The Berenstain Bears: Christmas Tree

This is a charming look at paying attention to the needs of others. Papa Bear is determined to find the "perfect" tree so he takes the kids up the mountain on his quest. Every "perfect" tree is the home to another animal, bird, etc. The bears pass each by to let the animals keep their home(s). In the end, the tree expedition is stopped by a storm and the bears return home without a tree at all. When they arrive, their house has been decorated by all the animals whose homes have been spared. A message of sharing that grown-ups and kids alike should see.

This animated Christams tale, tells the story of Papa Bear's quest to find the perfect Christmas tree. But, oh no! The one he finds is home to so many animals. Will he learn to share? This movie is warm and family-spirited. Great enjoyment!

This is an "Emmy Award" winning half hour TV special. This VHS tape of the special was released in 1979, and is my favorite of all the Berenstein videos. It is out of print now, and has not been released on DVD as of the date of this review.

In the story, it is Christmas time where the Bear family lives in a hollow tree, in a town of bears. The family wants to decorate a tree, with all their favorite decorations and star. It is time to get a tree before it is too late. Mom wants Poppa to get a tree down at Gus's lot, but Poppa Bear wants to go out and find a tree in the woods and take the little bears with him. Momma does not want them to, since a snow storm is moving in, but the bears trudge up the mountain anyway. They find several "perfect trees", but in each case they find that other animals live in these tree already. Some of the animals are scary and chase the bears away, some are tiny and afraid to lose their home. The bears have to decide what to do about this as the storm is coming soon.

Produced in Canada, the character animation is smooth and well done. Voice actors were good. The art designs and backgrounds fit right with the story, and the bear home and town are really cute. I found that the music is well done, and fits the period the film was released. Overall a very nice addition to our own holiday show collection - a feel good story for all ages. It is a bit hard to find now, but I highly recommend a copy. I bought mine used from a third party seller here at Amazon.com and am very happy with it.