5 comments about The House Without a Christmas Tree.

1. As a child I always enjoyed these wonderful heartwarming TV movies with such an incredible writing and cast including Jason Robarts & the legendary Mildred Natwick. I'm so glad "The House Without A Christmas Tree" has findly been released on DVD. I recently got the seldom seen 4th movie, "Addie & The King Of Hearts" which shows Addie's struggles of growing up, coming to terms with her father dating again and her crush on her teacher. Diane Ladd appears as the love interest to Addie's dad. These charming films are from a time that will never be recaptured on TV again!



2. It's a little disheartening to see that so many reviewers diminish this film for its low-budget quality. I think that that is part of its appeal and adds to the story's authenticity. This isn't a typical holiday story about the spirit of giving or the "meaning" of Christmas. This is a bleak little tale about Addie (Lucas), a girl with an emotionally shut down father (a monstrously cold Robards) who denies his family Christmas because he's determined to shut out the past. The story is structured around Addie's various gambits to convince her father to buy a Christmas tree for their house, depicted here with its big warm kitchen run by Addie's grandmother (the brilliant, sturdy Natwick) and it's cold living room where Robards escapes with his newspaper waiting for dinner. At school, Addie is pugnacious and defensive of her home life--single-parent, no Christmas tree, eccentric grandmother. The only thing keeping Addie's story from spiraling into complete pathos is a classmate who's worse off than she is--a poor, tired-looking girl who doesn't have a tree either and whose mother is too sick to make her Christmas pageant costume. What's at stake here is Addie's childhood as we watch her come perilously close to turning into her hard, bitter father.
   
   The story is told in a frame: Addie who has grown up and lives in the big city is looking back on her childhood in a small town in Nebraska. At the intro and at the breaks, the mature Addie narrates as she constructs paper silhouettes that cross-fade into or out of the filmed story. This is particularly effective when the story cross-fades for a "break" and we see Robards's haunted, empty face turn into an even more haunted and emptier minimalist silhouette created by the adult Addie. We see memory transformed into neat, unsettling impressions that come to life again or just go cold.
   
   When the film comes to its uneasy resolution, it threatens to tug at our hearts, but we know that things will never be right between Addie and her father and the adult Addie tells us that much in the final voice-over. The story transcends sentimentality.



3. I remember watching this every Christmas on television as a kid growing up. It took me many years to find it on video, but I am so glad I did! It is one of the best Christmas programs ever made. I definitely recommend this to anyone who is as big a Christmas "fan" as I am. You will cherish this for a life time.



4. There is a quiet dignity here--missing from many Christmas programs, a dignity bolstered by the superb mise en scene of a mid west Christmas in 1946, a time in America of self sufficiency, a time when the body politic did not blame the government for natural disasters or acts of God, and a time when people still presumably were able to save "six thousand dollars" on a limited income.
   
   The domestic focus here, on a 10 year old bespectacled girl named Addie who lives with her widowed father and paternal grandmother amply demonstrates not only these characteristics but the small pleasures (which can dwarf expensive pleasures) of that day and time: of an extra quarter for the movies, sewing one's own costume for the Christmas pageant, baking cookies, buying a gift for the schoolteacher at the local pharmacy, and most importantly, erecting a Christmas tree to celebrate the birth of the Christ child.
   
   What's refreshing here is the refusal of the script to sugar coat, and it is the undeniable sadness of a man bereft of his deceased wife, which casts a pall over the entire household that constitutes both the stories subtext and its principal conflict.
   
   The cast is superb! The youngster playing Addie avoids the fatal cuteness that afflicts many child actors, and delineates a character of both gumption and vulnerability. Who can not smile over the way she conceals a crush on a school mate by claiming all she admires about him are his new cowboy boots? Jason Robards Jr. is just as good here as he was in a "Thousand Clowns," and his taciturnity does not prevent our more than once glimpsing into his broken heart.
   
