Escape from New York (1981)

It doesn’t have too much going for it, but it has its few charms that make it a decent holiday flick.

An adaptation of esteemed YA author John Green’s novel of the same name, Let it Snow is basically a collection of individual sub-plots that all intertwine at various points. It has what you would typically expect from the YA genre: with a dash of romance, drama, and quirky comedy. The movie begins with a main group of teenagers, and then introduces us to their individual struggles and antics they become entangled in during the holiday season. In addition, Let it Snow features a rather notable cast — with actors such as Shameik Moore, Jacob Batalon, and Mitchell Hope being on board.

When a big snowstorm hits the town, things start to get crazy — and each of the teenagers end up having wildly different experiences. We see one character, Julie Reyes (Isabela Merced) form a close bond and eventually fall in love with celebrity singer Stuart Bale (Shameik Moore) who happened to drop into town. Things get even more complicated once she has to decide whether to go to the renowned university she was accepted in, or to take care of her terminally ill mother at home.

Meanwhile, Waffle Town employee Dorrie (Liv Hewson) is trying to get her crush, Kerry (Anna Akana) to notice her, while at the same time dealing with a falling-out with her best friend Addie (Odeya Rush). Dorrie winds up feeling very distraught; she wants Kerry to acknowledge her feelings for her, and she wants to repair her relationship with her friend, but neither seem to be working.

There is also Tobin, (Mitchell Hope) who spends his time gathering up the courage to tell his best friend Angie (Kiernan Shipka) that he likes her. However, Tobin feels really intimidated by their mutual college friend JP (Matthew Noszka), so he feels the need to impress Angie at every turn. The situation eventually turns sour when he finally admits his jealousy of JP to Angie, causing the two to take some time apart in order to think over their feelings towards one another.