18 Movies to Get You Into the Thanksgiving Spirit

After finishing your October horror movie marathon, you may be tempted to dive right into Elf (2003), some Rankin Bass holiday specials, and It’s a Wonderful Life (1946). But there’s a whole category of cinema to watch between the Halloween and Christmas seasons that viewers often ignore.

What makes a Thanksgiving movie isn’t always clear-cut—some are conceived around the holiday, and others feature one memorable scene with a turkey on the table. Like the holiday itself, Thanksgiving movies are the offbeat, sometimes melodramatic stepsiblings to their Christmas counterparts. If you’re looking for something other than football or parade coverage to watch on the holiday, check out the Thanksgiving (or Thanksgiving-ish) films below. 

Addams Family Values (1993)

If you’re still in the mood for something spooky after Halloween, Addams Family Values (1993) is the ideal transitional film. The sequel features Anjelica Houston, Raul Julia, Christina Ricci, and Christopher Lloyd reprising their roles as the titular family, with Joan Cusack and David Krumholtz playing memorable new characters. The plot isn’t Thanksgiving-centric, but one scene in particular makes it a great film to watch around the holiday. While reenacting the first Thanksgiving at camp, Wednesday Addams breaks from the script and delivers a speech listing the injustices Native Americans have endured since the pilgrims arrived. It ends with the line: “And for all these reasons, I have decided to scalp you and burn your village to the ground.” It’s the perfect antidote to the feel-good content flooding airwaves this time of year.

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles (1987)

This 1987 comedy focuses on the lead-up to Thanksgiving rather than the meal itself. Steve Martin plays a marketing executive who is desperately trying to make it home to his family for Thanksgiving while dealing with the antics of a shower curtain ring salesman played by John Candy. The film also marks an early foray into holiday movies for writer John Hughes, who penned Home Alone (1990) a few years later. 

The Last Waltz (1978)

This legendary documentary not only chronicles the history of The Band, but also captures their final concert, which took place on Thanksgiving Day, November 25, 1976. They were joined by special guests like Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Muddy Waters, Ringo Starr, and Neil Young. On top of featuring one of the greatest musical lineups of all time, the flick was also the first of many collaborations between The Band frontman Robbie Robertson and director Martin Scorsese. Robertson acted as a musical consultant for multiple future Scorsese films, including Raging Bull and The Wolf of Wall Street. He also composed the scores forThe Color of Money, The Irishman, and Killers of the Flower Moon, among others.

Miracle on 34th Street (1947)

If you’re feeling more festive than spooky in the days between the Halloween and Christmas seasons, put on Miracle on 34th Street. While it’s generally considered a classic Christmas movie, the film opens with Edmund Gwenn as Santa Claus riding in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, so it has a foot planted in both holidays. Fun fact: Gwenn really did play Santa in the parade in 1946, and that scene consists of actual footage from the event.

Pieces of April (2003)

After she learns that her mother (Patricia Clarkson) has terminal cancer, black sheep April (Katie Holmes) offers to host Thanksgiving for her estranged suburban family in her rundown Lower East Side apartment, a prospect that doesn’t excite them. This indie dramedy, which was filmed over just 16 days, was made on a budget of just $300,000 but went on to gross over $3.2 million and it perfectly captures the stresses of the holidays, especially as everything goes awry.

The Ice Storm (1997)

Christina Ricci also appears in Ang Lee’s The Ice Storm—another movie that features an acidic Thanksgiving speech. Over the course of the holiday break in the 1970s, a Connecticut family is pulled apart by alcohol, sexual experimentation, and an extramarital affair. Things come to a head at Thanksgiving dinner, when family matriarch Wendy (played by Joan Allen) thanks the lord for “letting us white people kill all the Indians and steal their tribal lands. And stuff ourselves like pigs, even though children in Asia are being napalmed.”

The House of Yes (1997)

No matter how screwed up your family is, they probably look like the Waltons or Cleavers next to the Pascal clan. Mrs. Pascal (Geneviève Bujold) is implied to have murdered her husband; Anthony (Freddie Prinze Jr.) is a sexual predator; and twins Marty (John Hamilton) and Jackie (Parker Posey in an acclaimed performance) were embroiled in an incestuous relationship until he moved away from home. When Marty brings his fiancée Lesly (Tori Spelling) home for Thanksgiving, she gets caught up in the family’s insanity against her will. Depending on your appreciation for black humor, The House of Yes might make you laugh—or cringe—but at the very least, you’ll probably be thankful that you’re not a Pascal. 