   And Mildred Natwick! What a treasure she was. It is her performance you may savor most of all, a woman of love and compassion, but one firmly grounded by the limitations of this life, who has that seasoning, that sense of recollection that the years bring to the best of us, and which is known as wisdom.
   
   And a special accolade to the young actress playing the schoolteacher, who also contributes a memorable job, (and who also does the voice over during the prologue it sounds like).
   
   The production design team does excellent work here, and is to be commended on snowy mid-Western exterior locations which beautifully match the school and domestic interiors, (with hook rugs, Eastlake settees, cabinet radios and an engraving of Millais' "The Angelus") which will bring back warm memories of all those who shared in that place and time.
   
   This is family entertainment in the best sense--genuinely moving without an ounce of schmaltz.



5. This is one of my favorite Christmas movies from my childhood. It was shown annually on television for several years and I tried never to miss it. Having a copy of it on DVD is great. If you haven't seen this one, you are really missing out. It is a very "Christmasy" experience. I mean, it just has that "feel" of years past (it took place in the 40's). The little girl in the movie, Addie, lives with her Grandmother and very moody father (Jason Robards), who refused to let her have a Christmas tree because he has never gotten over the grief of losing his wife (Addie's mom) after Addie's birth. That's all I'll say for now (don't want to ruin it for you), but it is very good.

5 comments about The Santa Clause (Full Screen Special Edition).

1. The movie captions are excellent--complete and clean. Sadly, though, the extra stuff isn't captioned, which is too bad because the Wolfgang Puck segments cooking with kids are very enjoyable. A how-to-be-an-elf segment may be interesting for aspiring kid actors, but I didn't play the DVD player game, nor did I access the DVD ROM features. Again--none of the DVD player extras are captioned. Maybe this will be done for a future reissue?? We can always hope!



2. The Santa Clause (Full Screen Special Edition)
   
   Arrived timely and is a very funny good family movie



3. Living in Florida I truly miss the real feeling of Christmas and the holidays. Seeing the snow filled streets, the Christmas lights on homes and of course going to the North Pole helps remind me of some really great Christmases and Christmas wishes. Full of the holiday spirit.



4. This was the best Christmas movie i have ever seen. It is great for kids of all ages. I saw it when i was little and I loved it and 10 years later I still love it. The special effects and great you can not tell that he did not gain 45 pounds. The acting was great from Allen and Reinhold. It was a little stale from Crewson and Loyd. The movie is a short 90 minutes and it is about a divorced dad who accidentally kills santa and puts on the suit and delivers the rest of the gifts. Little does he know now he is santa. Withen the next year he grows a large santa sized pot-belly and a white beard. Which is great to watch. He then has his son taken away from him because his son thinks he Santa.It has a predictable ending but all around a great movie.



5. 'The Santa Clause' is a Disney movie centered around the Christmas season. Scott Calvin (Tim Allen) is a single parent with a son Charlie (Eric Lloyd). Scott is a toy salesman for a large toy manufacturer. When Charlie's mom Laura Miller (Wendy Crewson) and step dad Dr. Neal Miller (Judge Reinhold) drop Charlie off at Scott's home for Christmas Eve dinner, they tell Scott that Charlie does not believe in Santa Claus. All of Scott's attempts to provide a good dinner fail, and Scott and Charlie end up at Denny's for a Christmas Eve Dinner. Charlie is awakened by a noise on the roof, and when Scott and Charlie go outside to investigate, they find Santa on the roof. Santa slips off the roof and is killed from the fall. While looking for identification, Scott finds a business card on Santa. The card states that Scott must take over for Santa. The reindeer take Scott and Charlie on the appointed rounds, delivering toys to the girls and boys, before ending up at the North Pole. Bernard (David Kurmholtz), the head elf, explains to Scott that when he put on the Santa suit he became the new Santa Claus, because of the 'Santa Clause'. Over the next year, Scott loses his job as a toy salesman, gains weight, and grows facial hair that turns white. Director John Pasquin attempted to inject comedy into the sensitive subject of believing in Santa Claus. Trying to make a movie for all ages is especially hard when the subject is Santa Claus. I believe the use of the police in this movie was not the right approach for a children's movie, because children are instructed from early on in life that police officers are their friend and present to help them in a time of need, only to be further confused by the sight of their friend taking Santa Claus to jail on Christmas Eve. The animation of the reindeer was superb. The fact that Charlie's step dad, psychiatrist Dr. Miller, wanted a weenie whistle for Christmas was one of the funnier parts of the movie. My opinion is that this movie rates on the low end of the Disney collection. I do believe, do you?

