Supernatural storytelling first became a holiday tradition in Victorian England, likely fueled by a combination of factors—the popularity of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol; long midwinter nights; looming industrialization making the world feel just a little bit scarier. And while written and oral storytelling obviously still exist, going to see a film in theaters—especially of the repertory or cult classic variety—feels like a modern way of swapping tales around a fireplace.

This month, as the nights get longer and colder, you’ll have many opportunities to see your favorites, plus films you might've missed the first time. Some screenings will conjure Christmas creepiness (Silent Night, Deadly Night), while others lean more warm and snuggly (Little Women). There's plenty of interesting terrain in between, too—Filipino Third Cinema, sapphic romance. Even Ryuichi Sakamoto shows up. 

If you're able, try walking to a movie theater this month. Layer up. Take the long way through a residential neighborhood. It'll be dark and quiet by the time you leave the theater; holiday lights will twinkle. It's a nice opportunity to reflect on what you've just seen. 

Little Women 

For fans of winter citrus, wool mittens, Winona Ryder.

Who stole Meg’s glove? How crazy is Jo to reject her hot, nice, and also rich neighbor? Would you ever speak to your sister again if she threw your manuscript into a fire? True to the novel, Little Women (1994) asks all of these questions and more. Kirsten Dunst’s Amy dreams of limes and a dainty nose; Winona Ryder’s Jo is every writer's hero, both resolute and broody. Claire Danes, Susan Sarandon, and Christian Bale stack the cast like so many dusty books in Jo's candlelit writing room. 

It's not easy to improve upon greatness, and "greatness" is represented by director Gillian Armstrong's interpretation of Louisa May Alcott's novel. Among the film’s perfect images is a piece of citrus left in a mailbox during a frosty winter, slush-stained skirts and wooden snowshoes, and a creaky hope chest brimming with velvet costumes. Charm!! Have you heard of it?

Sure, I’m a millennial woman, and therefore almost required to proselytize about this movie. But sometimes we’re right. (PAM CUT’s Tomorrow Theater, 3530 SE Division, Sun December 7, 2 pm, $15, more info, PG)

Carol

For fans of Djuna Barnes' Nightwood (1936), Céline Sciamma's Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2018), Andrew Haigh's Weekend (2011).

“I am not a whore... I’m an artist who paints with blood," writer Patricia Highsmith once said. You might be tempted to be like, "well, okay then," and move on with your life, but here's another idea: Sink into the essence of Highsmith's strange artistic passion with a cinematic interpretation of her work. Todd Haynes' Carol (2015), based on Highsmith's 1952 novel The Price of Salt, follows Carol, a glamorous and unsettled housewife, and Therese, a department store clerk, who fall in love in 1950s New York while chatting about a toy train set. The premise pulls from Highsmith's experience working the Macy's Christmas rush, during which she met (and lightly stalked) a "blondish woman in a fur coat."

Shot on Super 16mm film, Therese would appreciate Carol's lit-from-within feel and expressive grain—beneath the film's romantic A-plot is the lighter story of her development as an aspiring photographer. Carol is not only a Christmas film but also an opportunity to watch two distractingly beautiful and talented actresses appreciate each other for two hours. Basic Rights Oregon and the Lesbian Culture Club host this by-donation screening of the film, which promises "special Carol movie-themed surprises." (PAM CUT’s Tomorrow Theater, 3530 SE Division, Sun December 7, 6 pm, by donation, more info, R)

The Psychotronic After School Christmas Special

For fans of claymation, physical media, getting high and watching old commercial compilations on YouTube.

Look closely, and you’ll find that Portland’s film screenings are far from digital-only. Greg Hamilton, the veteran programmer also known as Darkroom Associates, carries legendary film archivist Dennis Nyback’s reel canister with 16mm film programs that lean rare and bizarre, like the Psychotronic After School Special, Trailermania, and the Nyback Show.

