Christmas Oranges (2012) User Reviews

Great Family Film...make it a holiday tradition!!

[LiveLoveLead · 7/10 · 25 December 2014]

I was really looking forward to our family watching this movie together for Christmas. Several years ago I had come across a touching story called "A Christmas Orange." As soon as I saw this movie playing on cable, and read the synopsis, I knew it must be derived from that same short story that I had read.

The basic meaning of the movie is the same as Fred C Lemon's short story, although there was a big difference in that the main character of the written story was a mischievous orphan boy named Jack, and in this movie, the main character is a sweet orphan girl named Rose.

Rose being left at an orphanage as a baby is a kind-hearted, responsible girl. After being moved from the only home she's known, Rose has to adjust to a more regimented residence, bullies, and an overbearing headmaster. Though tested at every turn, she never sways from her true kind nature, and she sets an example of love and forgiveness for everyone.

The movie is noticeably a lower budget film with so-so writing, directing and acting, but the story is precious. Bailee Johnson was adorable in the role of Rose. Edward Herrmann (Oz, Gilmore Girls, The Lost Boys) played cranky Mr. Crampton and held his own.

Although this film is written, directed and produced by Christians/Mormons, the film doesn't get preachy at all. This heart- warming, story is basically about hope, compassion, and forgiveness, and it is a great movie for the entire family. Dec 2014 (5 stars for the production, 9 for the story/moral = a 7-star rating in my Humble Opinion)

The redemption saved it

[matthias_conrad · 8/10 · 6 January 2022]

Beautiful redemption arc, and of course, Joe saved the day. Even that bratty girl managed to change into someone better. Incredible redemption. I honestly cannot see why this masterpiece has so many mediocore reviews.

Nice Christmas story to remind us of our blessings

[chlump · 7/10 · 18 December 2021]

Christmas Oranges is a well produced film and tells a compelling story of an orphan's early life and struggles, and how she, through the kindness and compassion she learned from her first caretaker, touched the lives and hearts of others.

There are many child actors, and I can only imagine the challenges in producing a movie with many children. They, however, do a fine job in their roles, and fairly convincingly portray their characters. The overall plot is compelling and generally easy to follow, although it can be a a little slow paced at times.

Sometimes I felt that the screenplay was a little too melodramatic, and it did take away some of the realism for me. Perhaps it is just my experience but I sometimes wonder if people can truly treat children so poorly at times. Like when poor Rose was being taken from her first orphanage, alone, to another one by someone who was just so one dimensionally detestable and without heart. That seemed a little over the top. But it does help to portray just how difficult a transition like that could be.

One other plot point that generally confused me was this - why was Mr. Crampton running the orphanage himself for the most part, even though his brother Joe supposedly owned half of it? What made him "more in charge" than his brother, and why did his brother live so close by and not seem to have much control over how the orphanage was run? Sometimes it almost seemed like, although Joe was so nice to the children, he also wasn't taking the responsibility for the orphanage like he could or should have. Maybe the short story makes this clearer, but it was not really explained in the movie.

A little more backstory on Mr. Crampton's falling out with his daughter, or even a flashback, would have been nice, and could have likely been worked into the same running time if some of the pacing of other parts of the story were improved.

Despite these nits, it is an enjoyable and inspiring movie, and we could all do well to be as kind and forgiving as Rose when we experience challenges in our lives. The true Spirit of Christmas.

A wonderful movie of forgiveness!

[deborahseeley54 · 29 December 2013]

I just watched Christmas Oranges for the first time today! What an absolutely wonderful movie. It is now on my list of must watch films at Christmas! Another great Nancy Stafford film! Edward Herrmann was wonderful as usual.All the acting was great. I recommend this movie for all ages. Great movie of forgiveness that shows that it's never too late to change and that a kind word goes far!

Please get this film and share it with family and friends. Would also make a good movie to have at church for movie night! A great family film! Kudos all around! Don't wait a minute more....go out and get this movie and share!

Oops, This Is Not a Hallmark Movie.

[panaceamedia · 7/10 · 4 December 2022]

Little Women era (I think?) orphanage kids hopping around and settling in a militant style orphanage during Christmas time is the plot.

This was an odd movie to rate as there was lots of juxtaposition between great and cringey acting as well as driving plot points next to ones that didn't make much sense. I initially thought it was a Hallmark movie for some reason, but Hallmark doesn't allow their stories to get that dark. Hallmark movies don't make me want to go Lecter on certain characters behaving badly.

