Christmas is just around the corner. At this time of year many of us are reaching for the dustiest DVDs on our shelves, having found the perfect opportunity to re-watch our yuletide favorite films.

For one half of the population, it’s an excuse to break out Christmas classics like Just Friends, When Harry Met Sally and Love, Actually. For the other half of the population it’s all the excuse we need to break out our DVDs of Die Hard, Gremlins and Lethal Weapon. Unlike Danny Glover however, we’re not “too old for this s**t”; when it comes to amazing Christmas presents there is very little that we are too old for, but if you are still struggling after going through this then why not check out this nifty gift generator.

We’ve put together a list of the top 10 gifts which have graced the silver screen over the years. While not all of these gifts are the kind you’d want to present your in-laws this holiday season, they are quite possibly the 10 most amusing, most thoughtful or funniest gifts that you will see in Christmas movies this year.

10. The gift of not having to put up Christmas decorations in Elf

Elf, John Berg’s 2003 Christmas comedy, wasn’t just a box office hit, making $220.4m off of a $33m budget, it shows one of the best possible gifts of all time – the gift of not having to put up your work Christmas decorations yourself.

In the movie, Will Ferrell’s character Buddy winds up breaking into a department store after hours in an attempt to redecorate it and get it ready for the festive season. Watching Buddy perform these tasks with such great tenacity and enthusiasm is not just a treat, but it was obviously received well by the store owners who had previously banned Buddy from the store.

While many of us do enjoy this aspect of Christmas, there’s no denying that denying the fact that putting up decorations at work is far less appealing than the idea of decorating your own home. We certainly wouldn’t complain if Buddy came and decorated our offices – that’s for sure.

9. The expensive necklace from Love, Actually

Love, Actually is one of those Christmas classics that became a nation’s favourite the moment it hit the silver screen, as evidenced by its $246.9m box office takings. With an impressive cast, a mass of intertwining story lines and an exciting countdown until Christmas, Love, Actually is one of those films which is guaranteed to remain a Christmas favourite for years to come.

Watching Harry (Alan Rickman) trying to buy an expensive necklace for his love interest is interesting to be sure – especially when you consider that he doesn’t want his nearby wife to find out. Rowan Atkinson, the gentleman serving Harry, adds such a flourish to the elaborate gift-wrapping of this present that it’s instantly recognisable and entirely memorable.

While the present wasn’t for Harry’s wife, and his wife does find out about present leading to a tense scene between the two, the thought of receiving such a lavishly wrapped gift like this is always a nice one.

8. The wooden pickle from Bad Santa

Bad Santa was a bit of a flop in the box office, grossing just $76.5m. That being said, this movie with Billy Bob Thornton as a professional thief making the most of the festive cheer isn’t one you’ll soon forget.

Billy Bob Thornton plays Willie Stokes, an alcoholic thief who dresses up as Santa in order to order to rob department stores at night with the help of his partner in crime. When visited by the mall’s local kids looking to ask Santa for a present, he hands one of them a wooden pickle. While this would be met with a mixture of horror, disgust and confusion in real life, you can’t help but laugh when watching it on the big screen.

7. Exactly what you wanted as a child in The Santa Clause

The Santa Clause wasn’t quite the massive hit that Disney had hoped for, but it is still a notable Christmas movie that’s worth watching at least once. The story revolves around Scott (Tim Allen), 38-year-old divorcee, who has his son around one Christmas Eve when Santa inadvertently falls off his roof. Events transpire, Scott dons the Santa suit, he winds up finishing Santa’s rounds and he becomes Santa himself due to the Santa Clause on Santa’s business card.

A year later Scott winds up going through the Christmas motions again, and winds up having to prove his Santa powers to his ex-wife and her new husband, and does so by producing the gifts they wanted as children, way back when.

When it comes to getting the perfect Christmas present, that one present that escaped you as a kid is generally the way forward.

6. Sico, Paulie’s robot butler from Rocky 4

While Paulie’s robot butler is technically a birthday present, Rocky 4 is certainly a Christmas movie, so it counts. Besides, let’s be honest – who doesn’t want a robot butler?

Paulie is one of Rocky’s closest friends and was Adrian’s brother, so it makes sense that Rocky wants to splash out a little for his birthday. Sico, Paulie’s new robot butler, is fully capable of understanding human voices and interacting with humans. Though Paulie claimed that he wanted a sports car, “not no walking trash can”, he eventually warms to the robot, calling her “his girl” later on in the movie.

