Podcast in a Pear Tree: Christmas Movie Reviews · Aaron Lee Harvey, Danielle Espino, Samantha Gifford

A grown up A.C. Slater plus time travel strikes again

·30 min·10 clips

Podcast in a Pear Tree returns with the panel sounding eager and fully loaded with holiday-watch opinions. They open by saying they have been teasing these movies for a long time. The first big target is The Christmas Spark, starring Mario Lopez. Aaron, Samantha, and Danielle keep trading quick reactions as the premise unfolds. The movie keeps throwing them off because they expected a firefighter story and instead get Mario Lopez as a lawyer trying to get promoted. It is set at Christmas, but the panel agrees it does not feel especially Christmasy. One recurring joke is how long it takes the movie to settle into what it thinks it is. The group likes some of the pieces anyway. They call it one of the better offerings in this category. They are not pretending it is great. They are saying it is decent and entertaining in the way these movies often are. The hosts also get into the Grand Ole Opry material. They note that the film folds in real facts about the venue. That detail seems to land with them. One of them says it taught her something about the Opry. Another points out a costume that seems to echo a Garth Brooks album look from the 1990s. That sends the conversation into a country-music tangent. There is also confusion and annoyance around the film using Brad Paisley to perform the song instead of the singer who had been built up inside the story. The panel thinks that move hurts the story a little. Still, nobody is truly mad about it. They keep grading the movie on the relaxed holiday scale the show uses all the time. One host puts it in the top ten on her leaderboard. Another says it is solidly okay. They talk about whether they would buy the Christmas album or just stream the song. The answer is basically no album, maybe one song, which feels exactly right for the mood. The episode then widens out to the rest of the Christmas viewing pile. The hosts mention there are a lot of Lifetime movies coming fast, including Christmas at the Mistletoe Manor. They joke about having to prioritize. They promise more reports and more teasing of the movies that are still ahead. The tone stays light, slightly skeptical, and very familiar with the holiday-movie machine. The whole thing feels like friends comparing notes right after a weekend of watching too much seasonal TV. It is a show that likes the genre enough to notice when it cheats. It also likes the genre enough to keep coming back. That mix is the point.

As heard by us

Warm holiday-movie banter with a sharp eye for the ridiculous bits.

Podcast in a Pear Tree settles into an easy end of holiday weekend rhythm, with the panel sounding like it has already watched a stack of Christmas movies and is ready to sort them out. It does not smooth over the rougher parts.

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Why you'd press play

Press play if you want a Christmas-movie panel that notices the details.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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