Edward Herrmann and Nancy Stafford deliver excellent performances as usual. The main child is also top notch. A few other decent actors mixed with a slew of average or worse ones. Kinda like playing fantasy sports and getting a couple of the best players then you are already out of points so dole it out amongst the scrubs.

Overall, it's a beautiful film and shows how being surrounded by love makes you able to combat and even convert the hate of others, while those spending too much time in the hate begin spreading it themselves. The overall message trumps the problems with the film.

Oh, and when you are poor and the scurvy is setting in, an orange for Christmas is the best gift ever.

A Christmas Drama

[atlasmb · 7/10 · 25 December 2023]

This is the story of Rose, a young orphan who narrates some of the story. It takes place in the early years of the 20th century, when state-run orphanages were often little more than holding tanks for unwanted children.

Rose was one of the lucky ones. She lived at Greenwoods, where the kindly Mrs. Hartley (Nancy Stafford), treated all the girls as if they were her children. But then came the epidemic of 1918, and the death of Mrs. Hartley. The girls were scattered among local homes and some, like Rose, were taken in by other orphanages.

Her new home was called Irongates and was run by the stern Mr. Crampton (Edward Herrmann). There she finds both friends and enemies. She has difficulty adapting to the strict rules of Irongates. But Rose never loses her inner spirit.

The story finds comparison with "Annie" or "Heidi". Its main flaw is the dialogue of some children, which often feels unauthentic, too adult to be realistic. But Rose is an interesting character to watch.

Absolutely Lovely!

[farbitmesay · 10/10 · 12 December 2015]

Loved this darling movie. It is well written, flows nicely, the camera work, settings and acting is flawless. An absolute gem. It is sort of along the same storyline of a Dickens novel.

I love finding sweet movies like this. This is one you can watch with the whole family and not have one cringe at all! So do yourself a favor and watch it. I am going to watch it again with my whole family in attendance. Our grandparents have told us stories of how special it was to receive an orange at Christmas and many of us put them out now as a tradition. It is fun to see how excited the children so long ago were over something we take for granted. What a stark contrast to what our children now a days get excited for at Christmas. If all they got was an orange boy would they be disappointed.

Bravo to the cast & crew. Sad movies like this don't get more attention.

I love Rose!

[judyap-27449 · 10/10 · 4 April 2020]

What an example Rose is. Always patient and loving despite such trials. I always enjoy watching it at Christmas.

Could've been good, but poorly made

[abelhawk · 3/10 · 13 December 2020]

Overall, the "feel-good" aspect of the movie will appeal to less picky viewers, but I found the cringey acting and the poor pacing of the plot distracting. The climax of the film was done well, but the resolution as a whole felt very forced and the redemption of the villain undeserved.

Christmas at the orphanage

[SimonJack · 9/10 · 23 January 2017]

This is one of those films in which Christmas enters the picture only at the end. That, along with the significance and the title, are what makes this a Christmas movie. Otherwise, this is a fine drama about a girl who grows up in an orphanage – actually two different ones. Mention orphanage as a movie subject to some people, and you know you'll have to bring out the tissue box. When the story is as good as this one, I've been known to use a tissue myself.

This is a very good story, introduced and ended by a woman who is the main character, Rose, looking back on her life. She was left on the doorstep of an orphanage home run by Mrs. Hartley (played by Nancy Stafford). By the time she was about 11 years old, an influenza epidemic broke out in their town. Actor Ed Herrmann in a featurette with this movie says the story takes place around 1917. I don't think there is a specific time named in the book or screenplay, but it would likely to have been 1918. From March to November of that year, the worst epidemic in American history occurred when an outbreak of Spanish flu killed more than 500,000 people.

Rose (played by Bailee M. Johnson) first losses her friend, Felicity, who dies. Others in the home get the flu, and finally Mrs. Hartley (played by Nancy Stafford) is stricken and dies. There is never an explanation of authorities in the film, which is OK, except that we don't know on what basis the people in the town where Mrs. Hartley lived, saw to the closing of her orphanage home and placement of the children. All of the several children are "taken" by local residents for adoption, except for Rose and her friend, Josephine (Anne Burton). They are split up and sent off to different orphanages. A Wicked Witch of the West type person, Miss Gladstone (Elizabeth Hales) overseas the closing and delivery of Rose to Irongates Orphanage- someplace a considerable distance by a day's train ride.

It is at Irongates that most of the story takes place. Ed Herrmann plays Mr. Crampton, who runs the orphanage by the rules. He himself was an orphan, along with his brother Joe, played by Bruce Newbold. Yolanda Wood plays Polly, the cook and general supervisor in the absence of Crampton. Savanna K. Lewis plays Rose's new friend at Irongates, Emily. As the promotion of the film states, the plot from here on is about Rose's kindness effecting changes at Irongates, including a conversion of Mr. Crampton, from his hardened persona to a kind person. There's more to the story that makes this all the more interesting.

