Weekend Watchlist: It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas

We're nearing the end of 2020 and we could all use a bit of Christmas spirit and cheer.

Thankfully, there are a number of feel-good holiday specials and Christmas classics on streaming sites that will make you want to cozy up at home with a cup of hot cocoa in hand for movie night. Or at least start putting up some decor to brighten up your home for the holidays.

But for those who feel like ‘tis not the season to be jolly, we’ve also included a few selections that delve on the dark side, including a horror anthology series set around different holidays and a Christmas slasher flick.

Here are the latest films and series to get you in the mood (or not) for the season currently available on streaming networks.

NETFLIX

The Princess Switch: Switched Again

Synopsis: When Margaret’s Christmas coronation complicates her love life, her double Stacy steps in to save the day. But will a third look-alike ruin their plan? This sequel to The Princess Switch (2018) stars Vanessa Hudgens, Sam Palladio, Suanne Braun, and Nick Sagar.

Holiday Home Makeover with Mr. Christmas

Synopsis: Interior designer Benjamin “Mr. Christmas” Bradley works with a trusty team of “elves” to helpe families transform their homes for the holidays. Netflix's newest makeover series offers the perfect mix of holiday cheer and magical home transformations.

Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey

Synopsis: Decades after his trusted apprentice betrayed him, a once-joyful toymaker finds new hope when his kind and curious granddaughter comes into his life. This 2020 Christmas musical fantasy film written and directed by David E. Talbert stars Forest Whitaker, Madalen Mills, Keegan-Michael Key, Hugh Bonneville, Anika Noni Rose, Phylicia Rashad, Lisa Davina Phillip, and Ricky Martin.

Holidays

Synopsis: Eight gleefully grim short tales set on Halloween, Mother’s Day, St. Patrick’s Day and other holidays comprise this chilling horror anthology.

We are the Champions

Synopsis: Explore an array of unique competitions, from the quirky to the bizarre, and meet their passionate communities in this docuseries from executive producer Rainn Wilson. The lightearted docuseries celebrates human achievement in competitive cheese rolling, championship yo-yoing, chili pepper eating, frog jumping and more.

The Crown (Season 4)

Synopsis: This drama follows the political rivalries and romance of Queen Elizabeth II’s reign and the events that shaped the second half of the 20th century. Olivia Colman stars as Elizabeth, along with main cast members Tobias Menzies, Helena Bonham Carter, Gillian Anderson, Josh O'Connor, Emma Corrin, Marion Bailey, Erin Doherty, Stephen Boxer and Emerald Fennell. Claire Foy and Charles Dance return in cameo appearances.

Alter Me

Synopsis: To better connect with other people - and her own emotions - an HR manager seeks the mentorship of a coveted escort, who soon opens her heart. This new Netflix film directed by RC delos Reyes and starring Jasmine Curtis-Smith and Enchong Dee, shines a light on the shadowy world of social media.

HBO GO

Black Christmas

Synopsis: A black-masked stalker begins killing sorority women at Hawthorne College one by one. Whoever the killer is, he's about to discover that this generation's young women aren’t about to be anybody's victims.

His Dark Materials (Season 2)

Synopsis: Lyra, a young orphan from an alternate world, stays with the scholars in a college in Oxford. During a quest to find her missing friend, she discovers a secret that involves several kidnappings. In the second season, Lord Asriel has opened a bridge to a new world. Distraught over the death of her best friend, Lyra follows Asriel into the unknown. The fantasy drama television series is based on the novel series of the same name by Philip Pullman.

Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events

Synopsis: Jim Carrey, Meryl Streep and Jude Law star in this film of the young Baudelaire orphans who are taken in by odd relatives after their parents death. This 2004 American gothic black comedy film covers the first three novels of the thirteen part series by author Daniel Handler under the pen name Lemony Snicket. The books were later adapted into a Netflix series.

Over the Garden Wall

Synopsis: Lost in the mysterious woods of the Unknown two brothers run into an old woodsman who warns them to beware the terrifying Beast that roams the forest. This American animated television miniseries won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program in 2015.

(Images from Netflix)