This is New Jersey’s favorite holiday movie (be prepared to argue)

Ok, so this certainly isn’t going to be the last, or most definitive, list of favorite holiday movies, but it is a ranking of holiday movies for each state.

Preply, a website for learning foreign languages, sifted through data to determine each state’s favorite holiday movie. According to them, anyway, New Jersey’s favorite (be prepared to be upset) is: “Last Christmas.”

Yeah, I had to look it up, too. It’s from 2019 and stars Emilia Clarke (from “Game of Thrones”). IMDB’s synopsis is: Kate is a young woman subscribed to bad decisions. Working as an elf in a year round Christmas store is not good for the wannabe singer. However, she meets Tom there. Her life takes a new turn. For Kate, it seems too good to be true.

So, how did the folks at Preply.com come up with this, shall I say, curious, conclusion? Here’s how they explain it: For this study, we analyzed search trends for keywords related to 115 of the highest-rated and highest-grossing holiday movies of all time, according to Rotten Tomatoes and Box Office Mojo. We then narrowed down the list to the top 25 most-searched-for films and evaluated how popular they were in each state. In other words, they went by Google searches.

Nationally, more traditional favorites show up: the #1 holiday movie nationally is “Home Alone”, #2 is “The Grinch (2018)”, and third is “Elf”, you know, real holiday movies people have actually seen.

Regionally, the breakdown is as follows: in the west, the #1 movie is “Nightmare before Christmas”, in the Midwest, it’s “Elf”, in the south, “Polar Express”, and in the northeast, the #1 holiday movie is “Home Alone.”

Let’s hope the next survey of this type (and you know there will be several) reflects New Jersey’s tastes more accurately. For now, I want a recount.

The post above reflects the thoughts and observations of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Bill Doyle. Any opinions expressed are Bill Doyle's own.