Magic Christmas Tree (1964)

"Mr. Tree, can you tell me what's going on?" - Santa

A boy discovers a magical Christmas tree that can grant wishes.
Starring: Chris Kroesen, Valerie Hobbs, Richard C. Parish, and Tree

Link to IMDB

Believe it or not, this is in colour.

Three schoolboys are hoping to find excitement for Halloween, so they head over to an old house that has a reputation for being the haunted home of a witch. Two of the boys chicken-out and run home, but Mark is brave enough to discover that it's just an old lady in an old house. Mark is coerced into rescuing the lady's cat from a tree, but he falls and gets knocked unconscious when he lands on his head.

Previously in black and white, the movie now switches to colour when Mark wakes up. Turns out the lady is a witch after all, and she rewards Mark with a magic ring and a magic seed. If he plants the seed it will grow into a special tree that will grant him three wishes. The tree grows overnight in Mark's yard, but it won't be wish-granting size until Christmas time, so the kid just has to wait.



Next is one of the weirdest, most awkward comedic scenes ever put on film! Mark's dad plans to mow the lawn, but is very confused when he discovers a new tree has grown there overnight. The scene is just bonkers. The uncontrollable lawnmower makes the most insane noises, like a honking tuba being used as a bowling ball. The dialog between the parents is borderline nonsense, as the dad tries and fails to chop down the tree. All of this is constantly interrupted with shots of Mark's pet turtle eating grass, as though it's an essential piece of the plot. The only thing I could do was laugh.

Christmas time arrives and Mark discovers the tree can talk, and this tree has a seriously sassy attitude! The tree makes its way inside the house and decorates itself. Using the magic ring, Mark is finally able to get his wishes. His first wish is for "an hour of power" which he completely wastes by just playing pranks on the neighbourhood. His next wish is to have Santa Claus all to himself. With Santa trapped in Mark's house, Christmas will be ruined for everyone in the world, but Mark won't let him go until he gets some gifts. That's right, it's Santa extortion!
Mark's adventure doesn't end there, but with only one wish left can he set aside his greed and let Santa bring Christmas to the world? Maybe a visit from a child molesting giant will teach him a lesson... Oh my god.

Santa regrets everything

This movie is just so weird, with quite a few moments of unintentional surreal genius. It's not as demented as Santa Claus vs. the Devil or Santa and the Ice Cream Bunny, but it's made in a similar style and has enough oddness to make you question the sanity of the filmmaker. Some parts drag but it's only an hour long, so there's little tedium. It's clumsy enough to look like a high school project, but that's part of the charm here. They were trying to make a fun Christmas movie for families to enjoy, instead they created a disaster that will only be appreciated by fans of the absurd and awful.




Be sure not to miss:
- What are the magic words? Rimmed Bum, Harry Newman, Pole??
- Someone call PETA. Mark makes his tortoise live in a drawer!
- "Parties? Girls? I sure feel sorry for you."
- Mark has a big butt. It looks 30 years older than the rest of his body.

Internet review:
"I can't stop watching it! Someone make me stop!" - patskywriter

Should I watch it?
Definitely worth seeing.

Where can I find it?
Here on YouTube.

Magic Christmas Tree gets...