Family-Friendly Movies That Celebrate Chinese New Year

Chinese New Year (Lunar New Year or Spring Festival) will soon be knocking on your door. You must have started cleaning the house, decorating your home to usher in good luck and fortune, buying new dresses for your family, and planning the feast for the much-awaited reunion dinner. However, why not jazz it up by adding something new to the yearly traditions, like movies celebrating Chinese New Year?

This is something that family members of all age groups can enjoy together! So, make it an annual family tradition to watch some family-friendly movies to ring in the Lunar New Year. It is a great way to make memories with your kids, get them acquainted with the customs, and spend time with your entire family. Here are some excellent movies that celebrate Chinese New Year or its traditions.

1. Wish Dragon

Welcome the Year of the Dragon with “Wish Dragon.” The kids will love this movie as it talks about a young Chinese boy, Din, who meets a Wish Dragon named Long. However, instead of wishing for wealth, Din asks to be reunited with his childhood friend, Lina. How he gets reacquainted with his friend forms the rest of the story. The story vividly showcases Chinese festivals, attire, and cuisine while uncovering the true meaning of love and friendship. Also, don’t forget to watch “Wish Dragon 2” to catch the end of Din’s story.

2. Kung Fu Panda 3

Another movie that showcases Chinese tradition, martial arts, and culture is “Kung Fu Panda 3.” Your entire family will love watching this movie on Chinese New Year as it will make them laugh and teach some life lessons as well. The story revolves around Po after he reunites with his father. He goes to a secret panda village to teach Kung Fu to his clan to defeat the supernatural villain, Kai. You must catch up with the previous “Kung Fu Panda” movies to know Po’s background.

3. Everything Everywhere All At Once 

If you are looking for a good action film celebrating Chinese New Year, this should be your pick. It is a story about a Chinese immigrant living a normal life, handling her laundromat business, and preparing for the upcoming Chinese New Year party. However, she soon gets embroiled (unwillingly) in an epic adventure where she must connect different versions of herself in the parallel universe to stop an evil force trying to harm the multiverse.

4. Tigertail 

Family, love, and a New Year celebration, you can find it all in this movie. The story revolves around a Taiwanese factory worker who leaves his homeland to seek opportunity in America. Years of monotonous work and a loveless marriage turn a once vibrant man into a shell of his former self. However, with his retirement, he chooses to reconnect with his past and build the life he once dreamed of having.

5. Reunion Dinner 

“Reunion Dinner” combines love, laughter, and family drama. The story revolves around a soon-to-be-married couple who arrange for their parents to meet for the first time over a Chinese New Year reunion dinner. However, things are never as simple as they seem. When a client requests a livestream of the family’s reunion dinner to promote his products, it sets the stage for many surprises and absolute mayhem.

6. Last Train Home

You have been warned to sit with a tissue box because there will be a lot of tears. This heart-touching documentary shows the struggle of migrant couple Chen and Zhang, returning home to celebrate Chinese New Year with their children, whom they see only once a year. However, upon arrival, they discover that their daughter has decided to drop out of school to work at a factory, and they begin questioning the value of their sacrifice.

Apart from these Chinese New Year movies, you can also watch other kid-friendly films on YouTube, like “The Tale of Chinese New Year’s Eve,” “Peppa Celebrates Chinese New Year,” “Little Door Guards,” and “Crazy Nian.”

This list of movies celebrating Chinese New Year has something for everyone. So, which film will you watch to celebrate LNY with your family? Do let us know in the comment section below!