5. The Talkboy from Home Alone 2

Home Alone 2 is one of those Christmas movies which has, and will, continue to stand the test of time. In the film, Macaulay Culkin is given a handy little toy which proved so popular among the target audience that it became a highly popular Christmas gift in the early 90’s.

This toy was, of course, the Talkboy. This piece of antiquated technology was simply a cassette player with an attached microphone, allowing Culkin to record the voice of the baddies and use it to his own ends, helping him save the day.

While the Talkboy was a fun little toy to play with as a kid if you were lucky enough to get your hands on one, the gain on the mic was so low that you couldn’t pull off any of the tricks that you see performed in the film. While it’s now an entirely redundant piece of tech, the Talkboy (and the Talkgirl) are still fondly remembered across multiple generations.

4. The Red Ryder BB Gun from A Christmas Story

Of all of the incredible gifts given in the 1983 classic, A Christmas Story, the Red Ryder carbine-action 200-shot range model air rifle is one of the most notable.

In A Christmas Story, nine-year-old Ralphie Parker (Peter Billingsley) simply wants a BB gun for Christmas. Since he can’t ask outright, he spends his time sneaking advertisements into his parents’ magazines and telling his teacher just how much he wants the Red Ryder. Unfortunately, his mother is staunchly against the idea, and it looks very much like Ralphie won’t be getting the BB he has been dreaming of.

On Christmas day when Ralphie finally gets the air rifle, the look of elation on his face one that brings a cheer to all of us. Truth be told, a good number of us were even jealous of Ralphie, secretly wanting to have a go on the rifle which had been talked of throughout the entire move.

3. The dead henchman from Die Hard

Die Hard is the ultimate Christmas movie as far as many people are concerned. Not only did it come with a unique way of surviving air travel – “walk around on the rug barefoot and make fists with your toes” – it came with one of the best gifts you can give the enemy.

NYPD Detective Lieutenant John McClane (Bruce Willis) winds up at the Nakatomi Plaza one Christmas Eve, visiting his wife at their Christmas party. The party gets overtaken by Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman) who attempts to steal $640m in untraceable bearer bonds, using terrorism as a guise to stall the police outside.

Fortunately, John McClane knows exactly what to do, and kills one of the ‘terrorists’ in hand to hand combat. He dumps the body in an office chair, gives him a festive hat and sends him down the elevator empty-handed. When Gruber goes to investigate, he sees his dead henchman sporting a festive message for the rest of the terrorist group: “Now I have a machine gun. Ho-ho-ho.”

While we aren’t keen on finding a dead henchman under the tree this Christmas, there’s no denying that the sheer audacity of this Christmas gift is entirely unrivalled in cinema history.

2. Pretty much anything from Jack Skellington in The Nightmare Before Christmas

“Making Christmas, making Christmas is so fine! It’s ours this time and won’t the children be surprised?” – the haunting opening to the song from The Nightmare Before Christmas is one of those which truly sticks in your head.

For the few of you who haven’t seen one of the very best Halloween/Christmas films of all time, the plot is fairly simple. Jack Skellington, Halloween Town’s greatest celebrity, hijacks Christmas and produces a horrific yet thoroughly amusing version of the festive season. His friends in Halloween Town then thoughtfully make a selection of presents for little boys and girls everywhere.

“Won’t they be impressed? I am a genius! See how I transformed this old rat into a most delightful hat?” This scene is not only thoroughly entertaining, but the song has been covered by at least half a dozen famous artists over the years since 1993.

1. Gizmo, the Mogwai from Gremlins

Gremlins is possibly one of the most nightmare-inducing Christmas classics of all time, though this doesn’t stop it from being a fan favourite and a much loved film to this date. A Mogwai is a kind of living Chinese Furby, and one of the cutest little pets that you will ever come across.

Unfortunately Mogwais ate the first stage of the Gremlin lifecycle, and the difference between super cute and utterly terrifying lies in breaking one of the three rules – never feeding a Mogwai after midnight.

If you completely ignore the Gremlin stage of the Mogwai lifecycle, you have a fascinating, intelligent pet. Just don’t get it wet as it will spawn new Mogwais, and don’t put it in front of sunlight as it can kill them. Just follow these three rules and you’re in for a magical festive season.

Just remember – a Mogwai is for life, not just for Christmas.