The best school holiday movies in New Zealand cinemas

Here to guide you through the best school holiday viewing at the movies is Steve Newall.

Winter’s well and truly upon us, the kids are underfoot, and the only heroes that can help? Those comfy cinemas hosting school holiday screenings and saving your sanity…

Smurfs

The little blue gang are back in a reboot of the irrepressible franchise that first emerged in late ‘50s Belgium before completing their conquest of the world in the early 80s. Here the animated characters are forced into ‘real world’ adventures as they try and liberate the abducted Papa Smurf (John Goodman).

Rihanna plays Smurfette, with the voice cast also including the likes of James Corden, Nick Offerman, Amy Sedaris, Natasha Lyonne, Sandra Oh, Jimmy Kimmel, Octavia Spencer, Nick Kroll, Hannah Waddingham, Alex Winter, Maya Erskine, and Kurt Russell.

How to Train Your Dragon

It’s like you can’t swing a dragon these days without hitting a live-action remake of a beloved animation (look out, there’s another one of these below). 2010’s How to Train Your Dragon is the latest to get a contemporary upgrade, bringing its story to a new generation.

For the uninitiated (or those who can’t read the title), HTTYD follows the marvellously-named Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III, who bonds with a dragon after initially wounding it during a dragon raid. Can he become a dragon-riding hero? Well, why would this get a 2025 remake if the answer was ‘no’?

Lilo & Stitch

Elsewhere in the live-action redo subgenre is this new version of Disney’s 2002 hit about aliens… and family. Hawaii is the backdrop to this heartwarming adventure, which sees a small but incredibly powerful alien make its way to Earth, pursued by an intergalactic federation.

Experiment 626 is adopted as a dog and called ‘Stitch’ by Hawaiian girl Lilo, with the pair embarking on a chaotic series of mishaps and adventures, and only just staying one step ahead of the powerful forces in pursuit.

Elio

Movie news has focused on Elio being Pixar’s worst ever opening at the US box office, but while there’s been lots of attention on how the film was marketed, or in overthinking whether its title was too similar to Luca, we haven’t been hearing enough about the film itself.

So: this is an animated sci-fi adventure that sees a bullied 11-year-old boy dream of being abducted by aliens, and somehow becoming the ambassador for Earth among the Communiverse, a shared society of aliens from many worlds. Mistaken for the creator of the Voyager space probe, Elio finds himself in the crosshairs of a worm-like alien warlord Grigon—only to bond with his son Glordon.

Karate Kid: Legends

Sixth film in the Karate Kid franchise brings Ralph Macchio back to the big screen as Daniel for the first time since The Karate Kid Part III, alongside Jackie Chan, returning from 2010’s The Karate Kid.

The duo team up as mentors to Li Fong (Ben Wang), a young Chinese man who encounters tragedy in the boxing ring, but goes on to seek redemption at a karate tournament.