Take a cinematic journey with these Thanksgiving classics.
Thanksgiving is a time when I bust out my turkey trousers, gather with friends and family, enjoy a turkey dinner with my mom’s stuffing (not dressing, gross), acquiesce to her one pie per person rule (torture, I know), eat way too much, and then ask myself why I watched the Lions game yet again. This year, things are different. The Lions are one of the hottest teams in the NFL, and I’ve been promoted to head stuffing maker and lead turkey carver.
With a four-day weekend ahead, I whittled down the cornucopia of Turkey Day-themed movies and made a list of my favorites. With an assist from Rotten Tomatoes and Thrillist, here are my Top 5 Thanksgiving Movies of All Time rated like I rate all things important in “Pies,” with 5 Pies being the ultimate sign of excellence.
#5 Trading Places 🥧🥧🥧
Trading Places shows Dan Ackroyd and Eddie Murphy at their early career finest. This is the pinnacle of 1980s cinema. With all the reboots happening nowadays, these two will hook up again on the big screen.
Quintessential Thanksgiving Moment: Okay, it’s more of a Christmas movie. But Trading Places spans three holidays (Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year), so there’s no better way to get ready for them all.
Best Quote: “It ain’t cool being no jive turkey, so close to Thanksgiving.” — Guy in Jail Cell
#4 Pieces of April 🥧🥧🥧🥧
I’ll admit to watching all of Dawson’s Creek. So when this movie came across my cue, and I saw it had Katie Holmes in it, I said, “Why not?” The movie’s both heartbreaking and heartwarming at the same time. The only thing missing is James Van Der Beek.
Quintessential Thanksgiving Moment: The awkwardness ensues when April (played by a young Katie Holmes) invites her mother and estranged family to her tiny NYC apartment for Thanksgiving dinner.
Best Quote: “I only have one nice April memory, only one. She was about three or four. And she was sitting at the window. And she turned to me and said, ‘Oh Mother, don’t you just love every day?'” — Joy Burns
#3 Planes, Trains, and Automobiles 🥧🥧
I don’t like Planes, Trains, and Automobiles. Not even a little. Why is it in my top 5, then you ask? Because even though I don’t like it, I’m a big enough person to recognize it’s a fine flick.
Thanksgiving Lesson: Holiday travel requires planning—and even then, it’s still horrible.
Best Quote: Neal: [Comes back to Chicago rail station to find Del sitting alone] “Del, what are you doing here? You said you were going home. What are you doing here?” Del: “I uh… I don’t have a home. Marie’s been dead for eight years.”
#2 Scent of a Woman 🥧🥧🥧🥧🥧
This movie is kind of a downer, but damn, it’s so good. Al Pacino turns in a tour de force performance. Chris O’Donnell ain’t bad, either. A blind guy driving a Ferrari Mondial t Cabriolet, how can you beat that?
Quintessential Thanksgiving Moment: Al Pacino takes his young helper to dinner at the Oak Room at the Waldorf Astoria and casually discusses his plans to kill himself.
Best quote: “Whoo ah!” — Al Pacino
#1 A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving 🥧🥧🥧🥧🥧
Call me sentimental, but I love A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving. Even though the movie would place third behind A Charlie Brown Christmas and It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, respectively. There’s something about The Peanuts that makes me wax nostalgic.
Quintessential Thanksgiving Moment: Watching Woodstock and Snoopy pull apart a wishbone and eat a piece of pumpkin pie together.
Best Quote: “I haven’t even finished eating all my Halloween candy!”— Sally Brown
That’s my list. Hopefully, it gives you a few ideas to pass the time between turkey leftovers and Black Friday shopping. What about you? Did I leave any of your favorites off?
