Where it says Christmas doesn’t necessarily have to mean Christmas. This may lead to upset at home under the tree, but in a trusted cinema it is more of a blessing. Because hardly anything is as predictable as the Christmas film. Romances and comedies like this about people with holiday problems are currently playing everywhere on television, and streaming portals are also producing more of them all the time. The fact that these films are basically all the same doesn’t seem to bother anyone: quarreling families almost always come together, and the festival almost always threatens to end in chaos. But why does the fir tree always burn?
New Christmas movies
Anyone who goes to the cinema at Christmas will be offered everything possible this year – but almost no current films about Christmas. The family festival-without-family comedy “Almost Perfect Christmas,” which was released at the beginning of December, turned out to be a veritable flop and has already disappeared from the Munich cinema schedules. (If you still want to see the film, you still have the opportunity to do so in Erding or Fürstenfeldbruck.)
In the revenge thriller “Silent Night – Stumme Rache”, the main actor Joel Kinnaman is wearing a wonderfully tasteless Christmas sweater, but he is still not in the holiday spirit: his son was killed by gangsters, his calendar entry on December 24th reads: “Kill them all”. The audience can expect an orgy without ringing bells (and without dialogue). John Woo’s new film can be seen in places such as the Mathäser, the Museum Lichtspiele and the Aschheim drive-in cinema.
“Who knows what Santa Claus will bring us?” asks Fanny Ardant in the newly released novel adaptation “Monsieur Blake at Service”: In it, the French acting icon embodies a castle owner who hires a new butler. John Malkovich plays him, but he’s not actually a house servant – but you can see how much fun he has. The film takes place in the run-up to Christmas and can be seen on ABC, Rottmann and Theatiner, among others.
New family films
Make a wish: In the Disney end-of-the-year film “Wish,” a girl takes on a self-absorbed king. Helene Fischer sings the end credits song in Germany.
(Photo: Disney)
Most people celebrate Christmas with their loved ones, which is why there are a particularly large number of family films on the schedule in cinemas at the end of the year. Hollywood’s current favorite youngster Timothée Chalamet is most in demand as the chocolate manufacturer “Wonka”: The current number one in the cinema charts comes as a colorful film musical, there is singing and dancing – and with Hugh Grant as the Oompa Loompa gnome there is also a lot to laugh about. Paul King’s film can be seen in almost all major cinemas in Munich and the surrounding area. Also well represented is this year’s end-of-year Disney film “Wish”, which tells the story of a girl who takes on a self-absorbed king: He controls the most secret wishes of his subjects. The story may be a bit cobbled together, but the film characters (including a goat and a star) have cuddly toy potential.
How did Willy Wonka become a chocolate manufacturer and how did he meet the Oompa-Loompas? The film “Wonka” with Timothee Chalamet in the title role tells the story in a family-friendly way.
(Photo: IMAGO/Supplied by LMK/IMAGO/Landmark Media)
The American animated film “Out of the Pond” has recently been shown in many Munich cinemas. It’s about a family of ducks who leave their home pond for Jamaica. But the ducks don’t get that far: they fly away and end up in New York – where they almost end up as well-cooked (Christmas) ducks. Of course things end well and their feathered friends (geese, pigeons and a parrot) help them.
The “New Stories from Pumuckl” has been showing in cinemas for a while now and, strictly speaking, is not a film, but three episodes of a new television series. The audience still loves Pumuckl, grandparents, parents and children have been flocking to the cinemas for weeks.
Christmas film classic
In the Germans’ favorite Christmas film, there is no Christmas at all, but it is winter. In the ARD program, “Three Hazelnuts for Cinderella” can be seen on a continuous loop; An orchestra plays live in the Gasteig HP8.
(Photo: Degeto; WDR/dpa)
20 years ago a British ensemble comedy was released that was exceptionally well written and also exceptionally well cast with Hugh Grant, Emma Thompson, Colin Firth, Keira Knightley and Liam Neeson. “Love Actually” is a modern Christmas film classic that is at least as present in the last weeks of the year as Mariah Carey’s evergreen “All I Want For Christmas”: You can also hear it in Richard Curtis’ film, now The film can be seen again on the big screen in a restored 4K version, including in the Arri cinema, the Rio and Monopol. On December 26th and 27th he will also be accompanied by live music by the Prague Royal Philharmonic Gasteig HP8 listed.
A day later, on December 28th, there will be a reunion with a Czech-German fairy tale film classic at the same location: “Three Hazelnuts for Cinderella” runs in a kind of television loop during the Christmas season, but in HP8 it is on with a live orchestra on the big screen. The now 50-year-old film is regularly ranked in surveys as one of the most popular Christmas films among Germans – even if it’s not about Christmas at all.
If all this is too sweet for you, we recommend watching a classic from 80s Hollywood cinema for the celebration. “Gremlins – Little Monsters” is a reminder of what happens to Christmas presents if they are handled improperly: If the cuddly toy gets wet, monsters burst out of its fur. When they then attack peace-loving people from a Christmas tree, the silent night is finally over. Joe Dante’s 1984 blockbuster is on the City Cinema schedule the day before Christmas Eve.
Something out of the ordinary for those who don’t like Christmas
The holidays can also be survived without presents, ringing bells or excesses of mulled wine. In the workshop cinema, for example, which shows Lars von Trier’s continuation of his “Ghost” series from the 1990s. In “Ghosts – Exodus” from 2022 we go back to the Reich Hospital in Copenhagen: Although it is Christmas there too, there is no time for contemplation in this place of horror. The entire series is shown in one go and the spooky fun lasts about five hours.
The latest cinema hit from Japan also comes in XXL format – but more so in terms of the size of its main character: “Godzilla Minus One” pays homage to the oldest franchise monster in film history – and gives it a new beginning. At the beginning the lizard is still intact, but after a nuclear accident it mutates into a fire-breathing vengeful creature. There are guaranteed to be no holiday feelings, the monster saga can be seen in cinemas, Mathäser or Monopol, among others.
The new film by Wim Wenders (can be seen at Maxim, Arena, Theatiner and Studio Isabella, among others) also goes to Japan: “Perfect Days” tells the story of a happy man who cleans toilets in Tokyo. Nothing rattles, there are no choirs of angels singing and no monsters raging anywhere: the perfect film for people who want a few peaceful hours.