The Flight Before Christmas (2008)

A young reindeer who suffers from vertigo learns to overcome his fear, takes flying lessons from a clumsy flying squirrel and heads to the North pole to save a troubled Santa and his fleet of flying reindeer.

Directors:

Michael Hegner, Kari Juusonen

Writers:

Hannu Tuomainen, Marteinn Thorisson

Stars:

Olli Jantunen, Hannu-Pekka Björkman, Vuokko Hovatta

5 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Olli Jantunen	...	Niko (voice)
Hannu-Pekka Björkman	...	Julius (voice)
Vuokko Hovatta	...	Wilma (voice)
Vesa Vierikko	...	Musta Susi (voice)
Jussi Lampi	...	Räyskä (voice)
Risto Kaskilahti	...	Rimppa / Uljas (voice)
Minttu Mustakallio	...	Essie (voice)
Juha Veijonen	...	Raavas (voice)
Puntti Valtonen	...	Hirvas (voice)
Elina Knihtilä	...	Oona (voice)
Juulia Rönkkö	...	Saaga (voice)
Tommi Korpela	...	Porolauman johtaja (voice)
Aarre Karén	...	Isoisä (voice)
Arttu Hämäläinen	...	Poropoika 1 (voice)
Ilmari Huhtala	...	Poropoika 2 (voice)

Storyline

A reindeer boy named Niko dreams about flying like his father, whom he has never met. Despite constant mocking from others, he sneaks out of his home valley to take flying lessons from Julius, a flying squirrel.

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Plot Keywords:

winter | flying | search for father | computer animation | wolf pack | 

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Taglines:

An all-new holiday movie about Santa and his little helpers!

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Genres:

Animation | Adventure | Family | Fantasy

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Certificate:

G

Details

Official Sites:

Bac Films [France] MG Film [Croatia]

Country:

Finland Denmark Germany Ireland

Language:

English Finnish

Release Date:

10 October 2008 (Finland)

Also Known As:

The Flight Before Christmas

Filming Locations:

Finland

Box Office

Budget:

€6,100,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Cinemaker Oy,Anima Vitae,A. Film

Technical Specs

Runtime:

80 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

This film was the first voice acting role for Finnish actor Hannu-Pekka Björkman.

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Goofs

When Wilma and Julius use an old log to block the river flow, Julius jumps on it in search of Niko, but suddenly an ice block hits the log, causing him to lose his balance. As soon as the shot changes, Julius's left hand penetrates into the trunk.

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Quotes

Niko: You didn't want me to come here.
Julius: Of course i did.
Niko: You didn't want me to find dad.
Julius: Niko...
Niko: You didn't want me to fly.
Julius: Lower your voice!
Wilma: [worried] Guys...
Niko: [gets upset] You ruined everything!
Julius: I forbid you to...
Niko: [interrupting] You can't forbid me anything! You're not my dad!

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Crazy Credits

At the end of the credits: 21.858 liters of beer were consumed during the making of this movie!

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Alternate Versions

Alternate version spoken in Danish.

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Connections

Featured in Troldspejlet: Episode #40.15 (2008)

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Soundtracks

Flying Forces Roll
Written by Stephen McKeon

User Reviews

not bad it's cute

well, i'm not really into Finnish animated movies, but i make an exception for this one. Not because the main character got my name (lol), but cause it's cute, funny and touching. Ya OK, the animation's good but the story somehow seems weak and lacking. However, it did a pretty good job to entertain me cause i really liked it. In this movie, Niko's always practicing to fly like his dad, but the problem is he never met his dad. So, along with Julius, a lazy flying squirrel, he sets out for Santa's Fell to find him. Like i said, the movie's not bad, it's really funny parts in it, especially when Niko drinks a beer and burps. But it also leaves a really good message about how to not give up on your dream, even if u get into trouble. So, i'm gonna give this movie a 8.5 out of 10, cause i think it was really well done even if the story wasn't really strong.