A Christmas Carol

FILM REVIEW : Disney's A Christmas Carol (2009)

I must preface this review by saying that I feel that we have all seen at least five different versions of this classic, which is a few more times than needed. Whether it's a direct take on the story or an indirect twist like Ghosts of Girlfriends Past, the story starts to lose much of its magic and wonder with so many interpretations. Still, I have to admit that I quite enjoyed Disney's A Christmas Carol, Robert Zemeckis third stab at motion-capture technology. While worth my time, I do think it could have been somewhat better.

You know the story: Ebenezer Scrooge (Jim Carrey) is a corrupt old man who hates Christmas and everything about the holiday. On Christmas Eve - well early Christmas Day if you want to be technical about it - he is visited by three spirits (Jim Carrey, Jim Carrey, and I think the last one was also Jim Carrey) who essentially haunt him in the hopes that he will change his ways. This results in Scooge loving the holiday and making amends with business partner Bob Cratchit (Gary Oldman) and his nephew (Colin Firth).

Like I said, this is a good film. I do have to apologize to Mister Jim Carrey for being immediately disgusted by the "Jim Carrey, Jim Carrey, and Jim Carrey" factor. He was quite good in all of the roles he took in the film. He fits into the role of Scrooge like a glove, and he plays off his other roles with an impeccable timing that probably comes from his more comedic roles.

The Victorian London presented by the motion capture is truly extraordinary. Alan Silvestri's score is absolutely amazing and fits perfectly with the atmosphere. the The 3D and IMAX (guilty) definitely add to the art and set direction in the film. I'm really not sure how it would look in a normal format, and I honestly don't want to have that knowledge. I think this was meant to be an immersion into the world of Victorian London, which works perfectly. Still, I believe that films - particularly films of this nature - should be able to draw you into the atmosphere without having to use outside factors such as 3D or IMAX. Had I seen a "normal" print of the film, I know that I would not have felt as "involved" as I did while watching the 3D and IMAX, but I also have to wonder if I would have sensed any sort of connection to the story at all (aside from the countless interpretations of A Christmas Carol that have been made throughout history).

As far as the interpretation, it does takes some turns that I've never seen in any Christmas Carol interpretation. Not going to spoil anything, but it's actually pretty interesting. It's definitely too dark for anyone under the age of five, and it wouldn't be a stretch to leave anyone under the age of eight at home for this one. Generally, when humor is attempted, it's actually pretty good. Carrey gets to act in his element of "silly," while thankfully not overdoing it.

As is customary for me, I did have a couple of problems with this film. While the environment is very involving, the writing isn't anywhere near as engaging. About twenty minutes outside of the end, I was ready to leave. I mean, it's not like I'm watching the film to see how it ends because I already know the ending! I think that another obstacle that films of this sort faces is making the audience want to watch the whole film, and I just didn't get that. Another problem involves Gary Oldman and Colin Firth, but it's not their acting. I already mentioned that Oldman plays Cratchit, but I purposely didn't mention who else he plays: Tiny Tim. But you would hardly notice it. His "motion-capture" and voice acting in that role is so edited that the Gary Oldman factor is irrelevant. Instead of wasting the time and energy on digitally altering Oldman's entire Tiny Tim interpretation, why didn't they just get a kid to play that part? A similar situation arises with Colin Firth as Scrooge's nephew. The face of the character doesn't look a thing like Mister Firth! This all leads me to question motion-capture as a whole: how much of these performances are digitally altered or enhanced? Why don't they just animate the whole thing?

Still, good film. Family-friendly for the most part, but for me that's really a factor. It's a decent way to ring in the Christmas season I guess, but it's not necessary for one's record of viewed films. I'd more suggest watching A Christmas Story.

Somewhat recommended

Rating: 5.5 out of 10 stars (3 out of 5 stars)

 Photo Courtesy: Peninsula Cinemas

Julian Stark (pen name)<br />
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Founder/Editor: Movies and Other Things<br />
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http://julianstark-moviesandotherthings.blogspot.com

A Christmas Carol [1999] — 4

Yes, there is actually a version of A Christmas Carol where Patrick Stewart plays Scrooge. It took me over 2 years to track down a copy of this (really I didn’t look that hard for it, I just always wanted to see it). I am glad to finally of found it.

Now in my personal opinion there is no better male actor than Patrick Stewart, the man is a genius on screen. He played in other things such as ST:TOS(Star Trek: The Next Generation) as Capt. Picard. He also starred in the first 3 x-men movies as Professor Xavier. He played all those roles brilliantly, almost to the point of taking away from the thunder of other actors. He is a genius and with that in mind I was actually expecting a little more from him than this. It was by no means a bad performance; I think it was just a bad script.

The plot was boring mainly because it dragged on. When you thought a scene should have been over it kept on going for another 10 minutes, torturously. It was the only downfall of this. Then again it was a made-for-TV film, so I didn’t expect much, but I at least expected to be entertained. It wasn’t that entertaining.

As far as sticking to the story, it stuck really well. But it was boring through and through.

I would go on, but I would honestly just tear this movie limb from limb. I honestly do not recommend this version even if you are an avid fan of both Patrick Stewart and A Christmas Carol. I love them both, but they don’t mesh together well.

Base Score = 5
+3 for Patrick Stewart
-1 for a bad script
-2 for dragging on… constantly
-1 for being bored during most of the movie
=4/10

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Last updated: 2010-01-12 01:38:14 by Tolll