5 comments about The Apartment.

1. Billy wilder was the first woody allen
   
   and this movie shows it
   
   the best comedy and drama with great performances and direction.
   
   a treasure, no doubt about it



2. The movie was great! It's funny to see the same nonsense that happens nowadays being portrayed years ago. The more things change they definitely stay the same!



3. I am reviewing the new collector's edition DVD for this film. The film itself is a true classic and still holds up beautifully. Jack Lemmon is in fine form as well as the entire cast. The print looks great on this edition and there are a couple of very good extras. One about Jack Lemmon and another about the film itself. The film won the Academy Award for 'Best Picture ' in 1960 and if you haven't seen it, maybe it's time you did. A rare insightful film that manages to balance comedy and drama to perfection.



4. It SHOULD be sufficient to report that Jack Lemmon and Shirley MacLaine feature in this superb classic movie.
   
   These two superb actors, carry this brilliant story and script along, effortlessly. Supporting cast members also contribute although to be honest I, personally, have never liked Fred McMurray in 'bad guy' roles. This doesn't detract from his acting ability, though.
   
   This is a super movie and there must, in all honesty, be something wrong with anyone who doesn't find it a rattling good tale - brilliantly acted and Directed throughout.



5. There is without a doubt this movie deserved the 1960 Best Picture award,not to mention the other Oscars that contributed to this movie's success. A great cast of Jack Lemmon, Shirley MacLaine and Fred MacMurray (hard to believe this was Fred before his My Three Sons and Disney family movies). This is a movie that has its humorous moments and serious. By the way,if I lived in New York, I would stay at this "apartment". The cost..67 dollars a month back then if you heard Jack Lemmon's dialogue in this movie. But...I am sure the price has jumped since the movie's release in 1960..we can dream can't we? Enjoy your time with Billy Wilder's "The Apartment...worth checking into!

5 comments about Mickey's Once Upon A Christmas (Disney Gold Classic Collection).

1. This is great for children I think. However, my daughter 26 years of age raved about it so thought I had to have it. I was pretty disappointed from an adult's point of view but like I said, the grandkids love it.



2. My son and I have had the Mickey's Twice Upon a Christmas for a couple of years now and he loves to watch it at Christmas time. I wanted to get the first one so that we would have both of them. My son and I love it. He's 3 years old and he loves Disney characters, especially Mickey Mouse, as I do. It was just such a cute movie. We really like it.



3. I love this movie! My kids do too. You can't have christmas without a good christmas movie and this one is at the top of our list every year!



4. Good condition when it arrived. I'm very happy with the results of my buying experience with this seller.



5. The term classic is apparently meaningless? I would appreciate it if you would define your categories, or at least prominantly display the date of the original issue of a work so that those of us who enjoy only vintage Disney animation could quickly eliminate those of no interest, especially those with tacky, boring computer animation.

5 comments about It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown (remastered deluxe edition).

1. Product as described. Perfect condition. Fast arrival. Extra snippets and specials on the DVD. Would recommend seller without hesitation.