The movie is based on a very short children's book by the same title, written by Linda Bethers in 1999, and illustrated by Ben Sowards. Bethers is an elementary school librarian in Utah. The book was just 13 pages. It was reprinted in 2002 and expanded to 32 pages. The DVD of this film has an interesting featurette, but IMDb doesn't have a listing for this short documentary. "Christmas Oranges Behind the Scenes" runs seven minutes and 20 seconds, and has film clips with comments by various people. Among those are Sally Meyer who wrote the screenplay, John Lyde who directed the film, Paul D. Hunt the producer, actor Ed Herrmann and Bailee who played Rose.

Meyer explained the challenge of writing a screenplay from such a short story to make a full-length movie. Lyde said that gave them the opportunity to develop the characters more. Meyer said that Crampton's stern character was based on his own upbringing and desire to protect the children. There's more in the short, and I think it's a good companion to help understand the film, which otherwise isn't situated in a specific time or place.

The documentary is © 2012 by Christmas Oranges Picture, LLC. Ron Borough produced and directed it. It was edited by Spencer Atamanczyk. Camera and sound were done by Michael Borough and others. Audio mixing was by Blair Leishman, and music was by James Shafer.

One thing strange about the film listing on IMDb and elsewhere is its release date. IMDb shows the only release date to be 23 Oct 2015 (DVD premiere) in Germany.

"Christmas Oranges" is an endearing movie that it might be very good for children to see especially.

A whole different approach

[bkoganbing · 5/10 · 26 December 2016]

I doubt that most viewers will know anyone other than Edward Herrmann and Nancy Stafford from Christmas Roses. Still it's a wonderful family film produced it looks like under Mormon auspices.

The two are the heads of a pair of orphanages the girl who grows up to be Bailee Michelle Johnson is placed. They couldn't be more opposite in their approach. Stafford kind of reminds me of Greer Garson when she played Edna Gladney in Blossoms In The Dust. The baby named Rose is just left on the door of her orphanage and she's just taken no questions asked. In fact Stafford because she came as an infant just regards her as her own.

But in what looks like an influenza epidemic many of the kids died and so does Stafford. The survivors are either adopted or scattered to other orphanages. And Johnson comes under the care of Edward Herrmann, a most strict man who is all about the rules.

Johnson who took her life lessons from Stafford turns out to be tougher than you would think. She not only takes a lot of buffeting, but she also softens a few hearts as well.

I agree with the other reviewer in that Christmas Oranges even under religious auspices never gets preachy. It's a nice family film and should be seen.

A Delight

[wordproductions · 10/10 · 29 October 2021]

I didn't know what to expect. A surprisingly charming and nostalgic movie. Wonderfully moving hitting you right in the heart-where we all need it most.

True Christmas spirit

[caribbeanpiratess-998-981269 · 8/10 · 27 December 2018]

A beautiful, touching movie, that captures the true spirit of what Christmas should be all about.

Awesome

[passeyaubrey · 10/10 · 24 December 2021]

It's not poorly made thank you very much. This movie is about set in a time of hardship, war and disease and it shows that even tho it's set in those times and you can still be happy around the holidays even tho times are hard.

Atheist sort of Grinch

[passamazonassessments · 8/10 · 15 February 2021]

A good example of what grinches atheists are with their doom and gloom around Christmas.

A fantastic movie.

[fitforfaith-ministries · 10/10 · 4 January 2024]

I would have never come across this movie if not recommended by a friend whom I was very grateful for and thanked repeatedly for gifting me such a monumental piece of Christian cinema.

It is a movie with low budget and surely not with spectacular settings and cinematography. It is a movie that goes to the basics, to the core of the human being. Children who have lost everything, except to now be together in a setting, where they experience some love, and much hate and control by the leader of the orphanage who has his own struggles.

It is a movie that shatters into pieces our modern sense of entitlement. Never would I have thought how one orange as Christmas gift could mean so much for children who have nothing else but themselves and a home to live in.

And it is a beautiful testimony of Theos, how he can break an old and bitter man through the grace and talent of a small girl.

There is no happy end, but a good end. Good according to His providence.

Very deep and warm

[weberjosh-43288 · 10/10 · 26 December 2021]

Many lessons in this story. Well made, wonderful movie. I enjoyed it a lot. Great acting by adults and children. Makes you think about what's important.