I remember watching A Christmas Story back when it first came out, and I thought it was a funny movie. I would never consider it a classic, and though I liked it, it has been aired to death in recent years, and certainly did not need a remake.
Of all the Classics I did see as a child, there are only a handful I really can stand watching again. Partly because every year the endless run of Christmas movies seems to start earlier and earlier, and more and more it feels like the season has lost it's magic. I don't know if this is just part of getting old, or just another sign of things broken inside me that can't be fixed. I do miss that feeling of magic and wonder I had as a kid during Christmas. I was very upset lats year when I did sit down to Watch
How The Grinch Stole Christmas only to find it edited. Have we really reached that point where we need to edit Dr. Seuss?
Among my current Christmas Classics are:
Scrooged,
How the Grinch Stole Christmas (original animated),
Die Hard,
Gremlins, Invader Zim: The Most Horrible X-mas Ever (Season 2 Episode 1).
The Nightmare Before Christmas I consider more of a Thanksgiving movie since it's timeline spans Halloween through Christmas. Sadly this too was edited from Theatre to Video to make it more kid friendly.
Other Christmas movies I have liked, but do not feel obligated to necessarily watch every year:
Klaus,
Eight Crazy Nights,
Home Alone (original),
Polar Express,
A Charlie Brown Christmas, Frosty the Snowman, Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, Santa Claus is Coming to Town, Santa Claus: The Movie, A Christmas Carol (so many variations to choose from),
Santa Claus vs the Martians,
Krampus, and of course
The Star Wars Holiday Special Though this one should be watched again and again.