Put another log on the fire, another gift on the tree, it's time to rejoice wearing a reindeer onesie, whilst sipping a seasonal snowball. Do all this while we watch the next installment in our festive film run down. Which tonight is;
A Christmas Tree Miracle
The problem with the lead up to Christmas, when it comes to films at least, is the plethora of satellite channels pumping out their festive film fodder, hour after hour. Mostly "made for TV" movies, which really shouldn't have been made at all. With the mini synopsis you get whilst flicking through the channels, it is very difficult to determine what the film will be like. More often than not they will be American, extolling the virtues of Santa (usually dropping the "T"), surrounded by elves with candy canes and North Pole nonsense.
We try to avoid those.
Otherwise it is the formulaic films, where something bad happens, because someone did something bad to someone else and the moralistic tale unwinds, only to be fixed by some Christmas magic. Think A Christmas Carol without story, character or sentiment and you'll be close. So, all that being said it is a fairly hit or miss affair recording movies from the TV, but what about tonight's film; A Christmas Tree Miracle. It certainly sounds formulaic and winsome, but is that in a good or bad way?
To cut to the chase, it was a gem of a film. A real find amongst the potential dross. It doesn't have big name actors in it, there's no elaborate sets, no there's no big budget, but yet it has that key ingredient, certainly for a Christmas film; a really decent story. Yes, it is a moralistic tale of how the simplistic approach to life can make all the difference at Christmas, but it's a good moralistic tale. Anyway, enough procrastination let us have a synopsis.
The George family has a great life. The father; David George has a fantastic job and the children go to the best schools. Money is plentiful and life is luxurious. Immediately this tells us that this family is heading for a fall. Indeed, when David loses his job things start to spiral out of control and all just before Christmas. Days without work, turns to weeks and then months and eventually they have to sell their house and end up living in a motel. Then, one day, they meet a kindly Christmas tree farmer who takes them into his home and shows them the true meaning of Christmas.
In a nutshell, that is what happens, however there are many more layers to this story which accumulate as you go through. There are the standard Christmas acts of kindness that then see payback later on. There is also the bad influences, the greed and desire to want more, which obviously need to be overcome. All of these little things are tied in so very nicely with the way this story unfolds. It is a truly heart-warming film. One element that makes it special is the youngest daughter of the family; 6 year old Nina, narrates some of the story and you can tell that her innocent involvement is a key element to that feelgood festive feeling that is so very obvious in this brilliant little story.
There's no need to spin around the cast, they are all unknowns - but they play out their parts very well. Of note though is Terry Kiser who plays Henry Banks the eccentric Christmas tree farmer, whose business model of giving away Christmas trees seems a little askew, but proffers forward a true meaning of Christmas in this feelgood tale.
It is always tricky to extol the virtues of a film you have enjoyed without giving too much away, whilst still trying to sell the idea to those of you that decide to read this blog. All we can say is; A Christmas Tree Miracle is an old fashioned tale, set against the back drop of modernity, promoting heart-warming values, guaranteed to bring a tear to the eye and a smile to the face.
If you want to at least buy one Christmas film this year, then give this one a go, we're sure you will not be disappointed.
TNiFN Rating 95%
IMDB Link
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