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Movies that feel like How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (1966)

If you loved How the Grinch Stole Christmas!, the closest films we have are Pete's Dragon (1977), My Neighbors the Yamadas (1999) and The Big Bad Fox and Other Tales (2017). All three share How the Grinch Stole Christmas!'s whimsical and warm feel, which is what we rank on before quality. 7 of the 12 picks below are included with a subscription right now on Netflix, HBO Max and Amazon Prime Video and others, checked against today's data.

Bitter and hateful, the Grinch is irritated at the thought of a nearby village having a happy time celebrating Christmas. Disguised as Santa Claus, with his dog made to look like a reindeer, he decides to raid the village to steal all the Christmas things.

8.3 IMDb ↗TMDB ↗dir. Chuck Joneswhimsicalwarmcozywittyplayfuldreamlike
Stream it:Peacock
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If How the Grinch Stole Christmas! hit the spot, these will too

Pete's Dragon poster
Pete's Dragon
1977 · dir. Don Chaffey
🍅 56%6.3fantasy · animation · comedy

Both land whimsy and warmth at once

The difference: Played as fantasy first

Pete, a young orphan, runs away to a Maine fishing town with his best friend a lovable, sometimes invisible dragon named Elliott! When they are taken in by a kind lighthouse keeper, Nora, and her father, Elliott's prank playing lands them in big trouble. Then, when crooked salesmen try to capture Elliott for their own gain, Pete must attempt a daring rescue.

Feels alike?
My Neighbors the Yamadas poster
My Neighbors the Yamadas
1999 · dir. Isao Takahata
🍅 78%7.1animation · comedy · family

Both are built on the same subject: surrealism

The difference: Made in the 1990s, in a different era of the craft

The Yamadas are a typical middle class Japanese family in urban Tokyo and this film shows us a variety of episodes of their lives. With tales that range from the humorous to the heartbreaking, we see this family cope with life's little conflicts, problems, and joys in their own way.

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The Big Bad Fox and Other Tales poster
The Big Bad Fox and Other Tales
2017 · dir. Patrick Imbert
🍅 97%7.4family · animation · comedy

Common ground: santa claus

The difference: Without the same dream logic

The countryside isn't always as calm and peaceful as it's made out to be, and the animals on this farm are particularly agitated: a fox who mothers a family of chicks, a rabbit who plays the stork, and a duck who wants to be Santa Claus.

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Fun and Fancy Free poster
Fun and Fancy Free
1947 · dir. Hamilton Luske
🍅 73%6.3animation · family · fantasy

Cozy and witty in the same breath

Jiminy Cricket hosts two Disney animated shorts: Bongo about a circus bear escaping to the wild, and Mickey and the Beanstalk, a take on the famous fairy tale.

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Asterix and Cleopatra poster
Asterix and Cleopatra
1968 · dir. René Goscinny
7.2family · animation · adventure

Playful animation, and it commits to that

The difference: Lighter on dream logic

Popular animated hero Asterix and his faithful sidekick Obelix travel to ancient Egypt to help Cleopatra build a new summer home. Cleopatra and Julius Caesar have made a bet, with Caesar wagering the project cannot be completed in a few weeks time. With the help of a magic potion, Asterix comes to the rescue of the Queen of the Nile as Caesar and an angry architect plot against them.

Feels alike?
Asterix the Gaul poster
Asterix the Gaul
1967 · dir. Ray Goossens
6.6family · animation · adventure

Both lean on whimsy more than on family

In the year 50 BC, Gaul is occupied by the Romans - nearly. But the small village of Asterix and his friends still resists the Roman legions with the aid of their druid's magic potion, which gives superhuman strength. Learning of this potion, a Roman centurion kidnaps the druid to get the secret formula out of him.

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The Grinch poster
The Grinch
2018 · dir. Yarrow Cheney
🍅 60%6.4animation · comedy · family

Both keep coming back to the same thing: holiday

The Grinch hatches a scheme to ruin Christmas when the residents of Whoville plan their annual holiday celebration. But a certain little who might change things.

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The Nightmare Before Christmas poster
The Nightmare Before Christmas
1993 · dir. Henry Selick
🍅 95%7.9fantasy · animation · family

The same preoccupation in both: christmas tree

Tired of scaring humans every October 31 with the same old bag of tricks, Jack Skellington, the spindly king of Halloween Town, kidnaps Santa Claus and plans to deliver shrunken heads and other ghoulish gifts to children on Christmas morning. But as Christmas approaches, Jack's rag-doll girlfriend, Sally, tries to foil his misguided plans.

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Miracle on 34th Street poster
Miracle on 34th Street
1947 · dir. George Seaton
🍅 96%7.9comedy · drama · family

One thread runs through both: holiday

Kris Kringle, seemingly the embodiment of Santa Claus, is asked to portray the jolly old fellow at Macy's following his performance in the Thanksgiving Day parade. His portrayal is so complete that many begin to question if he truly is Santa Claus, while others question his sanity.

Feels alike?
The Twelve Tasks of Asterix poster
The Twelve Tasks of Asterix
1976 · dir. René Goscinny
7.7family · animation · comedy

Comedy with a pulse of warmth, in both cases

Asterix and Obelix depart on an adventure to complete twelve impossible tasks to prove to Caesar that they are as strong as the Gods. You'll roar with laughter as they outwit, outrun, and generally outrage the very people who are trying to prove them "only human".

Feels alike?
The Boxtrolls poster
The Boxtrolls
2014 · dir. Graham Annable
🍅 78%6.8animation · comedy · family

Animation built on dream logic, twice over

An orphaned boy raised by underground creatures called Boxtrolls comes up from the sewers and out of his box to save his family and the town from the evil exterminator, Archibald Snatcher.

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Klaus poster
Klaus
2019 · dir. Sergio Pablos
🍅 95%8.2animation · family · comedy

Different title, same corner of the shelf

A selfish postman and a reclusive toymaker form an unlikely friendship, delivering joy to a cold, dark town that desperately needs it.

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The best-reviewed films that share How the Grinch Stole Christmas!’s defining feeling.