These movies will get you in the perfect mood for the Christmas season!
By Anna Berchtenbreiter
Three Hazelnuts for Cinderella
This absolute Christmas classic from 1973 is a GDR-Czechoslovakia co-production. The literary basis was the classic fairy tale Cinderella. In the movie, Cinderella is a young woman who is treated badly by her wicked stepmother and conceited stepsister after the death of her father. Though when she is given three magic hazel nuts her life suddenly changes: she attends the ball at the castle, loses her shoe on the stairs and of course wins the heart of the prince. Happy ending included.
The film is so closely associated with the Christmas season in Germany that websites list all the broadcast dates on German television and the internet offers lots of memes about the film. An absolute must-see!
Christmas with the Hoppenstedts
"There used to be more tinsel" - this grumble from Grandpa Hoppenstedt is often quoted around Christmas. Loriot, the old master of German humour, came up with this saying. Since 1997, German television has been showing the Christmas chaos of the Hoppenstedt family again and again, divided into several sketches. Not only the tinsel lament, but also various other sayings by the protagonists have become engraved in the collective memory. So, if you want to laugh away the festive mood at Christmas, it's best to watch Loriot.
A Moose Has Sprung
You can also have a laugh if you watch the children's movie A Moose Has Sprung (Es ist ein Elch entsprungen) from the year 2005. The partly animated film follows 10-year-old Bertil on his adventure with Santa's talking moose, which has just fallen through the ceiling of his living room. Bertil and his family must get the moose, called Mr. Moose, back to the North Pole in time for Christmas, otherwise Christmas is in danger! They have to overcome all kinds of difficulties and also rescue Santa Claus. A funny story for young and old.
Everything is Love
Probably everyone knows the film Love Actually. It was released in cinemas in 2003. There has been a German counterpart since 2014: Alles ist Liebe is based on the Dutch film Alles is liefde from 2007, which was inspired by Love Actually. As in the original, Alles is liefde is about different characters who all have their own problems and for whom emotions run high and low - even during the festival of love.
Sissi Series
"Franz!" - "Sissi!": Nobody can avoid these sighs during the Christmas season, as all the well-known German TV channels broadcast the popular Sissi three-part series in what feels like a continuous loop. The historical films from the post-war period with magnificent costumes, luxurious backdrops and plenty of drama tell the life of Empress Elisabeth of Austria-Hungary in an emotional and cheesy manner. The Sissi trilogy starring Romy Schneider is considered one of the most successful German-language film series and consists of Sissi (1955), Sissi - The Young Empress (Die junge Kaiserin, 1956) and Sissi - Fateful Years of an Empress (Schicksalsjahre einer Kaiserin, 1957).
