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Thanksgiving movies: the dinner-table canon and the long-weekend watches

23 titles chosen by hand for the fourth Thursday in November: the films where the dinner is the plot, the ones set over the long weekend, and the holiday's one proper slasher. Streaming first, tagged for intensity, so the whole table can agree before the pie.

The dinner is the plot

Families, travel, and the one relative nobody warned you about.

  1. 1Planes, Trains and Automobiles posterPlanes, Trains and Automobiles (1987)Big broad humor · heartwarming · date night · brisk · RAn uptight executive's chaotic journey home for Thanksgiving becomes a heartwarming, briskly paced comedy of errors.Paramount+ · Kanopy
  2. 2Pieces of April posterPieces of April (2003)Dry wit · melancholy · comfort watch · emotionally heavy · PG-13An earnest, intimate Thanksgiving dinner descends into witty chaos as a family confronts their melancholy past.MGM+ · Kanopy · Hoopla
  3. 3Krisha posterKrisha (2016)Bleak · full attention · emotionally devastating · a slow burn · RA woman's return to her estranged family for Thanksgiving unravels into a bleak and intimate drama.
  4. 4Hannah and Her Sisters posterHannah and Her Sisters (1986)Dry wit · intimate · date night · emotionally heavy · PG-13Romantic entanglements and witty banter unfold with melancholy intimacy between two Thanksgiving dinners.Criterion · MGM+ · Hoopla
  5. 5A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving posterA Charlie Brown Thanksgiving (1973)Wholesome humor · cozy · family watch · measured · GThe Peanuts gang scrambles to create a Thanksgiving feast, bringing wholesome humor and heartwarming chaos.Apple TV+
  6. 6Free Birds posterFree Birds (2013)Wholesome humor · whimsical · family watch · brisk · PGTwo turkeys from different worlds embark on a brisk, wholesome, and whimsical time-traveling adventure.Paramount+ · Starz · YouTube (free)
  7. 7Grumpy Old Men posterGrumpy Old Men (1993)Dry wit · cozy · date night · measured · PG-13Two feuding neighbors escalate their lifelong rivalry with witty pranks when a charming new widow moves in.Paramount+
  8. 8Addams Family Values posterAddams Family Values (1993)Big broad humor · darkly comic · family watch · mildly scary · PG-13A darkly-comic family struggles with a new baby and a murderous nanny in this campy, whimsical comedy.Paramount+
  9. 9Nobody's Fool posterNobody's Fool (1994)Dry wit · cozy · comfort watch · measured · RA rascally old man juggles small-town drama, family, and a cozy, witty quest for belonging.MGM+ · Hoopla
  10. 10The Ice Storm posterThe Ice Storm (1997)Melancholy · full attention · emotionally devastating · measured · RAn ice storm mirrors the emotional chill as a suburban family unravels in 1973.
  11. 11Son in Law posterSon in Law (1993)Big broad humor · whimsical · comfort watch · brisk · PG-13A savvy party animal helps a country girl find her place in the big city, leading to wholesome, crowd-pleasing antics.

Set over the long weekend

Not about the holiday, but it is on the calendar and in the mood. The one slasher is here too.

  1. 1Scent of a Woman posterScent of a Woman (1992)Dry wit · melancholy · date night · emotionally heavy · RA lonely, blind colonel and a young man form an unlikely bond during a poignant Thanksgiving weekend.YouTube (free)
  2. 2Rocky posterRocky (1976)Feel good · comfort watch · strong violence · emotionally heavy · PGA gritty Philadelphia boxer gets one shot at the big time, finding heartwarming uplift in the measured fight.Prime Video · Paramount+
  3. 3Tower Heist posterTower Heist (2011)Big broad humor · pulpy · comfort watch · brisk · PG-13An unlikely crew of wronged workers plans a darkly comic, high-stakes heist against a crooked billionaire.YouTube (free)
  4. 4Spider-Man posterSpider-Man (2002)Wholesome humor · epic · comfort watch · strong violence · PG-13A nerdy high schooler gains amazing powers, becoming a wholesome hero in an epic, heartwarming adventure.Disney+
  5. 5Miracle on 34th Street posterMiracle on 34th Street (1994)Wholesome humor · whimsical · family watch · measured · PGA skeptical girl discovers the true spirit of Christmas when a whimsical man claims to be Santa.Disney+
  6. 6Miracle on 34th Street posterMiracle on 34th Street (1947)Whimsical · family watch · measured · NRA department store Santa spreads heartwarming whimsy, making even the most skeptical believe in magic.Prime Video · Disney+
  7. 7You've Got Mail posterYou've Got Mail (1998)Dry wit · cozy · date night · measured · PGTwo charming booksellers, rivals in real life, fall for each other through anonymous online messages.Paramount+ · YouTube (free)
  8. 8The Last Waltz posterThe Last Waltz (1978)Intimate · full attention · emotionally heavy · measured · PGA legendary band's farewell concert becomes an intimate, melancholy, and atmospheric rock and roll send-off.Prime Video · Kanopy · Hoopla
  9. 9Thanksgiving posterThanksgiving (2023)Properly scary · graphic gore · brutal violence · brisk · RA Black Friday riot sparks a darkly comic mystery as a holiday killer terrorizes Plymouth.Hulu · Max
  10. 10Prisoners posterPrisoners (2013)Suspenseful · light gore · strong violence · emotionally devastating · RA father's desperate search for his missing daughter descends into a bleak, gritty, and atmospheric nightmare.84
  11. 11Brokeback Mountain posterBrokeback Mountain (2005)Melancholy · date night · emotionally devastating · measured · RTwo cowboys in 1960s Wyoming forge an intimate, enduring connection that complicates their lives with melancholy.
  12. 12The Blind Side posterThe Blind Side (2009)Feel good · comfort watch · emotionally heavy · measured · PG-13A compassionate family offers a homeless teenager a second chance, changing his life and theirs forever.
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