2. I am a little biased b/c my 2yo is OBSESSED with Snoopy, but this was a fun DVD. Easter Beagle is a classic and I especially enjoyed the part where Peppermint Patty tried to teach Marcie to color eggs. Easter Beagle is a classic and is enjoyable for us nostalgic adults too! And Charlie Brown--oops, I mean Schultz--allowed the female characters to be more likeable in this one, which is not usually the case. The bonus episode, Arbor Day, was cute and not an episode I'd seen before. Best of all, my 2yo loooooooves this DVD b/c there are plenty of SNOOPY scenes which cause lots of happy giggles! Definintely two thumbs up from us!



3. it brings back memories, it's innocent,cute, funny and great for the who family to see regardless of age.



4. Never laughed so much during the original classic Peanuts Christmas or Halloween shows, but this one is a hoot! The kids find nothing BUT Christmas items as they search for Easter goodies, seems like today even though unfortunately we have been dealing with this nightmare since the 1970s! Peppermint Patty trying to dye eggs as Marci constantly cooks them in every imaginable way, BUT hard-boiled. Buy it, watch it with your kids and find you're both "tee-hee"ing. Enjoy!



5. I like this special its very funny. I love how Marcie can't cook good and she asks "uh Sir how do we color the eggs after we fry them?" Later when Snoopy gives them some eggs Marcie asks what do we do with them and Peppermint Patty says "We eat them we put a little salt on them and we eat them." Marcie puts salt on the egg and then crunches down on the shell and says "Tastes terrible Sir." So funny and there's also the Arbor day special that's funny too but I don't care for the voice they used for Lucy. Great DVD. I'll have to get it. I had the old one but it got old so I thew it away.

5 comments about Wee Sing in Sillyville.

1. I bought this as a video years ago for my oldest child, I bought it again for my nine month old, this time as a DVD (I feel old!). This movie is full of color, action, singing, rhythms, dancing, conflicts, and solutions. Familiar childrens' songs are mixed in with small heroes and, well, silly adults. The underlying message in this movie is that, like a box of crayons, all colors must learn to live together and get along. A perfect message for children to learn in a not so perfect world. A lot of fun to watch, and plenty of chances for older children to sing and dance along to. The bright colors, music, and action will entertain the younger children, 9 months to 18 months, just don't expect them to sit through the whole movie. Preschools love to interact with the movie and can generally make it through the entire viewing time, 1 hour, as long as they can participate. Grade school children still enjoy this timeless classic, and my teeenage has been spotted watching it with the younger ones from time to time as well!!



2. Oh my gosh!! I am so excited to see they still distribute this movie. I am 23 and used to watch it ALL the time when I was younger, with my little brother. We both LOOOOOOVED this movie!! This will soon be one of your child's favorites. I am so ordering this, lol.



3. It was broke in half when I received it and I have been unable to get a response on how to return it.



4. My son absolutely loves this video. He sings and dances with it everytime it is on. I highly recommend it for younger children who like to sing.



5. I run a in home daycare so I have many of these music videos and this one is the all time favorite!! The music is great and all the bright colors make it very enjoyable for all ages!!!

4 comments about The Christmas Toy Movie.

1. First of all, Amazon has the YEAR this was produced wrong, it's 1986 as any good Muppet fan will tell you. Also, it's about DANG TIME! I've been waiting for this DVD.
   
   Second, this is the story of Rugby Tiger who is rather self centered. He thinks he's the ONLY Christmas Toy his little girl should ever receive. He learns a lesson and makes friends with the other toys, finally...even with Mew, the cat toy.
   
   Apple, a little girl doll helps Rugby learn his lesson as does Mew. While Kermit introduces the story, he isn't in it.
   
   What's not to love about singing and dancing toys? This is just a fabulous Christmas special and great for the whole family. I have it on VHS and watch it EVERY year.



