The five best Thanksgiving movies

Today is one of the biggest days of the year for Americans as it's the annual Thanksgiving celebration, a day that is a major public holiday across the county and that basically sees much of it grounding to a halt to instead preach family values. For us in Europe, we don't celebrate Thanksgiving, but as many films have been developed and created in the US and by American filmmakers, there are a plethora of options that tap directly into the theme of the holiday.

So if you're looking for some themed-viewing, let us help you out with what we regard to be the five best (be that applicable to the holiday or in a watchable manner) films based on or set around Thanksgiving.

5. Spider-Man

A bit of a classic and fan-favourite these days, it's easy to forget that the first chapter of Sam Raimi's web-slinging trilogy is set around Thanksgiving. Between witnessing Tobey Maguire's Peter Parker developing his powers, we also get to see Peter, Aunt May, Mary Jane, and Harry and Norman Osborn coming together to celebrate the holiday with home-cooked food and cosy vibes. What might seem like a lovely moment is polarised by a battle that took place hours before between Spider-Man and Green Goblin (Norman Osborn, not that the characters knew at this point), an event that disrupted this universe's version of the famed Thanksgiving parade in New York City. A truly great Thanksgiving option and an equally entertaining film for all to enjoy.

4. Rocky

Rocky operates in this weird limbo where it is part-Thanksgiving film and part-Christmas/New Year's film. We're including it here because the first act and slightly beyond all takes place around Thanksgiving and delivers some of the most memorable and iconic scenes of the entire Rocky franchise. It may not be as wholesome as some other holiday flicks you can find, as this is a rather turbulent time in the life of Sylvester Stallone's famous boxer, but it's also one of the greatest films ever made and that's more than enough reason to make Rocky your Thanksgiving flick this year.

3. Addams Family Values

Wednesday is all the rage these days but anyone who has seen the fantastic live-action films from the early 90s will know that The Addams Family were at their finest during this period. To that end, Addams Family Values is a delightful watch that should entertain the whole family, especially those who have fallen for Jenna Ortega's version of the young creepy and kooky daughter. This film is ideal for international folk, beyond the US, as while it takes clear inspiration from Thanksgiving, it also turns the focus away from the holiday, simply using it as a platform to gather the wider and weirder family for a special and incredibly memorable meal.

2. Thanksgiving (2023)

You can't have a Thanksgiving list without a film that is literally called and entirely based on the holiday. Granted, this one isn't for the whole family, as it's more so a flick to pop on at the end of the evening when just the adults are left standing. This horror film is a simple slasher in many senses, a film that sees a Pilgrim-inspired killer terrorising a Massachusetts-based town all on the days that followed the annual family holiday. Expect blood, expect gore, expect violence, and expect plenty of turkeys and lovely autumn backdrops.

1. Planes, Trains and Automobiles

Without question, without any doubt, the finest and best Thanksgiving movie of them all: Planes, Trains and Automobiles. Perhaps the most iconic of John Candy's admirable slate of movies, this flick saw the comedy legend teaming up with the equally talented Steve Martin to appear in a flick by filmmaking hero John Hughes. The perfect trinity, some may say. Planes, Trains and Automobiles had the simple plot of seeing an advertising man travelling home from New York to Chicago to be with his family for the holiday, only to find hurdles every step of the way, asking him to find new ways to cover the distance and make it back in time. It's hilarious, it's family-friendly, it's everything you could want from a film, regardless of the time of year or the holiday. It's unmissable and our clear number one pick.