The gorgeous snowy scenes and decorations
When you think of Christmas, one of the first things that springs to mind has to be snow – and the first film has it in spades. Who couldn’t look at it blanketing the Hogwarts grounds and not be reminded of the festive season? This was especially the case when we saw Hagrid dragging the huge Christmas trees across our screens and into the castle. The inside of Hogwarts was just as joyful – they always went all out when it came to decorations. Imagine how amazing it would feel to walk into the Great Hall and be surrounded by huge Christmas trees, festooned in baubles and ornaments. That’s how Christmas should be done.
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The atmospheric music
From Hedwig’s Theme to Harry’s Wonderous World, the music from the first film feels like another argument why Philosopher’s Stone should be considered a Christmas film. Whether it is the tinkly bell sounds or the swelling crescendos, there’s something that reminds us of the music you listen to at Christmas – which has a habit of stirring up your emotions. We know we can’t help but feel rather sentimental when we hear the soundtrack. It also feels like music that suits the winter season, rather than a summer bop, and that sets the tone for the entire film.
Harry’s first proper Christmas
One of the most happy and poignant scenes of the entire movie must be when Harry wakes up on Christmas Day at Hogwarts. Before this, he had suffered through years of thoroughly miserable yuletides with the Dursleys. We highly doubt he received many (if any) presents. He certainly was incredibly surprised to wake up and find that there were some gifts waiting for him at the end of his four-poster bed. It warmed our hearts to witness Harry enjoying this holiday for the first time. We were right there with him as he unwrapped everything from his iconic Weasley jumper to his father’s Invisibility Cloak and marvelled at it all. This important scene thoroughly cements the idea that Philosopher’s Stone is a Christmas movie.
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It has that Christmassy feeling
This one is a little harder to define as it isn’t a physical thing from the film. However, there is no doubt that the Philosopher’s Stone leaves you with a warm and fuzzy feeling – which is rather Christmassy. It’s like the feeling you get when you’re a kid and you’re waiting for Father Christmas to bring you presents, or when you’re sat on the sofa with your family watching Christmas television, or when you’re tucking into a fantastic Christmas feast – it makes you feel cosy and content.
Chris Columbus’s direction
Finally, we couldn’t finish this list without mentioning the director, Chris Columbus. Not only can you not spell Christmas without Chris, but his direction of the first film makes us think of the festive period. If we were to pinpoint why, it would probably be because of how much of a family film it turned out to be. It’s definitely one that you could all gather round to watch on Christmas Day, and everyone would find a thing they enjoyed about it. Also, he has previous experience when it comes to making festive films and has directed some other Christmas movies… there was one about a boy that was left on his own all alone at home…
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