Movies With Tree In The Title

California sequoia
Whether they're used for shelter, food, or fuel, trees play a crucial role in our world. For many, they also serve as a steadfast reminder of humanity's relationship with and responsibility to our planet. In literature and movies, trees are often used to symbolize generosity, wisdom, and hidden knowledge. Read on for a look at some of the most famous trees from the Bronze Age to modern day.

The Giving Tree

Few trees are more recognizable or beloved than this character from Shel Silverstein's iconic 1964 book of the same name. In the story, the Giving Tree, an apple tree, interacts with a small boy throughout his life, offering him things like apples to sell, branches for a house, and wood for a boat. At the end of the story, the Giving Tree is no more than a stump, but even then, it offers a place for the boy, who is now an old man, to sit. The story has been received differently over the years, due to the debate over the nature of the relationship between the Giving Tree and the boy, but the book remains a timeless classic.

Grandmother Willow

In the 1995 moviePocahontas, the title character seeks guidance from a wise old tree named Grandmother Willow. It's implied that the tree served in a similar mentoring role to Pocahontas's deceased mother. Grandmother Willow offers Pocahontas advice, emphasizing that she trust her heart. Grandmother Willow appears several times during the film, usually offering wisdom at a critical moment. While her character is funny and engaging, the film also focuses on her overarching contributions to the world around her, such as providing a home for forest animals in her branches and supplying her bark for medicine.

The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil

This tree appears in the book of Genesis, the first book of the Hebrew Bible. The book of Genesis relays a creation story of the world, in which the god, Yahweh, creates the earth, the heavens, the first man and the first woman, and a beautiful Garden of Eden. The first man and woman, Adam and Eve, are given strict instructions not to eat the fruit that grows from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. After being tempted by a snake, Adam and Eve disobey Yahweh and eat the fruit of the forbidden tree; thereby bringing the knowledge of good and evil into the world. For their disobedience, Yahweh expels them from the idyllic garden, explaining that they must now work and suffer in order to survive.

The Whomping Willow

In 1997, the first of the seven-novelHarry Potter series was released, catapulting readers of all ages into a world of wizards and magic. In the second book,Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Harry and his friend Ron crash a flying car into a Whomping Willow on the Hogwarts' school grounds. The Whomping Willow is a tree that tries to attack anything within reach of its branches, but it also hides a secret. As Harry and his friends discover, the Whomping Willow was planted over a hidden passageway to a small shack where Remus Lupin, a werewolf and close friend of Harry's father, could safely transform on the full moon.

The Hemlock from My Side of the Mountain

Jean Craighead George's novel,My Side of the Mountain, was published in 1959 and tells the story of a young boy, Sam, who goes to live in the Catskill Mountains. When he discovers that his great-grandfather's farm is no more, Sam must make a home out of something else. He stumbles on a hollow hemlock tree, and uses fire to make it bigger. For the rest of the book, the hemlock tree serves as Sam's anchor and refuge, hiding him from unwanted attention and providing protection from the elements.

The Fir Tree

In this story by Hans Christian Anderson, a small fir tree envies its taller cousins, and spends its time in jealous contemplation, ignoring the natural beauty of the seasons. At Christmas, the tree is cut down and brought into a home, where it is decorated and overhears the story of Humpty Dumpty. Despite the finery, the tree again ignores the wonders of the present, and resolves to enjoy itself more thoroughly the following evening. However, the tree is taken down and thrown out. It talks to some mice and realizes that it has failed to enjoy the life it had. Eventually, the tree is chopped up for firewood, where each "pop" in the fire is the tree's sighed memory of days gone by.

The Bodhi Tree

The Bodhi Tree stretches out of legend and into the modern world, as it can still be seen and visited today. According to Buddhist lore, Siddhartha Gautama was a young man who wandered in search of a way to alleviate suffering. He finally took a seat underneath a fig tree and resolved not to cease meditation until he'd achieved enlightenment. Days later, he rose and became the teacher known as Buddha. The fig tree under which he sat, now called the Bodhi Tree, still grows, and saplings grown from its cuttings thrive all over the world.

Yggdrasil

Another famous mythical tree is Yggdrasil. In Norse mythology, Yggdrasil was said to be a massive ash tree that housed and connected nine different worlds, including those of the underworld, giants, gods, and men. Yggdrasil is also known as the Tree of Life, since the life and death of every human is carved into its trunk. On Doomsday, legend says that Yggdrasil will be set on fire and burned, but its remains will serve as the seeds of the new creation.

The Story of the Fir Tree
The Giving Tree: A Modern-Day Parable of Mutual Responsibility (PDF)
Writing About the Natural World: The Role of Grandmother Willow
The Garden of Eden and the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil (PDF)
A Guide to My Side of The Mountain (PDF)
The Little Fir Tree: Adapted and Illustrated (PDF)
The Bodhi Tree and the Way of Meditation
Buddha Approaching the Bodhi Tree
Sculpture of Buddha Under the Bodhi Tree
Major Norse Myths: Creation and Yggdrasil
The Norse Creation Myth
Yggdrasil: Norse Tree of Life
The Hebrew Creation Narrative
Laughter and the Tree of Knowledge (PDF)
Norse Creation