Noel is a 2004 Christmas-themed drama film written by David Hubbard and directed by Chazz Palminteri. It stars Susan Sarandon, Penélope Cruz, Paul Walker, Alan Arkin, Daniel Sunjata and an uncredited Robin Williams. It was filmed in Montreal, Canada.

The film centers around five strangers who are linked together — and who meet each other at separate times — by a series of events that take place on Christmas Eve.

The main character is Rose (Susan Sarandon), a woman who is struggling to cope with caring for her mother, an Alzheimer's patient. Meanwhile, Nina (Penélope Cruz) and Mike (Paul Walker) are a young couple on the verge of breaking up due to Mike's increasingly jealous behavior. Elsewhere, Artie (Alan Arkin) is an old waiter who searches for his deceased wife every Christmas Eve. Finally, Jules (Marcus Thomas) is a young man who deliberately damages his hand so he can attend a Christmas party in the emergency room, as that was the only happy memory of his childhood. In addition to the five main characters, the mysterious Charlie (Robin Williams) is introduced as the person who may be able to help Rose finally realize that she must look after herself more, rather than worrying about everyone else.

Noel (also spelled Nowell or Noël) (nəʊˈɛl) is an alternative word for Christmas. It first entered the English language in the 14th century. The word comes from Middle English noel, which derives from the Old French word noël and its more common form naël. The English spelling "Noël" is taken directly from modern French, which also derives from the Old French. The ultimate Latin origin is the phrase nātālis (diēs), "(day) of birth".

Noel may also refer to:

A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects. The process of filmmaking has developed into an art form and industry.

Films are cultural artifacts created by specific cultures, which reflect those cultures, and, in turn, affect them. Film is considered to be an important art form, a source of popular entertainment and a powerful method for educating – or indoctrinating – citizens. The visual elements of cinema give motion pictures a universal power of communication. Some films have become popular worldwide attractions by using dubbing or subtitles that translate the dialogue into the language of the viewer.

Films are made up of a series of individual images called frames. When these images are shown rapidly in succession, a viewer has the illusion that motion is occurring. The viewer cannot see the flickering between frames due to an effect known as persistence of vision, whereby the eye retains a visual image for a fraction of a second after the source has been removed. Viewers perceive motion due to a psychological effect called beta movement.