Scrooge

Review: This 1951 adaptation of Charles Dickens’ ‘A Christmas Carol’ (the film is known by both titles) is a great watch around the holiday season. If you’re a fan of the story, but not sure which of the countless adaptation to watch, I would recommend this one. I would say it’s the best version without a ‘gimmick.’ I don’t mean ‘gimmick’ in a negative sense, just that most other versions have some caveat. Some of the popular versions include ‘The Muppet Christmas Carol’ (gimmick is the Muppets), 2009’s ‘A Christmas Carol’ (gimmick is the unique 3D animation style & Carrey voicing many of the major characters), ‘Scrooged’ (gimmick is a modern day setting), and so on and so on. This one is just a straight laced dramatic adaptation of Dickens’ novel and it is executed brilliantly. It has the charm that many of the classic Christmas films have, but is timeless just like the story itself.

High: I think Alastair Sim’s Scrooge is the best take on the character. He pulls the character right off the page and is so classically grouchy. The performances overall are really great, with Michael J. Dolan & Francis de Wolff as the Ghosts of Christmas Past & Present, respectively, also being notably good. I think it’s funny that the Ghost of Christmas Present pretty much just said ‘Scrooge you need Jesus.’ Yea, fair enough.

Low: This is not a low for me personally, & I know I recommended it, but if you don’t like old movies this one probably isn’t from you. The story is timeless, the performances hold up well, & the effects are honestly really well done for a film from 1951. But all that said, it still came out in 1951, so it may not be everyone’s cup of tea today. I’ll also say that since the story has been retold so many times, that I would imagine its stale & played out for those who don’t love the story.

Rating: 8/10