The Spruces and the Pines (2017 TV Movie) User Reviews

True love will overcome all obstacles

[Ed-Shullivan · 7/10 · 6 December 2018]

Although a simple story line, I am quite sure that there are literally millions of men and women who have lived the rest of their lives regrettably for listening to their closest loved ones (fathers, mothers, aunts, or uncles) and for years wondered to themselves "...if only I had listened to my heart" and not to my relatives about that one true love of my life.

The family surnames are really hokey (the Spruces and the Pines) and much like the Hatfields and McCoys who owned adjoining farms, so do the Spruces and the Pines whose livelihood depends on the Christmas season when their Christmas trees bring in the majority of their annual income. Gradually the audience finds out what the two male tree farm owners Dave Spruce, (Ken Cheeseman) and James Pine (Tom Kemp) decades old dispute is about. Darn it if James daughter Julie Pine (Jonna Walsh) and her new found love in Rick Spruce (Nick Ballard) who is Dave Spruce's nephew is going to be ignored merely on a decades old dispute between the two (2) tree farm owners.

How the decades age old feud is finally put to an end becomes emotional (at least it was for Mrs. Shullivan and I) and for the next few scenes this Christmas themed film is worth watching.

I rate it a a solid 7 out of 10 rating.

Christmas feud

[TheLittleSongbird · 6/10 · 23 March 2021]

The premise for 2017's 'The Spruces and the Pines' didn't entirely grab me at first or make me go wow. With it basically a story with a mix of Romeo and Juliet and the Hatfields and the McCoys, two feuds depicted frequently, except with a Christmas theme. Still saw it anyway, with it being one of the films as part of my Christmas film completest quest and one of the films watched during the much-anticipated and needed Christmas period.

And while still not a great film, 'The Spruces and the Pines' actually fared better than expected. It was cute and heart-warming so a pleasant and nothing to be offended by watch, but also on the too safe and bland side at other points (not to mention it not being much different from other Christmas films in some of the material). Very little if anything is done awfully, but at the same time 'The Spruces and the Pines' isn't exactly distinguished.

Will begin with mentioning the good. The production values are pleasing on the eye, the scenery has an authentic Christmassy feel and the photography doesn't try to do too much while not being claustrophobic. The soundtrack is also suitably festive without being overpowering in volume or over-utilised.

Enough parts are amusingly light-hearted and there are some heart-warming and charming moments without being too saccharine. The characters at least don't bore or irritate, even if they lack depth. The dialogue is not as cheesy or as over-sentimental as feared. The acting fares decently, with a likeable John McGregor giving the best performance with charming, feisty Sarah Fischer close behind.

On the other hand, 'The Spruces and the Pines' could have been better. The story is too simple and has no real surprises. The conflict could have done with more tension and the too tidy and over too soon resolution falls flat on delivering on the emotional impact, which isn't really there.

Some of the writing is on the stilted side early on and the pacing in need of more tightness. Also felt that Nick Ballard was rather stiff in a blandly written role. Jonna Walsh is also a little on the bland side and their chemistry could have done with more wit.

In conclusion, decent if not exceptional. 6/10

Christmas Hatfield and The McCoys

[jewelch · 7/10 · 23 November 2020]

The cast was great and the story was amazing. Me and the wife really enjoyed it. James Welch Henderson Arkansas. 11/21/2020

A Nice Lighthearted And Heartwarming Christmas Romance.

[P3n-E-W1s3 · 6/10 · 3 January 2018]

This is a seasonal take on the Romeo and Juliet story, though without the tragic ending - oh come on it's a Christmas film, you cannot call that a spoiler - though I for one would think a tragic ending would be more interesting... but hey, I have a dark side.

So there are two families who own Christmas Tree farms next to each other and due to a fire that took out seven years worth of crops they've been at each other's throats for as long as the kids can remember. It's been a year after Julie Pine's (Walsh) mother's death and she's decided to come home for the Christmas period to help her father in his busiest time... and it is the first Christmas without his wife.

It doesn't take long to find out the feud is still going strong and appears to have gotten a little harsher in the time she's been away. On her first day home, she is asked by the local baker to drop off Dave Spruce's order, while there she helps a man to tie a tree to a car roof. Unbeknown to her, he is actually Rick Spruce, Dave's nephew. There is a chemistry between them right from the start and Rick decides to chase her with the intention of courtship. It's not until later that his true identity is revealed, though by that time Julie has fallen for him.

There are some good lighthearted and heartwarming moments in the film and the relationship between Julie and Rick is engrossing and entertaining to watch. Add to this the character of the bear of a man Josh, perfectly portrayed by John MacGregor and the sweet, sassy, and beautiful Holly, nicely acted by Sarah Fischer, then you have strong character base to keep you interested. The writers have also given all of these some of the more wittier lines and it works well to keep the viewers entertained.

