Movies for the Christmas holidays

By Yun Suh-young

For those planning to visit cinemas during the Christmas holidays, here are some recent releases and recommended films for families, couples and children to enjoy.

Families:

1. The Little Prince

One of the must-see films for Christmas, or before this year ends, is "The Little Prince" which will inspire adults once again as "Inside Out" did earlier this year. Although it looks like a children's film, it can resonate with adults just as well as children, as with the book.

"The Little Prince" is an adaptation of the eponymous book by French author Antoine de Saint-Exupery and is the first animated feature film based on the novel.

Director Mark Osborne, whose works include "Kung Fu Panda," does justice to the classic tale. However, the movie isn't a straight adaptation of the text. The director strives to connect with today's audiences, adding a modern-day backdrop to the original story.

The most impressive part of the film is the stop-motion animation created with beautifully handcrafted stop-motion techniques.

(English with Korean subtitles)

2. The Brand New Testament

Perhaps the most unique and fascinating plot of all recent movie releases is this tale which is a humorous and sarcastic take on the Almighty.

Belgian director Jaco Van Dormael depicts God in a way we could never imagine ― as despicable as he can be.

God is a Brussels resident who enjoys inflicting pain on human beings. One day, his daughter Ea accidentally peeps into God's computer in His off-limits office and finds out that he has been crashing airplanes and setting fire to buildings on purpose. In an effort to fix the mess, Ea messages humans the amount of time they have left to live to warn them of their fates.

Panic spreads in the human world, and as a result some decide to change the way they're living. At the end of the film, you'll be rethinking how you want to live the rest of your life.

(French with Korean subtitles)

3. Star Wars

The legendary sci-fi movie franchise "Star Wars" returned to the screen after a 10-year hiatus. The seventh episode, "Star Wars: The Force Awakens," is the first chapter of a new trilogy.

This time, director J.J. Abrams, in the director’s chair for the first time on the franchise, considered the needs of audiences who have never seen a Star Wars movie before and tried to make it accessible for them.

According to Star Wars fans who've watched the film, the new release will be entertaining for first-time viewers while the old Star Wars fans might be slightly less excited. For old fans, the return of Harrison Ford as Han Solo is the biggest excitement and joy of watching the film.

4. The Himalayas

A film to really experience winter on screen is "The Himalayas" featuring Hwang Jung-min.

The film is based on the true story of renowned Korean mountaineer Um Hong-gil who was the first person to scale all of the Earth’s 16 highest mountain peaks.

Unlike Baltasar Kormakur’s "Everest," a film released in September which is also based on true story about a group of mountaineers climbing Mount Everest, this film isn't about success or a race to the top; rather, it deals with the painful memory of climbing in search of dead bodies.

The plot takes audiences back to an accident back in 2005 when Um and his expedition team climbed Mount Everest to search for the bodies of three Korean climbers who died a year earlier while climbing there, including one of Um's friends, Park Moo-ta (played by Jung Woo).

The film is a tear-jerker, even for male audiences, so bring tissues.

(Korean, no subtitles)

Couples:

5. Love Actually

This beloved movie that receives continuing acclaim, especially during the Christmas season, is re-re-released this year following the previous re-release in 2013. This time, the film is closer to the original version released in 2003, differing from the R-rated re-release two years ago which included a porn star couple.

Directed by Richard Curtis, this romantic comedy film features an ensemble cast whom the director has worked with previously and delves into different aspects of love through telling 10 separate stories.

The movie is primarily set in London and the story begins five weeks before Christmas, playing out in a weekly countdown to the holiday.

6. Her

This R-rated film which has garnered quite an audience locally, despite being released as an art film last year, is being re-released this year just for two days on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day at one particular movie theater in Seoul.

The film will be shown at the KU Cinematheque at Konkuk University in Seoul with two screenings a day.

The romantic science fiction drama is directed by Spike Jonze who made his solo screenwriting debut with this film. The plot involves Theodore Twombly (Joaquin Phoenix), who develops a romantic relationship with Samantha (Scarlett Johansson), a computer operating system personified through a female voice.

The film has received rave reviews by viewers despite the rather peculiar storyline.

Children:

7. Monster Hotel 2 (Hotel Transylvania 2)

“Hotel Transylvania 2” which was translated to “Monster Hotel 2” in Korean, is the second installment in the Hotel Transylvania franchise.

The 3D computer animation's plot involves a vampire family who runs a hotel. Taking place seven years after the first film, the hotel is now open to human guests.

Worried that his grandson Dennis lacks vampire powers, grandfather Dracula calls his friends to help train Dennis to be a monster while his parents, Mavis and Johnny, are on a trip to visit their in-laws.

Things turn upside-down when Dracula's human-hating father, Vlad, makes an unexpected visit to the hotel.

(English with Korean subtitles/ Korean dubbing)

8. Snoopy: The Peanuts Movie

"The Peanuts Movie," translated as "Snoopy: The Peanuts Movie" in Korean, is the fifth full-length Peanuts movie, and the first feature film in 35 years.

Based on Charles Schulz's comic strip “Peanuts,” the film was written by Schulz's son and grandson, Craig and Bryan Schulz, respectively. It was directed by Steve Martino.

The film commemorates the 65th anniversary of the comic strip and 50th anniversary of the TV special "A Charlie Brown Christmas."

The plot involves Charlie Brown (voice of Noah Schnapp) trying to improve his relationship with the Little Red-Haired Girl while Snoopy writes a book about the Flying Ace, imagining himself as a legend trying to save his love, Fifi, from the Red Baron and his army.