Ho Ho Ho (film)
Encyclopedia
Ho Ho Ho is a Romanian
Christmas
-themed family
comedy film
starring Romanian music and TV icon Ştefan Bănică, Jr.
, directed by Jesus del Cerro, and produced by MediaPro Pictures
as the first Romanian comedy film about Christmas.
and at MediaPro Studios in Buftea and in Bucharest. Spanish
director Jesus del Cerro also worked in Romania on the TV series "One Step Ahead" and on the television movies "The Countdown" and "The Countdown 2: No Escape".
. As a Christmas gift, his mother (Alina Chivulescu) takes him to the mall to buy him a gift. What might otherwise have been a normal day becomes an adventure when Horatiu gets lost. He meets Ion (Ştefan Bănică, Jr.
), a thief disguised as Santa Claus who is there to steal a diamond for Vandame (Valentin Teodosiu) and his gang of fake Santas. Out of character for Santa Claus, Ion is rude and doesn’t seem to like kids. However, the boy believes he is the real Santa and decides to stay with him despite Ion's attempts to abandon the boy. As the day goes on, the two enter a series of dangerous yet funny misadventures. By the end of the day they become great friends, both learning something from each other. And because it is Christmas and miracles do happen, everyone gets their wish.
Romanian language
Romanian Romanian Romanian (or Daco-Romanian; obsolete spellings Rumanian, Roumanian; self-designation: română, limba română ("the Romanian language") or românește (lit. "in Romanian") is a Romance language spoken by around 24 to 28 million people, primarily in Romania and Moldova...
Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
-themed family
Family film
A family film is a film genre that is designed to appeal to a variety of age groups and, thus, families.In December 2005, Steven Spielberg's 1982 film E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial came first in a poll of the 100 Greatest Family Films. The genre today generates billions of dollars per annum.Family...
comedy film
Comedy film
Comedy film is a genre of film in which the main emphasis is on humour. They are designed to elicit laughter from the audience. Comedies are mostly light-hearted dramas and are made to amuse and entertain the audiences...
starring Romanian music and TV icon Ştefan Bănică, Jr.
Stefan Banica, Jr.
Ștefan Bănică, Jr. is a Romanian entertainer, the son of actor Ștefan Bănică. In his early career he starred in a couple of successful romantic films ....
, directed by Jesus del Cerro, and produced by MediaPro Pictures
MediaPro Pictures
MediaPro Pictures is the largest film and TV production company in Romania, part of MediaPro Entertainment along with other production units from Czech Republic, Croatia, Slovakia, Slovenia and Bulgaria....
as the first Romanian comedy film about Christmas.
Background
Filming took place over a 4 week period in June and July 2009, at the Băneasa Shopping City Mall in BucharestBucharest
Bucharest is the capital municipality, cultural, industrial, and financial centre of Romania. It is the largest city in Romania, located in the southeast of the country, at , and lies on the banks of the Dâmbovița River....
and at MediaPro Studios in Buftea and in Bucharest. Spanish
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
director Jesus del Cerro also worked in Romania on the TV series "One Step Ahead" and on the television movies "The Countdown" and "The Countdown 2: No Escape".
Plot
Horaţiu (Bogdan Iancu) is an 8-year-old boy who still believes in Santa ClausSanta Claus
Santa Claus is a folklore figure in various cultures who distributes gifts to children, normally on Christmas Eve. Each name is a variation of Saint Nicholas, but refers to Santa Claus...
. As a Christmas gift, his mother (Alina Chivulescu) takes him to the mall to buy him a gift. What might otherwise have been a normal day becomes an adventure when Horatiu gets lost. He meets Ion (Ştefan Bănică, Jr.
Stefan Banica, Jr.
Ștefan Bănică, Jr. is a Romanian entertainer, the son of actor Ștefan Bănică. In his early career he starred in a couple of successful romantic films ....
), a thief disguised as Santa Claus who is there to steal a diamond for Vandame (Valentin Teodosiu) and his gang of fake Santas. Out of character for Santa Claus, Ion is rude and doesn’t seem to like kids. However, the boy believes he is the real Santa and decides to stay with him despite Ion's attempts to abandon the boy. As the day goes on, the two enter a series of dangerous yet funny misadventures. By the end of the day they become great friends, both learning something from each other. And because it is Christmas and miracles do happen, everyone gets their wish.
Ion (Santa Claus)
Ion is a different type of Santa. Although, at first, he desperately tries to get rid of the kid, he eventually grows fond of Horaţiu as the boy is the only one who finds something good in him. Moreover, the boy helps him rediscover the magic of Christmas and makes him realize how much he misses his son and wife, who live in Italy.Horaţiu
Despite being only 8 years old, Horaţiu is extremely smart for his age: he speaks English, has a passion for origami and rewrites all the books his mother bought for him. He is clever and always manages to find a creative way out of difficult situations. Raised only by his mother, Horaţiu is very optimistic and keeps on trusting Ion whom he believes is the real Santa. At the end of the day, Horatiu discovers in Ion the friend he never had.Carmen
She is a young, beautiful and intelligent woman who dedicated herself to raising Horaţiu. After noticing that Horatiu is missing, she does everything within her power to find him. When she needs help the most, fate brings Marin into her life. Even though her first impression of him isn’t one of the best, Carmen finds Marin to be a good man, a good friend and… more.Marin
He is a mall bodyguard and the type of person that has seen too many B-rated action flicks. He falls head over heels for Carmen and wastes no effort in trying to help her find Horaţiu. By the end, Carmen gets to know his true personality and the two share a love story. Caring and big-hearted, Marin proves to have what it takes to be a father for Horatiu.Partial cast
- Ştefan Bănică, Jr.Stefan Banica, Jr.Ștefan Bănică, Jr. is a Romanian entertainer, the son of actor Ștefan Bănică. In his early career he starred in a couple of successful romantic films ....
as Ion / Mos Craciun - Alina Chivulescu as Carmen
- Bogdan Iancu as Horaţiu
- Pavel Bartoş as Marin
- Valentin Teodosiu as Vandame
- Costin Gabriel as Calistrat
- Daniel Popescu as Sămânţă
- Iulia Lazăr as Gora
- Raluca Aprodu as Irina
- David Vasile as Ion's son
- Cătălin MăruţăCatalin MarutaCătălin Constantin Măruţă is a Romanian television host.He currently presents the "Happy Hour" show on Pro TV. Since June 2002, he has been the host of the "Tonomatul DP2" show on TVR 2...
as TV host
External links
- Ho Ho Ho at the Internet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, television shows, actors, production crew personnel, video games and fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media. It is one of the most popular online entertainment destinations, with over 100 million...
- Ho Ho Ho Official website