2. Long before Disney and Pixar brought toys to life, this magical, sentimental, funny and sweet Muppet special did it best! :) This is my all-time favorite Muppet special, and I am thrilled to see that it is being released on DVD! :)
   
   I suspect that the short cameo of Kermit will edited out due to the fact that Disney owns the copyright to Kermie now; I'm not sure how that will be handled but regardless of the Kermit issue, I can't wait to own this timeless Christmas classic on DVD! :)



3. I recall this film well and we already own the old British release but the idea that Disney may not allow Kermit to appear on this dvd is yet another example of how Henson's creative spirit is ultimately usurped by the market place. We all remember how much overlap there was between Henson's worlds; Fraggles would appear in Muppet films, Sesame Muppets appeared along side Fraggles and Muppets and this conveyed the most important thing in Henson's world, the family unit, his family was reflected here and what Disney and Hit should know by now, is that one product will support the other; these are old films, just waver the rights and someone take note, the Muppet franchise works at it's best when the Muppet family supports each other. These are old films, just leave them alone ..... besides, if they attempted to edit this one they'd spoil it, Kermit and the cast end the story in a huge sing song and musically, they'll butcher the ending. So if anyone is reading this, keep Kermit in this one!



4. I'm so glad that this special is finally being released on DVD. I've spent countless years viewing a VHS version, and now it is finally coming to DVD this holiday season.
   
   This is a special much in the vein of the the other classic Muppet Xmas special "Emmett Otter's Jug Band Christmas". This time the true meaning of Christmas, giving and sharing is told by a playroom filled with toys and dolls that come to life when their owners leave the room. It's extremely charming and also has many catchy songs. If you have children, they MUST watch this! I know today's youth aren't as impressed by puppets but you must give this one a try, especially with the younger ones. This is a great Christmas classic I cannot wait to unwrap. Buy it!!

5 comments about Trans-Siberian Orchestra - The Ghost Of Christmas Eve.

1. First off, you really can't go wrong with TSO. This is their classic Christmas story that weaves story with other visual elements and songs in a way that is nearly seamless.



2. I had seen TSO last Christmas and, since we couldn't make it to this year's concert, I bought this for my sisters and myself for Christmas. It's a wonderful way for us to "share" the concert experience. Ossie Davis was a terrific narrator and the music is wonderful. Crank it up and it was kind of like being there (without the laser light show, of course). I recommend this for anyone who likes Christmas music and rockin' orchestral music.



3. The story is beautiful and the music throughout along with the artists are fantastic....everyone who sees is is amazed.....anything the Trans- Siberian Orchestra does amazes me.....they are one of a kind and my Christmas begins with their wonderful show....



4. We ordered this video after seeing TSO in concert around Christmas of '06. We now watch the video every holiday season & never tire of it. What a talented group of musicians!



5. I had seen this on PBS and decided to buy it. I really enjoy the music and like the artists that they have singing some of the songs.

5 comments about Disney's Sing Along Songs - Very Merry Christmas Songs.

1. I purchased this one for my 4 years old girl for the Holidays. She loved it and it was wonderful to play it to bring our home some Christmas spirit.
   
   Some songs have slow pictures which possibly won't entertain smaller Children. For my 4 years old who loves Christmas songs and know most of them word for word it was very entertaining.
   
   Great songs choices and presentation for the most part.



2. This is a cute video. It has more religious songs than I would of liked. I expected mostly fun goofy songs about Christmas. It is a children's video after all. The music itself is well done. There is a wide range of characters singing. Not a bad video over all.



3. This is an excellent Christmas DVD.
   Preschoolers through 2nd graders love this music.
   Great animation.
   Adult friendly!



4. I completely agree that they really messed this one up. The original was charming and heart warming, but the new one is...well, a little creepy. I think the voiceover reminds me of The Nightmare Before Christmas, which is a great film, but not at all what this video was about. The new songs don't flow well, and the differences in animation are jarring at best. I really can't see why they changed it at all, except maybe to lengthen it. I just shelved my DVD and ordered another VHS to replace my old one. I don't think the DVD wil get pulled out anytime soon....



5. My 3, 5, & 7 year old love this DVD. We have been watching it every year since my oldest was a baby. It just doesn't feel like Christmas until we have watched this & we watch it from Thanksgiving until Christmas. This is a Christmas must have.

