Director: Robert Zemeckis Starring: voices of Jim Carrey, Gary Oldman, Bob Hoskins, Cary Elwes, Robin Wright Penn Running Time: 1 hour, 36 minutes Theatrical Release: November 6, 2009 Shop for A Christmas Carol Merchandise

Plot Summary

“Disney’s A Christmas Carol,” a multi-sensory thrill ride re-envisioned by Academy Award®-winning filmmaker Robert Zemeckis, captures the fantastical essence of the classic Dickens tale in a groundbreaking 3-D motion picture event. Ebenezer Scrooge (Jim Carrey) begins the Christmas holiday with his usual miserly contempt, barking at his faithful clerk (Gary Oldman) and his cheery nephew (Colin Firth). But when the ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Yet to Come take him on an eye-opening journey revealing truths Old Scrooge is reluctant to face, he must open his heart to undo years of ill will before it’s too late. (from MovieWeb.com)

Film Review

It’s risky business to attempt to create a new version of the classic beloved Christmas tale, A Christmas Carol. The Charles Dickens story has been made into so many different renditions over the years (Hollywood even churned out a version of the story into a non-Christmas romantic comedy called Ghosts Of Girlfriends Past earlier this year). But the 2009 update from Disney of A Christmas Carol is helmed by Robert Zemeckis, who is most known for his works Forrest Gump, Back To The Future, and Who Framed Roger Rabbit. In 2004, Zemeckis produced his first ever all-CGI animated motion capture film, The Polar Express. The Christmas story, which was all about believing in Santa Claus, was created entirely using motion capture animation. Zemeckis then went on to create the crude Beowulf in 2007 with A Christmas Carol being his next undertaking. For the central role of Ebenezer Scrooge, Zemeckis and company have enlisted the aid of comedian Jim Carrey, who also provides the voice and performance capturing for the three ghosts that visit Scrooge on Christmas night. The end result?

It’s a bit tough to top the 1951 version of the classic story, Scrooge, which starred the phenomenal Alastair Sim in the title role. But Jim Carrey actually manages to channel some of the best traits of Sim’s take on the character, while injecting just enough of his own personality to give it a different feel. This version also utilizes some of the story’s best dialog and moments that help make the story such a moving and memorable one. Many previous renditions of the tale have spent much time developing Scrooge’s past, but 2009’s A Christmas Carol sacrifices some of the back story details to make room for whimsical moments to lighten the mood. I suppose it’s fine, since the scenes that do develop character and story are handled with great care. But Zemeckis gives his version of Christmas Carol a very dark and creepy telling. From our introduction to the ghost of Marley who literally jumps out at the audience, to the ghastly dismissal of the Ghost of Christmas Present and introduction of The Ghost of Christmas Future, there are many borderline horrific moments that will likely scare the Scrooge out of any little miser. Sadly, Zemeckis’ take on A Christmas Carol isn’t entirely a family-friendly one. It’s likely to give young ones some serious nightmares.

The only real content worthy of alarm is how creepy and scary some of the film’s moments are. When we meet Marley, we find his creepy glowing ghostly face in place of Scrooge’s door knocker. And when it suddenly spits the knocker out of its mouth, sending tooth fragments into the air, you know you’re likely in for a spooky story. Scrooge’s more formal meeting with Marley that follows is very tensely and slowly built up with spooky sounds and camera angles. Then Marley himself is a creepy fellow. At one point, he tears his jaw accidentally, causing it to flop in a gruesome fashion. It’s then played for laughs to lighten the moment, but it’s still unmistakably a rough one. Shortly thereafter, we see a sea of tormented souls outside Scrooge’s window in a scene meant to shock. Things don’t turn super grim again until we find The Ghost of Christmas Present making his exit… strangely decomposing before our eyes down to a skeleton before disintegrating away like dust. The Ghost of Christmas Future then lunges at the screen and we see many more intense moments, including Scrooge’s final encounter with his intended fate. It all adds to the emotional impact of Scrooge’s supernatural journey, however, and it makes the glorious redemptive ending seem all that more cheery and bright in contrast.

In fact, Robert Zemeckis does do the Christmas season a great service in incorporating classic Christmas carol tunes into Alan Silvestri’s score, and maintaining references to God, albeit often subtle, throughout the story. There’s even a prominent focus on the symbol of the cross atop a church during one of the scenic shots that adds to the genuine Christmas feel of the film. In the end, Disney’s A Christmas Carol is still probably one of the most “Christmasy” modern holiday films to come along in awhile.

With 3D becoming the hottest thing to hit theaters since stadium-style seating, it’s partly a shame that Disney’s A Christmas Carol has to fall victim to it. Now, before you get me wrong about the movie’s 3D quality, it really has nothing to do with how the film looks in 3D and everything to do with how the movie takes advantage of the 3D technology. The actual 3D animation is fantastic – possibly the best I’ve ever seen on screen. The animation is crystal clear and the 3D never seems anything but genuine. But Zemeckis milks the film for what it’s worth in its 3D capabilities, specifically using Scrooge’s traveling through the past, present, and future as a ride for the audience. We follow him as he soars through the air and over rooftops, to even being shot high into the sky by the Ghost of Christmas Past and chased through the streets of London by the Ghost of Christmas Future on a horse and carriage. It’s to the point where it begins to feel excessive before the film’s end, and it starts to feel a bit out of place for this kind of classic story and overdone. It does work well in 3D, but it probably will just seem all the more unnecessary in 2D (particularly when that will be the primary viewing format when it hits home video). Other than the overuse of zipping through the sky, the 3D effects are beautiful – particularly when it’s snowing on screen – and it adds a little additional whimsy to the holiday story.

When all is said and done, Disney’s A Christmas Carol is an instant classic! The cast all did an excellent job with their parts and the film even uses many of the voice actors’ likenesses in their animated forms. While the story and its delivery is much too dark for young audiences (especially in 3D when the ghosts literally jump out at you at times), and there are a few classic previous film moments that felt were missed here, the redemptive quality of the story of Ebenezer Scrooge is retained in Robert Zemeckis’ telling of Dickens’ tale, and the movie wonderfully captures the Christmas spirit. I look forward to revisiting this one each Christmas season to come.

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