one. For the most part, it's also pretty family-friendly. Classic tales like Elf and Home Alone were crafted with pleasing audiences of all ages in mind. However, in recent years, there has been a bit of a boom of holiday films that cater to a more mature audience.
Granted, there have always been stories like this and this list will reflect some older films from, say, the 1980s. Yet, the influx of R-rated Christmas films in recent years is definitely worth remarking upon. It shows that the genre is all-encompassing and able to deftly move between tones.
10 Trading Places
The 1983 John Landis comedy, Trading Places, starring Dan Aykroyd and Eddie Murphy, is not only a stellar Christmas film; it's also a classic comedy overall. Playing off tropes from The Prince and the Pauper, Trading Places infuses that story structure with the sentiments of the holidays.
The holiday, which often sees comparisons between giving and receiving, serves as a backdrop for the film, which is a commentary on classism, privilege, and the inherent loneliness of wealth. The thematic substance of the film positions it as a Christmas classic worth revisiting.
9 Office Christmas Party
Admittedly, there is a bit less thematic resonance in Office Christmas Party, the 2016 ensemble comedy led by Jennifer Aniston and Jason Bateman. It might not have as long a pair of legs as Trading Places does, but it's a solid vehicle for some outrageous holiday laughs.
Plus, while Bateman and Aniston are solid leads, it's really underrated comedy stars like Vanessa Bayer, Jillian Bell, and Karan Soni who steal the show. Not to mention, Jimmy Butler, of the Miami Heat, even turns up. Nowhere to go wrong there!
8 Kiss Kiss Bang Bang
It wouldn't be an R-rated Christmas movie list without bringing in the great director and screenwriter, Shane Black. Black famously enjoys setting all of his films during the holidays (Iron Man 3 is the MCU's closest thing to a holiday film to date).
Something about the Christmas season just feels like a reset and a reassessment of the year. With characters like Black's, who always face down self reflection, it's a perfect marriage. And the snappy, quick-witted, twisty story of Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is a prime example.
7 The Nice Guys
An even more prime example of Black's relationship with R-rated Christmas movies is 2016's The Nice Guys, though. Starring Ryan Gosling and Russell Crowe, it has a strong argument for being the greatest buddy cop film ever made.
It's insanely funny and, while the holiday decor and spirit is subtle, it's still ever-present. It serves a perfect middle ground between something that is (until the end) cynical, like Scrooged, and something profoundly saccharine, like Godmothered.
6 Carol
Another great Christmas film that is more backdrop than story substance is the remarkable 2015 romance film from Todd Haynes, Carol. Carol starred Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara and was woefully underappreciated upon its initial release.
The holiday shopping season receives some biting criticism as the audience instead follows the charms of the two leads who engage in a "forbidden affair" with one another. Really, Carol is a worthwhile film any time of year.
5 Die Hard
The debate about whether or not Die Hard is a Christmas movie is an extremely uninteresting one. All the points have been made and no one who brings up it these days has an original idea behind it. It's time to let it go.
If The Nice Guys can be considered a Christmas movie, then Die Hard certainly can, too. As the more action-centric version of Paul Blart (which is more concerned with the denouement of the holidays), it's worth revisiting in an R-rated capacity, if not only for the Run-DMC needle drop.
4 Bad Santa
Bad Santa is undeniably pretty far from being the best R-rated Christmas movie. But it's also kind of impossible to craft an R-rated Christmas list without it, considering it's the exact kind of story that most fans of edgier holiday fans are looking for.
Billy Bob Thornton portrays Willie, alongside turns from Tony Cox, Lauren Graham, Bernie Mac, and John Ritter. The entire affair is extremely raunchy and deliberately R-rated. There's hardly even a version that could air in an edited capacity in the 25 Days of Christmas.
3 Love Actually
That being said, the purveyors of Freeform have found a way to air Love Actually in their celebration. They did so, mostly, by doing away with the subplot with Martin Freeman and Joanna Page, who have stand-in sex while shooting a film.
They're arguably the part of the story that most contributes to the R-rated nature. But even beyond that, stars like Hugh Grant, Keira Knightley, and Emma Thompson make this one of the best holiday movies ever made, R-rated or otherwise.
2 In Bruges
In Bruges is the greatest Bruges movie of all-time. This is an achievement the Martin McDonagh classic will likely boast forever. However, it's also underrated as a Christmas film, as the holidays provide much of the moral thrust of the characters.
The lights and decorations also help portray Bruges as an impossibly gorgeous city. It's one of the best films of the 2000s and it will make the holidays for viewers more R-rated, but also more writerly.
1 The Night Before
When The Night Before was released in 2015, it didn't immediately seem like a new holiday classic. But in recent years, word-of-mouth has spread and the film has been propped up as the hilarious masterpiece that it is.
There's plenty of that R-rated humor Seth Rogen is known for, even in the holiday tale. However, it's also surprisingly sweet and it even dabbles in elements of fantasy. Rogen's performance is perhaps the funniest ever achieved by a supporting performer, but Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Anthony Mackie also help carry this hysterical movie. It's the best R-rated Christmas film to check out during the yuletide season.
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