Kristy (2014)

There can be worse things than spending Thanksgiving with your family. If you’re a student hunkering down on campus instead of schlepping home for the festivities, you might want to check out this horror flick. Unlike most of her classmates at an elite private university, scholarship student Justine (Ashley Greene) cannot afford to return home to spend the season with her family, so she opts to stay at her nearly deserted school. Unfortunately, she becomes the target of a cult of ritualistic killers and is forced to fight for her life.

A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving (1973)

Watching the Peanuts holiday specials is an annual tradition in many households. A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving (1973) isn’t quite as iconic as It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown (1966) or A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965), but it’s still a seasonal classic.

She’s Gotta Have It (1986)

Spike Lee’s first feature-length film follows Nola (Tracy Camilla Johns), an unapologetically confident woman juggling simultaneous relationships with three very different men. The film hits its crescendo when she invites all three to Thanksgiving dinner, and it’s a great flick to throw on if you're hosting Friendsgiving for adults only. She’s Gotta Have It features the first appearance of Mars Blackmon (played by Lee), a basketball fanatic and collector of Air Jordan sneakers. Lee would reprise the character in a popular series of commercials for the shoes in the 1980s and 1990s.

Spider-Man (2002)

Sam Raimi’s original Spider-Man has one of the superhero genre’s best ensembles, and the cast is at its best during the film’s Thanksgiving scene. You have Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire) quipping about cranberry sauce; Norman Osborn (Willem Dafoe) letting his inner goblin come through while carving the turkey; and Aunt May (Rosemary Harris) trying to keep everyone on their best behavior. The movie also features a parade set piece. Even if it’s technically set at the fictional Unity Day Festival and not the Macy’s Parade, the balloons Spidey and the Green Golbin spar around are reminiscent of Thanksgiving in New York. 

You’ve Got Mail (1998)

The spirit of fall and the comfort of a good meal are two things Nora Ephron movies are famous for. That makes her 1998 rom-com You’ve Got Mail the perfect film to watch around the fourth Thursday in November. One of the best scenes, in which Tom Hanks helps out Meg Ryan in Zabar’s cash-only line, takes place on Thanksgiving and expertly captures the chaos of the holiday. 

Mistress America (2015)

When Tracy (Lola Kirke) has trouble adjusting during her freshman year of college in New York City, her mother suggests that she contact Brooke (Greta Gerwig, who also co-wrote the film with director Noah Baumbach), the free-spirited daughter of the man that Tracy’s mother is engaged to marry the day after Thanksgiving, and who’s lived in the city for years. The two hit it off, and though their relationship has its ups and downs, they make peace by sharing a meal on Thanksgiving, just the two of them. With its untraditional characters and Thanksgiving celebration, this movie is perfect viewing for those celebrating with friends rather than family members. 

The Humans (2021)

Writer-director Stephen Karam’s screen adaptation of his Tony Award-winning play (which was also a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Drama) takes place over one Thanksgiving day. The cast features Richard Jenkins, Amy Schumer, Beanie Feldstein, and Steven Yeun as members of a dysfunctional family whose simmering tensions begin to boil over. Watching it ahead of Thanksgiving may make you feel better about your own family dramas. 

Scent of a Woman (1992)

In Scent of a Woman, Chris O’Donnell plays a student who accepts a job to spend his Thanksgiving break looking after a blind, retired Lieutenant Colonel and alcoholic played by Al Pacino. Pacino won an Oscar for his portrayal of the cantankerous Frank Slade, and the Thanksgiving dinner scene above demonstrates why.

Home for the Holidays (1995)

Most Thanksgiving movies aren’t as warm-and-fuzzy as their Christmas counterparts. This Jodie Foster-directed feature follows yet another dysfunctional family gathering around the dinner table for the November holiday. Holly Hunter plays a recently-unemployed single mom, and Robert Downey Jr., Anne Bancroft, and Claire Daines fill out the ensemble cast.

The Gold Rush (1925)

Before comparing your aunt’s turkey to shoe leather, watch the scene above from The Gold Rush. In the silent film, writer, director, and star Charlie Chaplin prepares Thanksgiving dinner for himself and Big Jim (played by Mack Swain) in a remote cabin in Alaska. The boiled leather shoe he serves makes even the most overcooked bird look appetizing. 

Prisoners (2013)

If you’re in the mood for something suspenseful, Denis Villeneuve’s star-studded thriller Prisoners makes for perfect Thanksgiving viewing. When two young girls are kidnapped after Thanksgiving dinner, Keller (Hugh Jackman), the father of one of them, simultaneously self-destructs and becomes determined to both find the girls and bring their abductor to justice—by any means necessary. Tense and enthralling, Prisoners boasts an impressive cast that includes Jake Gyllenhaal, Terrance Howard, Regina King, Melissa Leo, and Paul Dano.

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A version of this story ran in 2022; it has been updated for 2024.