5 comments about Walk the Line (Widescreen Edition).

1. Here we have the rather luscious and dangerous Joaquin Phoenix channeling Johnny Cash in WALK THE LINE. At the literal heart of the movie is Cash's longstanding and long-unrequited love for June Carter (the ever ebullient Reese Witherspoon finally being allowed to put her Nashville accent to good use) and the trials and travails he must suffer before finally settling down with the love of his life. From the foot-stomping power of the very first scene, music is the thread that binds these two restless hearts and what makes the movie even more remarkable is that Phoenix and Witherspoon did all of their own singing!
   
   (Originally published on the website of author Teresa Medeiros at www.teresamedeiros.com)



2. Being A Johnny Cash fan, I loved this movie...
   Joaquin Phoenix really resembles "The Man In Black"
   
   Reese Witherspoom resembles June Carter
   the only question that I have is :Couldn't they( the people at
   the movie studio ) have taught them how to sing?
   
   I'm tired of movies in which the stars only lip synch to the sound track( Sweet Dreams is the best example of this fraudulant practice)
   Since ,this is a biopic ,I'd Expect Joaquin Pheonix to at least to play the guitar,instead of faking it!!



3. James Mangold, the director who brought us such flawed but interesting
   films as Copland and Girl, Interrupted, has done it again. He has
   crafted another flawed but interesting film, Walk The Line, named after
   one of Cash's biggest musical hits; this one on the life of Johnny
   Cash. Actress Reese Witherspoon won an Oscar for Best Actress for her
   portrayal of Cash's wife June Carter Cash, of the famed Carter Family
   singers, and while she's solid, competent, the award she won is merely
   another way for Hollywood to elevate the bankability of sexy young
   starlets- think Marissa Tomei, Mira Sorvino, Gwyneth Paltrow, Julia
   Roberts, Angelina Jolie, Hilary Swank, Renee Zellwegger, Charlize
   Theron, and now Witherspoon. Financially, for the long term of the
   industry, this makes sense, so that, even decades from now, films they
   appear in can bear the Oscar imprint.
   
   Joaquin Phoenix, who portrays Cash, however, is completely out of his
   league as the infamous Man In Black....Cinematographer Phedon
   Papamichael adds little to the film. His framing and vistas do little
   to enhance texture of the scenes, nor do they add an unconscious poetic
   element. Despite globetrotting, Cash's life is portrayed as static and
   dull, and the love story is nothing great. What Mangold does not grasp
   is that the real reason cash is worthy of a film is because of his
   singing and songwriting. When will biopics about artists actually focus
   on the art, and not the soap operatic stuff? But, if they are going to
   focus on the peripherals, one would think they'd play up the
   fascinating stuff, the legendary stuff, not the usual crap all people
   go through, for that merely shows that the subject is like the viewer,
   when the fascination stems from what the subject has that is NOT like
   the average person. In other words, as the saying goes, always print
   the legend over the truth. Walk The Line never trots down that alley.



4. I was always a mild fan of Cash's music, so I wasn't entirely devoted to seeing this movie. I did not see it until obtaining the DVD, and at that moment I fell in love with it.
   
   Honestly, I don't know all that much about the man's life so I am not here to be the historical critic. Even so, I believe that this is more or less factual minus the obligatory artistic license. All I know is that it made for a great, great movie.
   
   Joaquin Phoenix... I don't know how he is in comparison to the Man in Black, but I love him and I thought he did well. He has that stoney gaze and voice, at least. Reese Witherspoon certainly earned her Oscar.
   
   With me, I like a good story, and that is what this movie had. Plenty of heart, intrigue, character, and emotion. Yes, I wept.
   
   I don't think this is just for Cash fans. This is for anyone who loves music and a great story.



5. this may be a good movie but I paid for my order and never received it. I am disappointed about this. I know it is not the sellers fault; they did ship it; but I never received it . I may try to order it again.