Who doesn't like Christmas? Or at least parts of it? One of my favorite things about Christmas are the movies and stories that come with it. One of the most classic stories is Charles Dickens' classic A Christmas Carol, the ending always gets in me in tears and reminds me why Christmas can be so special. I love every rendition of the story: A Muppets Carol, Scrooged, the classic Christmas Carol from the 80's and so on, even the cheesy TV specials. Honestly, when I first heard about this movie, I had my doubts. The CGI fest really freaks me out, it's like we are being replaced with animation and like we won't need real actors in the future. But someone lent me the movie and I decided to give it a fair chance since I love this story and I'm glad I did because I was pleasantly surprised with A Christmas Carol.
Ebenezer Scrooge, a bitter old moneylender at a counting house hates everything that embodies the joys and spirit of Christmas. He refuses to visit his cheerful nephew Fred at his Christmas dinner party with his family, and forcing his underpaid employee Bob Cratchit to beg to take the day off for his own family. That night, Scrooge is visited by the ghost of his former business partner Jacob Marley who had died seven years prior on Christmas Eve and is now forced to spend his afterlife carrying heavy chains that were forged from his own greedy ways. Marley warns Scrooge that he will suffer an even worse fate if he does not repent and foretells that he will be haunted by three spirits that will help guide him: The Ghost of Christmas Past, The Ghost of Christmas Present and The Ghost of Christmas Future. They take him on a journey in what was, is and can be if he doesn't change soon.
Though the animation still bothers me as I don't think you can convey real human emotion through the CGI people, but I really did like this movie a lot. I thought the whole atmosphere was just gorgeous and really captured the colors of Christmas. All the voice actors did an incredible job, though one complaint is what the heck was with Jim Carrey's accent? He's trying to be British but sounds like Borat trying to do an English Accent. I loved the animation on the ghosts, they were just breath taking. I'm also relieved that they didn't water down the horror of the ghosts, they were genuinely frightening and a lot of the imagery was very haunting. A lot of people forget that the novel despite having a wonderful ending is very scary at the same time. It took being frightened out of his wits that Scrooge changes.
I really did like this version of A Christmas Carol and I think some people are being a bit too harsh. I'm not saying that it's not without flaws, but it tells the story beautifully and doesn't insult the children's intelligence. It's beautifully set and wonderfully acted, I think Charles Dickens would be proud of this presentation. It's a timeless story that can be told in many different ways, but sometimes you can't go wrong with the simple classic style. A Christmas Carol is sure to become a classic in years to come, it deserves another chance.
9/10
Ebenezer Scrooge, a bitter old moneylender at a counting house hates everything that embodies the joys and spirit of Christmas. He refuses to visit his cheerful nephew Fred at his Christmas dinner party with his family, and forcing his underpaid employee Bob Cratchit to beg to take the day off for his own family. That night, Scrooge is visited by the ghost of his former business partner Jacob Marley who had died seven years prior on Christmas Eve and is now forced to spend his afterlife carrying heavy chains that were forged from his own greedy ways. Marley warns Scrooge that he will suffer an even worse fate if he does not repent and foretells that he will be haunted by three spirits that will help guide him: The Ghost of Christmas Past, The Ghost of Christmas Present and The Ghost of Christmas Future. They take him on a journey in what was, is and can be if he doesn't change soon.
Though the animation still bothers me as I don't think you can convey real human emotion through the CGI people, but I really did like this movie a lot. I thought the whole atmosphere was just gorgeous and really captured the colors of Christmas. All the voice actors did an incredible job, though one complaint is what the heck was with Jim Carrey's accent? He's trying to be British but sounds like Borat trying to do an English Accent. I loved the animation on the ghosts, they were just breath taking. I'm also relieved that they didn't water down the horror of the ghosts, they were genuinely frightening and a lot of the imagery was very haunting. A lot of people forget that the novel despite having a wonderful ending is very scary at the same time. It took being frightened out of his wits that Scrooge changes.
I really did like this version of A Christmas Carol and I think some people are being a bit too harsh. I'm not saying that it's not without flaws, but it tells the story beautifully and doesn't insult the children's intelligence. It's beautifully set and wonderfully acted, I think Charles Dickens would be proud of this presentation. It's a timeless story that can be told in many different ways, but sometimes you can't go wrong with the simple classic style. A Christmas Carol is sure to become a classic in years to come, it deserves another chance.
9/10