And you might've noticed a prevalent theme in them as well -- not just the fact that they all take place around Christmastime or feature Santa in one of his many, sometimes strange manifestations (ahem -- Tim Allen), but that they tend to be, well, kind of grim and depressing. In this excellent piece from Criterion, video essayists Michael Koresky and Casey Moore take a look inside the world of Christmas movies to investigate the "longstanding tradition of bleak midwinters at the movies," noting such classics as A Christmas Carol,It's a Wonderful Life, Mon oncle Antoine, My Night at Maud's, and A Christmas Tale.