You’ll Never Guess Where in China Your 5 Fave Holiday Movies Were Made

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Is it really true, that everything is made in China these days?  It appears so.  Your smart phone, your lightbulbs, your shoes…it even turns out to be true of your favorite holiday movies!  What I found out will blow your mind.

1)  Elf:  If you were convinced Will Ferrell was having costumed fun all over New York City, well, you’ve been duped!  The entire movie was filmed in Tianjin, China, in which there is a giant replica of Manhattan, complete with a fake Rockefeller Center and Hudson River.  It turns out China does NYC even better than America does—lower crime and less traffic!

And Buddy’s homemade syrup spaghetti?  A sneaky lo mein.

2)  A Christmas Carol (every version throughout time):  Clearly this takes place in 19th century England, correct?  HUMBUG!  Every Christmas Carol movie took place in Thames Town, which is part of the Songjang District.  It’s a replica of jolly old England from times past, and its streets are paved with cobblestone.  It’s rumored that Charles Dickens himself actually lived here in secret in one of the quaint rowhouses, and not in London at all.

3)  White Christmas:  This movie did NOT take place in Vermont, nor even the United States!  That’s right, the snow wasn’t even snow.  It was SMOG, fools.  That movie was filmed in Beijing.

4)  National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation:  This movie was filmed using only constructed sets inside a Wal-Mart in Shenzhen.  Many items, including Cousin Eddie’s RV and all the holiday lights, were made nearby and sold onsite!  Chevy Chase did some improv when the lights unexpectedly didn’t turn on his fake suburban house.  His frustration was due to poorly manufactured holiday lights, which are actually a rarity.

5)  A Christmas Story:  This movie took place in a town called China, Indiana.  Ok, sorry, not really in the country of China.  China is a small unincorporated town in southern Indiana near another small town called Madison.  (Little known fact: the town had to be updated substantially to reflect the idea of a 1940s Cleveland!).  However, the leg lamp, bunny costume, and Chinese restaurant movie set were all manufactured in the People’s Republic.

Is China taking over the world?  Probably!  But with movies like this we’ll be laughing all the way to becoming a less powerful nation. Happy Holidays and Happy Early Chinese New Year!

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3 thoughts on “You’ll Never Guess Where in China Your 5 Fave Holiday Movies Were Made”

  1. You know, I’ve been to Madison, and it’s not all that far from Santa Claus–I think we passed through China on the way. I live in Albion, Indiana, which is actually closer to Peru and Mexico, and not far from Angola. The map can get a little confusing in our state.

  2. Welcome Emily or should I say EM-I-LI? Because you’re clearly from China with all this good cheer about our great Chinese movies. YOu had me going there for a minute!!! Great to see you in the Humor crowd!

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