It’s Christmas Day, which isn’t just a huge movie day for non-Christians, it’s also where Santa-loving folk go to distract themselves from the postpartum present depression. Thankfully, on such an occasion where everyone will need somewhere to go after gifts and/or Chinese food, there are four amazing-looking movies coming out this week, “Nine,” “It’s Complicated,” “Sherlock Holmes,” and a limited release of “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus.” So put on your matching sweaters, hide a thermos of cocoa and peppermint schnapps in your bag, and go see a movie. Happy Holidays!

It’s exactly a week until Christmas and if you’re lucky, this is your last week at work until the holiday. But since most of us aren’t, there is still an easy way to get away for a while. Yup, you guessed it; go see a movie! This week, most people will be clamoring to see “Avatar” since “Crazy Heart” and “The Young Victoria” are only opening in limited release and the only other movie coming out is “Did You Hear About the Morgans?” Not that I’m insinuating anything about which movies are better ... oh wait, I’m totally doing that. But you never listen to my advice anyway. Whatever, I totally warned you about that movie.

I’m sick of trying to convince everyone to go to the movies. Go because for $10-$12, you can take a vacation from your life and live days, months, or years in someone else’s existence. Where else, but in your dreams, can you experience such vivid feats of imagination? How did humankind evolve from clubbing mammoths to piecing together gorgeous technologically baffling stories purely for the purpose of entertainment? This week we have some biggies—Clint Eastwood’s “Invictus,” Peter Jackson’s “The Lovely Bones,” and Tom Ford‘s “A Single Man.” Enjoy.

You’ve survived Black Friday and the post-Thanksgiving work week, but there’s more shopping to do and, because we live in America, we’re lucky that many malls contain this magical relaxation device called a “movie theater.” Sure, not every movie is relaxing, but the act of movie-going and the traditions that go along with it are comforting; the smell of popcorn, the pleather seat giving in to your weight, the first inhale of carbonated sugar water. This week, feel guilty for avoiding your parents over the holidays with “Everybody’s Fine,” feel shame for sleeping with your presumed dead husband’s brother with “Brothers,” or avoid relationships altogether with “Up In The Air.”

You really don’t need an excuse to go to the movies this week, it’s Thanksgiving weekend, you’ve already eaten your weight in butter and after you’ve hit your credit card limits for this Black Friday business, you’re going to need to hide out in the theater if only to keep yourself from eating and spending whatever is left of your life. Thankfully, there are a slew of movies coming out in limited release and regular style this week, including “The Private Lives of Pippa Lee,” “Old Dogs,” “Ninja Assassin,” “The Road,” “Me and Orson Welles,” and “The Princess and the Frog.” So get to it.

It’s the weekend before Thanksgiving, so as you’re preparing for the feast and practicing your competitive-eating game face, don’t forget that you need breaks for good behavior. Plus, if you eat a giant tub of popcorn, you might manage to stretch your belly as if you were consuming popping peanuts, which will allow you to hold more food than the portions you were planning on holding in your cheeks like a hamster. This week, get some humanity with “The Blind Side,” learn that we’re all aliens to someone in “Planet 51,” get your teen wolf heartthrob quota met with “The Twilight Saga: New Moon,” and learn about Latin love with “Broken Embraces.”

It’s a pretty epic day for movie releases. Perhaps it’s for our post-Veterans Day, pre-Thanksgiving blowout celebration? So sticker-roll the cat hair off your sweater, buy a tub of popcorn, and get lost in the upcoming apocalypse of “2012,” experience the hardest job in the world with “The Messenger,” remember that anything can and often will happen with “Uncertainty,” burrow with some furries in “Fantastic Mr. Fox,” or get ship-wrecked with “Pirate Radio.”

Thank goodness it’s Friday, because this daylight savings thing has totally killed any motivation to leave the house after 5pm. This will have to change, though, because new movies open this weekend and there are some good ones. If you’re in the mood to be an emotional mess, go see “Precious.” If you have ever wondered if you could take another person’s life in your hands, “The Box” is the movie for you. If you’re not a fan of goats but enjoy handsome men, “Men Staring at Goats” should work. And if you need a hand getting in the holiday spirit, go see “A Christmas Carol.” Your viewing choice is of course up to your discretion, but go see “Precious.” Oprah says so, too.