8 Hanukkah movies to watch this year

Where to watch: Hallmark ChannelSynopsis: Inbar Lavi stars as Sara Levin, a newly single optometrist reentering the dating world. She juggles several suitors while her childhood best friend Daniel Myers (Jake Epstein of Degrassi: The Next Generation) secretly pines for her. On each night of Hanukkah, a thoughtful gift appears on Sara's doorstep from a secret admirer.What critics say: Levin and [Jake] Epstein have great chemistry, breathing moments of life and spontaneity into an otherwise stale script. And Hallmark deserves credit for casting two Jewish actors in roles where Judaism is central to their characters, Insider's Talia Lakritz wrote.Where to watch: Amazon Prime VideoSynopsis: Three childhood friends played by Rogen, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and Anthony Mackie reunite every Christmas Eve to try to find the elusive Nutcracker Ball, the best Christmas party in New York City. Hijinks ensue during the last year of the tradition.What critics say: The script was semi-improvised, which often shows in the film's loose, mildly chaotic tone, but it also allows the three charismatic stars to riff easily together, wrote Helen O'Hara for The Daily Telegraph.Where to watch: Amazon Prime VideoSynopsis: A rag-tag team of young Jewish basketball players recruits a former college basketball star to act as their own Judah Macabee to help them win their tournament during Hanukkah.What critics say: Director Stuart Gillard misses a prime opportunity to present a poignant and entertaining multicultural alternative to the usual holiday viewing; instead, the pic just mimics the maudlin emotions and forced sentiments of all Christmas fare — with over-the-top kosher flair, wrote Variety's Laura Fries.Where to watch: Hallmark Channel or Amazon Prime VideoSynopsis: Mia Kirshner stars as Christina, a restaurant owner who discovers her Jewish ancestry through a DNA test and connects with her newfound Jewish family, the Bermans, over Hanukkah. There's also the matter of David (Ben Savage), a restaurant critic who gave Christina's lasagna a less-than-enthusiastic review but is a fixture at the Bermans' Hanukkah gatherings as a family friend.What critics say: Those seeking a purely Hanukkah-focused film with little mention of Christmas won't find that here. But for those open to a movie that places Hanukkah at the center of a story about family, hope, and miracles, 'Love, Lights, Hanukkah!' might just be the applesauce to your latke, wrote Talia Lakritz of Insider.Where to watch: Hallmark ChannelSynopsis: Brooke (Brittany Bristow) is dumped by her boyfriend right before the holidays, and friends convince her to bring home an actor named Joel (Matt Cohen) to pretend to be her boyfriend, instead. There's just one catch — Joel is Jewish, and his lack of Christmas knowledge threatens to expose the ruse.What critics say: ['Holiday Date'] seems to show that those who celebrate Hanukkah and those who celebrate Christmas both have a lot to learn about each other's traditions. But in order to make this exchange plausible, the Jewish characters are rendered helpless with no apparent knowledge of Christmas, branding them further as outsiders (or as Brooke's dad calls Joel, an 'odd duck') in a culture that already treats other holidays as an afterthought, Insider's Talia Lakritz wrote.Where to watch: Hallmark ChannelSynopsis: Two rival coworkers, Rebecca and Chris, are forced to plan the company holiday party together while competing for the same promotion. What critics say: I don't think that ... 'Holiday Date' set out to intentionally misrepresent Jewish people or holiday traditions. But it's unfortunate that these movies turned out to be the equivalent of a cheap, plastic menorah at a holiday party full of lush garlands and Christmas trees — a well-intentioned attempt at inclusion that ultimately highlights the disparity even more, Insider's Talia Lakritz wrote.Where to watch: HuluSynopsis: Elio (Timothée Chalamet), a 17-year-old living with his Jewish family in Italy, falls in love with Oliver (Armie Hammer), a 24-year-old graduate student assisting Elio's father over the summer.What critics say: 'Call Me By Your Name' is narrative in that it tells the short, bittersweet story of Elio and Oliver, but it is more a terrarium of human experience, a sensory immersion that is remarkably full in its vision. Guadagnino fills every scene with life — people, insects, plants. Each shot is busy with existence, but Guadagnino does not overwhelm, wrote Richard Lawson of Vanity Fair.Where to watch: Amazon Prime VideoSynopsis: Davey Stone (voiced by Sandler) is sentenced to court-mandated community service with a youth basketball league, supervised by a referee Whitey Duvall (also voiced by Sandler). He has until the end of Hanukkah to improve his ways, or face jail time.What critics say: 'Eight Crazy Nights,' which was given a hard PG-13 for prominently featuring beloved holiday staples like 'frequent crude and sexual humor, drinking, and brief drug references,' boldly defies the conventions of holiday movies in ways that might seem audacious if the end product weren't so repellent and joyless, wrote AV Club's Nathan Rabin.

8 Hanukkah movies to watch this year

Premiering on December 3 at 8 p.m. ET, "Eight Gifts of Hanukkah" is Hallmark's first-ever purely Hanukkah movie.

Seth Rogen plays a Jewish character, complete with a Hanukkah sweater, in "The Night Before" (2015).

The Disney Channel original movie "Full Court Miracle" came out in 2003.

"Love, Lights, Hanukkah!" (2020) centers Hanukkah traditions and their symbolism.

In Hallmark's "Holiday Date" (2019), Brooke hires a Jewish actor to pretend to be her boyfriend for Christmas.

Coworkers Chris and Rebecca face off in Hallmark's 2019 movie "Double Holiday."

While "Call Me By Your Name" (2017) isn't exactly a Hanukkah movie, its iconic ending scene takes place on Hanukkah with a menorah prominently featured.

Adam Sandler's "Eight Crazy Nights" (2002) is an animated musical comedy inspired by his famous "Hanukkah Song" performed on "SNL."