The only drawback I had with this story was the climax of the feud. This should have been thought out a little better and made stronger and more believable. There wasn't enough emotion when showing how the wife and mother's passing had really affected her family, especially her husband - this would have added to the climax. I know that this is primarily a love story but it would have been so much better to have a stronger resolve and make it a two-story film.

This is another one to cuddle up with your loved one beside a fire on a cold night.

A new Romeo and Juliet

[Jackbv123 · 6/10 · 2 January 2018]

This movie follows the tradition of Romeo and Juliet. There is serious and unreasonable enmity between the two. So much so, the Julie's dad says to her at one point "I thought I had raised a daughter who understood the values that this family holds." Apparently he intended to raise her with the values of hatred and unforgiveness. Do Rick and Julie end up dead on the floor after taking poison? I'm pretty sure we can all guess the answer to that.

The story is pretty basic and predictable. While the Romeo and Juliet story is not new and has been done many times, it is a slightly different approach to a Christmas story. Actually, Christmas is not as central to the details of this story as it is in many holiday movies. We don't find the writer checking off one tradition after another just to meet some quota. However there are really no surprises. Jonna Walsh and Nick Ballard connect well even if they are a little stiff, especially Ballard. The feud seems unreasonable in our day especially when we learn the true history of it.

the emotion

[Kirpianuscus · 13 December 2018]

Sure, the emotion is in few crumbs form. But, for a predictable love story using Christmas as pretext and Romeo and Juliet as tool. A long conflict. The love of children and the letters afterlife. A Christmas tree . The wedding after an year of concilation. Nothing new, nothing original - the title is the best proof-. But working in decent manner. And , in essence, that remains the most important detail. So, the emotion as lead virtue. Sure, not so real but ...nice.

Rudimentary

[MickyG333 · 6/10 · 25 January 2024]

6.4 stars.

This is a very rudimentary film from start to finish. It's about two families. One family has the last name of Spruce. The other family with the last name of Pine. These two families have had an old rivalry going back decades. They are at odds with one another, yet they live on adjacent properties. The whole town is aware of this unsettled dispute of some sort between the families. This sort of movie has been done many times. Inevitably one child of a family falls in love with a child of the other family, and they are under a lot of pressure to break up due to old grudges. Some films have displayed this theme in an entertaining and fun way, this one is not so fun.

Good Enough

[PennyReviews · 3/10 · 11 January 2020]

The movie was predictable and it was trying too hard to associate the well known story with the christmas spirit of the movie.

Lovely feelgood Christmas film

[nbg1446 · 10/10 · 7 December 2017]

I absolutely loved this film and it even made me shed a tear or two about three quarters of the way through. Yes, it is the old boy meets girl, they fall in love with each other (quickly) and then find out who each other are and their family have a feud with each other BUT it is done in such a nice NOT cheesy way (OK, maybe slightly cheesy Lol) that you actually like and enjoy the film and it is actually quite funny also. The ending is actually done in quite a classy and not really cheesy way (Hey, it's a Christmas film there has got to be some cheese Lol) It's a really good funny and lovely film that gives you the feelgood factor also and puts a smile on your face. It also isn't what some people class as a 'Chick flick' (GAWD, I hate that saying) it is a film that both sexes and all ages can watch and I bet even tho some men might roll their eyes and moan about it I bet even they will secretly enjoy the film (tho they won't admit it Lol) I thoroughly enjoyed it and might even watch it again either just before or just after Christmas. All the actors in it were great and was in stitches at the barn scene with Bear(Josh) & Holly. Great film x

Really?

[mcnab-54953 · 1/10 · 9 November 2019]

This has got to be the worst Christmas movie in the history of mankind. Don't get me wrong, my wife and I love Christmas movies. But this is terrible. The acting is laughable, the scenes are predictable, and the ending was so corny and sappy. Sorry, but a horrible film.

A clever Romeo-and-Juliet feel-good Christmas family movie!

