Hallmark movies are the epitome of Christmas; try to change my mind. For millions of people, these “cheesy” and “predictable” movies put them right into the Christmas spirit. For my family, mainly my dad, no other tv show or movies exist during the holidays. I can go downstairs after a day of online school and there’s my dad watching the latest Hallmark movie (honestly, is he still working? I’m not sure). While some might say the storylines are “predictable” and “cliche,”he says the opposite—and if they are cliche, that’s what Christmas is all about.

I’ve known about my dad’s love of Hallmark movies since middle school. I watched dozens with him and saw him watch dozens more. So this year I needed to know: of all the Hallmark movies he has watched, which ones were his favorite? Which movies would he recommend if he had to pick from the probably hundreds or thousands he has watched?

So if you’re looking for a Hallmark movie to watch, my dad is an expert. Here are his favorites, ranked: 

6. 12 Gifts for Christmas (2020)

My dad called this “better than most new movies from the Hallmark channel.” Two competitive game makers schedule a Christmas scavenger hunt for a global hotel chain, and they have to experience all the events together in order to make sure it is working. My dad really enjoyed that “it shows a great new spin on holiday traditions”. 

5. Christmas in Vienna (2020)

An orchestra violinist, who has lost her love for playing music, is performing in Austria in December where she meets a widowed diplomat. As my dad is very traveled, he “enjoyed seeing all the places [he’s] been in the past, during Christmas.” He added, “I love seeing all the different Christmas villages and experiencing the different Austrian traditions.” 

4. A Christmas Detour (2015)

This movie made back in 2015 is, in my dad’s words, a “typical weather-impacting-Christmas movie…but in a good way.” A woman gets stranded in Buffalo but needs to get to New York City to meet her fiancé’s parents. During this struggle, she meets a man and a married couple, and together the group tries everything to get to NYC. “It has a really nice ending, especially when you see what happened with the married couple.”

3. A Christmas Train (2017)

I remember watching this for the first time with my dad. We both cried. In this movie, you watch a journalist take a train from D.C. to L.A. During this ride, he runs into his former girlfriend who is working with a movie director on the train. My dad calls this the “not your typical Hallmark Christmas movie” with “lots of twists and turns”. Watching these two old flames conquer the odds and realize they were always in love never leaves me dry-eyed. 

2. The Christmas Ornament (2013)

In this “tear-jerker,” a woman who struggles with the holidays after losing her husband avoids all Christmas traditions. BUT, when she becomes romantically involved with a local Christmas tree farm owner who gives her a special ornament, she starts to change. My dad enjoyed the “emotional provoking story line, and the back and forth love story with a great ending” in this movie. 

1. The Christmas Card (2007)

“I cry every time,” said my dad as he gets to this movie. We watch this together every year, as no one in my family can resist shedding a tear at this movie. A U.S. soldier receives an anonymous Christmas card and visits a town to meet the woman who sent the letter. “In this move there is a strong sense of home that is created, moving around so much as a kid, having a movie like this allows me to appreciate the home I have now”. 

This year has been a tough year for everyone, and in this holiday season there has never been a better time to sit down and watch a Hallmark movie. It’s not every month that I let myself sit down and watch these types of movies. Most of the time I’d rather nerd out and watch every Marvel movie in chronological order or re-watch The Office for the ninth time than cry over a “love story.” But, for 25 days in December, I allow myself to be wrapped up in the hopeful and emotional storylines that lie in 99% of Hallmark movies. Even if some Hallmark movies may be cliche, and even a little dumb, I can’t help but smile while I’m watching them. Everyone can use the dose of joy that comes from watching one of these movies. 

If you aren’t a big Hallmark fan and haven’t watched that many, look into these movies and watch them with your family. They are Mr. Womble approved.