The crate-dug, celluloid-only screening conjures something weird and festive—think Christmas aliens, rental Santas, baby Seth Green, and other hard-to-find footage. (Hollywood Theatre, 4122 NE Sandy, Tues December 16, 7:30 pm, $10-$12, more info, not rated)

Also worth it:

Perfumed Nightmare in 16mm

I’ll be honest: I haven’t seen this '77 Filipino film, which was both directed and starred in by Third Cinema pioneer Kidlat Tahimik. But Werner Herzog calls it “one of the most original and poetic works of cinema made anywhere in the '70s,” and that’s good enough for all of us. (5th Avenue Cinema, December 5-7, more info)

Eyes Wide Shut

Forget your plans, throw on your sheerest tank top, and check out this sex cult instead. Because it's time to get aimlessly horny, people!! Eyes Wide Shut may elicit some other emotions, too, like rage at the disaffected entitlement of men and gratitude that Nicole got that divorce. (Academy Theater, December 5-11, more info)

Secretary

In Secretary's (2002) twist on a Mary Gaitskill short story, a young woman who struggles with self-harm (Maggie Gyllenhaal) takes a secretarial position for a masochistic lawyer (James Spader, who waters his orchids with a syringe) and finds purpose through BDSM. It's a complicated take on self-discovery—sometimes thorny, other times oversimplified—but the semi-surreal palette and frank, awkward explorations of desire keep things interesting. (Hollywood Theatre, Sun December 7, more info)

Black Christmas

Bob Clark's filmography might be accurately described as unhinged, or, at the very least, eclectic. The lo-fi zombie schlocker Children Shouldn't Play With Dead Things was one of his first features. He'd later direct Porky's, A Christmas Story, and, for reasons he’ll have to explain to God at the gates, Baby Geniuses. Clark’s most confusing entry is Black Christmas (1974), because it’s a legitimately terrifying film by the Baby Geniuses guy. Sorority girls are picked off one by one against a backdrop of twinkle lights. Black Christmas even popularized a persistent horror trope—a homicidal maniac's phone calls come from iiiiinside the hoooouse. (Cinemagic, December 7-8, more info)

The Thing

Not unlike the far reaches of space, no one can hear you scream at the South Pole, and that level of isolation and claustrophobia is central to The Thing’s tension. Predictably, Ennio Morricone’s score owns, amplifying the film’s dread with a mix of synthy darkness and nerve-plucking orchestral compositions. (Clinton Street Theater, Tues December 9, more info)

Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence

Ryuichi Sakamoto and David Bowie star in the most homoerotic film set in a World War II-era Japanese prison camp, which grapples with the constraints of masculinity and nationalism in the same caught breath. (Academy Theater, December 12-18, more info)

Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me with Ray Wise and Sheryl Lee

I doubt you need me to explain to you why David Lynch’s bone-deep nod to film noir is good viewing. But then again, it wasn’t always beloved. When Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me was released in 1992, it launched a polarizing critics' war—in the words of one particularly wrong New York Times writer, "It's not the worst movie ever made, it just feels like it." Luckily, we all came to our senses. The misty gloom of Twin Peaks feels good to revisit on the cusp of winter, particularly with Ray Wise and Sheryl Lee in the house. (Clinton Street Theater, December 19-20, more info)

Lady Snowblood

Set in Meiji-period Japan, the gory revenge in Toshiya Fujita's '73 film Lady Snowblood is enacted by a young woman whose parents were murdered by a criminal gang (played by Meiko Kaji, one of cinema history’s coolest). Quentin Tarantino cited this film as a major inspiration for his Kill Bill saga. (Hollywood Theatre, Mon December 22, more info) 

Silent Night, Deadly Night in 35mm

Upon the '84 release of Silent Night, Deadly Night, people got fussy. The film inspired what Variety described as a “rising chorus of protests" against its possibly "traumatizing" depiction of a splatter-prone Santa, and Siskel and Ebert shambled onto their soap boxes to shame the film's production team, too. In other words, it's an interesting watch if you're into gnarly, mean-spirited horror. Fans of the Terrifier franchise should firstly seek therapy and secondly dig this. (Hollywood Theatre, Tues December 23, more info)

The Phantom Carriage

If your concept of a good time is a 1921 silent Swedish film inspired by a Dickensian ghost story, then has the Academy Theater got the screening for you. (Academy Theater, December 26-31, more info)