Skip to main content

Apple announces iTunes’ top five best-selling holiday movies

itunes list of top christmas movies ever elf 1
2003 New Line Prod. / Courtesy: Pyxurz
It’s Christmas Eve and many of us will be hunkered down in the living room tonight waiting for Santa to drop off all manner of techy presents. And while we do that, we’re likely to be streaming a movie or two while pounding that eggnog with our Pfeffernüsse cookies. Apple has released its list of the five best-selling holiday movies of all time, and there are no real surprises on the list. So pull up a browser and peruse this mini-list of holiday favorites, all available on iTunes. At number five, we have:

The Polar Express

This film was ahead of its time with the technology used to create it. USA Today once said about the 2004 release, “(The movie is) neither live action nor computer animation but something in between called “‘performance capture.'” The Polar Express stars Tom Hanks and is directed by Robert Zemeckis.

The Polar Express (2004) Official Trailer - Tom Hanks, Robert Zemeckis Movie HD

Home Alone

Clocking in at number four, Home Alone is a comedic blockbuster from the pen of John Hughes. It thrust Macaulay Culkin into our collective consciousness back in 1990. Has it really been 26 years since the family went off to Paris and left Kevin to fend for himself?

Home Alone Trailer

Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas

Number three is the Jim Carrey’s Grinchy interpretation of the Dr. Seuss epic, released in 2000.

How The Grinch Stole Christmas Trailer HD

National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation

In the runner-up spot, Chevy Chase stars in this 1989 film as the hapless Clark W. Griswold, who blows up the city power grid with his massive light display. Well, that’ll happen.

National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation - Theatrical Trailer

Elf

And the iTunes all time best seller? Number one is none other than Will Ferrell, who jingles our bells as Buddy the Elf in this 2003 release.

Elf (2003) Official Trailer #1 - Will Ferrell, Zooey Deschanel Christmas Movie HD

Apple also helpfully suggests such titles as Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, The Night Before, A Christmas Story, The Santa Clause, It’s a Wonderful Life, Love Actually and Mickey’s Christmas Carol.

Editors' Recommendations

Brinke Guthrie
Brinke’s favorite toys include his Samsung Galaxy Tab S, Toshiba Chromebook 2, Motorola Moto G4, and two Kindles. A…
4K movies get downgraded to regular HD on iTunes — and no one knows why
harry potter imax and the chamber of secrets

If you're planning to watch some of your favorite movies in 4K on iTunes any time soon, you might be out of luck for the time being. Reports from iTunes customers on Twitter and various support forums indicate that a number of high-profile movies have been switched from 4K "ultra" resolution to regular HD -- and nobody seems sure why.

Initially, reports from outlets like 9to5Mac indicated that the affected titles all came from Warner Bros., and included big hits like the Harry Potter series, Fast & Furious 6, X-Men: Days of Future Past, and both Matrix sequels (which is a bummer for anyone looking to catch up before the rumored Matrix 4 arrives). After more investigation, it looks like affected films come from a number of studios, including Columbia, MGM, and 20th Century Fox. It doesn't matter if you already own the movies in 4K or if you have yet to purchase them -- at the moment, these titles will play in 1080p HD only.

Read more
Samsung’s TVs are the first to get AirPlay 2, Apple TV app, plus iTunes movies
Samsung-Apple-TV-Airplay-2-Launch

Starting May 13, all 2019 Samsung TVs, and a select group of its 2018 models, will be updated with support for Apple's AirPlay 2 content casting and screen mirroring technology, plus access to the Apple TV app, including iTunes rentals and purchases, and Apple's upcoming Apple TV Plus streaming video subscription service.

The update makes Samsung TVs the first non-Apple TV devices to support these key Apple services and technologies. It's a partnership that has been on the horizon since the news was announced ahead of CES 2019.

Read more
How to transfer your iTunes library to a new computer
The best way to move your iTunes songs to another computer
apple smartflash itunes sierra library screen

When you have a beloved iTunes music collection that you've carefully curated for years, you definitely don't want to leave it behind, and you may not want to re-download everything one album at a time from your Apple Account, either. While iCloud can help with smaller transfers, it's not really conducive to moving your entire iTunes library.

Fortunately, Apple has a tool specifically designed to move data from one computer to another, especially when you just got a new computer and are updating: It's called Migration Assistant, and it's your best option for a smooth iTunes transition. You don't have to download an extra app, because Migration Assistant is included in MacOS natively. If you are transferring iTunes to a Mac, you can use it. Here's how to begin:
Step 1: Consolidate your files
Update everything on both computers so they are running the latest version of the operating system and iTunes. Then make any data backups that you may need. Prepare your iTunes library by opening iTunes, selecting File, going to Library, and choosing Organize Library.

Read more