[jagough49 · 9/10 · 12 January 2020]

Also known as "A Star-Crossed Christmas". Christmas is approaching. A Romeo and Juliet romance takes place among two commercially competing, and emotionally feuding New England Christmas Tree farming families. Against their families' wills, Julie Pine, daughter of James Pine (whose wife died almost a year ago), comes home from university, with only one semester remaining in her Horticultural degree, to help her father with the Christmas rush. Meanwhile, coming from Texas, where he had been a successful used-car salesman, Rick Spruce, accepts the invitation of his uncle, unmarried and childless Dave Spruce, to help his uncle at this busy season. Rick has been promised the opportunity to take over the spruce Christmas tree farm if he likes the work. Coincidentally, not knowing their family origins, Rick and Julie meet, several times and, after a few brisk and amusing sparks between them, begin falling in love. When they realise they each come from different sides of the bitter Pine-Spruce feud, Julie initially rejects Rick. But Rick has not grown up with the on-going feuding, which he thinks is nothing to do with him, or Julie, and he persists, and wins Julie around. They agree it is more than time that the feuding stop, but they realise that, for the time being, they are forced by their circumstances to hide their Yuletide relationship. Meanwhile, one of the big burly Pine workers, nicknamed "Bear", and one of the cute Spruce workers, Holly, have been secretly dating, despite knowing that their mutually antagonistic bosses would fire them on the spot if their relationship was revealed. In the nearby town, Martha Fuller, the unmarried owner of the only sweet bakery and coffee shop in town, realises what is happening, and, secretly, wishes she could attract bachelor Dave Spruce. She is clearly scheming to manipulate Julie, and the others, ... But only the two grumpy old men know what the feud was about, and each of them angrily refuses to discuss it. (Martha also knows, but feels unable to explain to Julie or Rick.) Happily, all of this is resolved, partly because Holly discovers some old photos from when Dave and James and Julie's mother before she married, and Martha were all happy friends together; and partly because Julie explores some of her mother's boxes of belongings, discovers the family's misplaced Christmas-tree topper - a large crystal star - and three letters written on her deathbed by Julie's mother - one to Julie, another to her husband, James, and a third to Dave Spruce. One scene is inspiring, if only for its unusual seasonal culinary interest: Julie Pine: Well, this is a Christmas tradition that every tree farmer should know. (Julie opens a canister) Rick Spruce: Are those pine needles? Julie Pine: Yup. Rick Spruce: You put those in the tea? Julie Pine: They are the tea. (Julie prepares the drink, putting a small sprig of pine needles in each mug, and pouring in about two inches of boiling water.) Julie Pine: My Mom would make this for us every winter. Here you go. (She passes one of the mugs to Rick.) Rick Spruce (uncertain): Thank you. Julie Pine (urging him): Go on, ... (Rick hesitates, but then, cautiously, sniffs, and then sips.) Rick Spruce: It's like Christmas in a cup! Julie Pine (pleased he likes it, and understands it): Cheers! Rick Spruce: Cheers! (They both happily drink!) Wikipedia's article on "Pine" tells us: "A tea made by steeping young, green pine needles in boiling water (known as tallstrunt in Sweden) is high in vitamins A and C". Also, other Wikipedia articles note that "pines" and "spruces" all belong to the botanical family Pinaceae, while the pines, as such, belong to the genera Pinus. By contrast, balsam firs, while belonging to the large family Pinaceae, are not members of the genera Pinus, but belong to the separate genus Abies. That is, firs are not pines! Despite this, early in the film Dave Spruce berates Rick for selling customers a hated "pine", a Balsam fir. Hmm, ... Julie, the horticulture student, could have corrected Dave! Once you get over the corny family names, Pine and Spruce, and forget the cheesy nickname "Bear" for a big burly smiling tub of a man (maybe not such a bad nickname after all), and accept that the story of ridiculously feuding families and thwarted star-crossed lovers is a happier variant on Romeo and Juliet, this is a good film. It naturally centres on "Christmas", because of the seasonal setting of the rival Christmas tree farms, but not for what Christmas is really about, such as, the Nativity, and/or Santa Claus. Instead it emphasises the importance of listening to your heart, and caring for others. But maybe that is not such a bad Christmas message, after all!

So Much Potential...and that's it

[adriema · 1/10 · 22 November 2021]

Could have been hilarious. Needed a character named Bruce Spruce, since they went with the last name tree-theme. The feud between the families begs an explanation, especially since they're selling two different products and therefore, aren't truly in direct competition.

Time and location aren't divulged, and none of the actors ever behave as if there's a chill in the air. So much of the dialogue is contrived, obviously designed to give details about the characters without developing the plot.

Sadly falls prey to a common plight: all the male characters act and speak like little girls, perhaps in an effort to make the main female character seem strong in comparison.

I was looking forward to a light-hearted, fun movie to get me in the holiday Spirit, especially after all those Halloween slasher movies. This however did not deliver. Bad writing, bad acting, bad music, just bad.

Dazed and Confused cameo!

[jdeans-733-178574 · 10/10 · 13 December 2020]

Watch this movie to find a sneaky Dazed and Confused reference, also, it's SAPPY movie, so enjoy....