Watch The National Tree For Free

It is a performances centric movie

It’s an especially fun movie from a director and cast who are clearly having a good time allowing themselves to let loose.

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

The story-telling is good with flashbacks.The film is both funny and heartbreaking. You smile in a scene and get a soulcrushing revelation in the next.

The main character, Rocky, is a blogger, so he makes vlogs, stop-motion videos, etc. Thus, there are stop-motion transitions throughout the movie that add some kitschy charm. Rocky is written as a realistic young adult; not moody and reclusive or syrupy sweet, like you normally see in holiday movies. He'd rather Skype with his friends and coordinate group collaboration projects than bond with his father where there's no wifi, but it's not like he's mean to his father. The plot is different from other holiday movies and it has a holiday flair without saturating you with the holiday spirit. The movie isn't too optimistic and doesn't have a lot of drama; it's just a son trying to win a contest in honor of his deceased mother. It's definitely one of the better holiday movies.

I would like to know why they added the word "Mormons" in such a disgusting way? I also don't appreciate that they used Mormons so many times. There are Mormons all over the world. And they should be respected. Don't get me wrong I really enjoyed this move. But if the Utah and Mormons part was used as a joke it was not funny. Just like all religions and ethnicities they should not be made fun of in any situation, especially one that would be broadcasted through a movie. As a warning to all movies I hope they know that every one and thing in a movie should be respected. Thank you for allowing my comment to be seen. I really do appreciate it.

Corey (Andrew McCarthy) and his teenage son, Rock (Evan Williams) live in rustic Oregon country. A widower for a long time, Corey once planted a tree for his day-old son that has now grown quite large. Unknown to the father, Rock entered the tree into a contest to be chosen as the official National Tree for the approaching holiday season. He wins! Rock is appropriately excited, especially since he has a blog site to spread the good news to his cyber friends. But, Corey initially is reluctant. Only after the lady in charge, Faith, assures him that the tree will be transported "live", not cut down, does he relent. But, Corey insists on driving the huge truck that will take the tree cross-country. Rock will ride shotgun and is looking forward to stopping at his grandmother's in the Dakotas and at the house of a good looking Internet gal pal in Wyoming. The trip turns dangerous quickly, when father and son run into a forest fire. But, after making it through that hazard, they land in Caspar, where Rock is thrilled to meet Katie. So happy is the young couple that they go against Corey's wishes and sneak Katie into the truck's hold for the journey. Will they make it all the way to D.C. and will Corey get angry when he discovers the stowaway? Also, could strong-and-silent Corey actually have eyes for Faith, despite her upcoming nuptials? This is quite a lovely film for the holidays, with plenty of romance and adventure for most family members. McCarthy has a nice turn as the somewhat grouchy and stoic father while Williams is wonderful as the talented son. All of the other cast members do a fine job as well. The cross country trip is a visual treat while the costumes and other production values are well above average. All in all, you won't be barking up the wrong tree if you seek out this film to share with your family. It is another fine choice for holiday viewing that will please most everyone who plops down for a showing.

I'm not sure whether it's Canadians or US citizens who should be more annoyed with this film.I knew when I saw this film being heavily pimped by The Movie Network, with zillions of showings (versus only a handful for Hollywood blockbusters and worthy Canadian films) that it was going to be bad Canadian content filler.But they wore me down, and I caved in to watch it. How sad is it that the best a bunch of Canadians (enabled in part by Canada and Ontario tax credits) can do is to make an embarrassingly bad movie about a foreign country's national tree?As far as I know, the US has no "national tree" of the kind depicted in the film. It has a National _Christmas_ Tree (despite the claimed separation of church and state) in the Ellipse.The near-100-year claim is nonsense in the film. For example, The National Christmas Tree was a new cut (dead) tree every year from 1954 until 1973. Only after that did they decide to return to planted (live) trees. But it wasn't easy. From 1973-1977 it was a Colorado blue spruce from Pennsylvania, which fared poorly. In 1977, it was replaced with one from Maryland that did even worse. In 1978, it was finally replaced with the current one again from Pennsylvania.The actual "National Tree" of the US is Oak (note, not an actual individual tree, but an entire category of trees)As for the film itself: * strong Canadian accents from many characters that even a Canadian would notice are out-of-place * awful special effects (I mean really, if they are this bad, why bother? Yes, I'm speaking to the people who did the falling cinders, and the internet video conferencing -- go find another line of work.) * typically cloyingly earnest characters * I'm not what you'd call pro-Mormon, but I felt that Mormons and Utah were portrayed needlessly unfairly in the film, like they were people from another planet, who didn't understand the National Christmas Tree. If this is actually true in some way, it should have been explained. * for a film featuring I-80, you'd think they'd include such road characteristics as the tunnels in Wyoming, the Archway Monument in Nebraska, the bridge over the Mississippi River, the toll road in Indiana and Ohio, and the varying flat, hilly, canyon, and mountainous landscapes from state to state. Filmmakers obviously ignored the superior example set by the 2008 Canadian road movie, One Week.Who had the bright idea to shoot a road movie almost entirely in close-up? But even then, they still can't hide the Canadian-ness of the surroundings. Lime Ridge Mall (you know, with the Canadian Shoppers Drug Mart that you can see in the film) is in Hamilton, Ontario, not Chicago. And I somehow doubt that the Amish in Pennsylvania frequently fly the Canadian flag, and certainly not by itself.For some reason, Maryland (between Pennsylvania and DC) wasn't worth mentioning. They just drive directly from Pennsylvania to DC.I also didn't like the woman. She reminded me of the alien leader in the recent V mini-series. And if you take a job that requires significant travel separating you from your significant other, then you are not the person in the relationship who gets to complain when you can't get in touch on your schedule. That right belongs to person who stays at home. This woman has a heart of ice.Last, the young man and woman are shown drinking wine. Like many of the states they travelled through (Idaho, Indiana, Pennsylvania, and Maryland) the District of Columbia has a total ban on consumption of alcohol by people under 21, even in private with parental permission.So, no, I didn't like it. Why is this junk cluttering the subscriber movie channels in Canada, when we get just one or two chances to see quality films that we actually want to see?