Review of A Christmas Carol (1984) by Eric C — 24 Dec 2009

Another masterpiece has been made using the pages of Charles Dickens Christmas Classic.

This time the character of Scrooge is played almost perfectly by George C Scott. This version of Scrooge is great, he's ballsy, even to the Ghost he is at one point scared of. He's callous and cold and almost non remourseful. When the change begins, it happens slowly and at little bits at a time throughout the story. With each image pulling at his current ways and his hidden morals, its a great way to show a man's struggle within himself. I love seeing more of Scrooge's father, not only does the actor portraying him look exactly like him, but he really foreshadows how and why Scrooge turned out the way he did. The one problem with this version is that the writers and director has decided to leave out the death of Scrooge's sister Fan, this is a very poignant scene in both film and novel and is what really set Scrooge off into being such a miser.

The rest of the actors are awesome, with many great actors giving their touch to the already popular characters.

David Warner plays Bonb Cratchet, the apprentice to Scrooge, who des his job well and is never shown much gratitude. He still manages to take care of his family and keep the spirit of Christmas within everyone. Warner is a great actor to begin with, this performance is one I love to brag about to my friends when discussing him. He brings in the warmth and care the character evokes and it never feels played out. Susannah York, most known for her role as Lara, the mother of Kal-El in Superman and Superman II(Lester Cut)portrays Mrs. Cratchet, this role is small, as it has always been, I have not much to say about this character, but I do enjoy this performance, she plays it real, her disdain for Scrooge, he love for her family and her duties(in the time period)as a housewife is all strong and effective.

Roger Rees plays Scrooge's upbeat nephew Fred, like everyone else he plays this character in a heartfelt way. Caring and wanting the most to connect with his Uncle. Like most of the roles, this one is small, but whenever he is on screen you enjoy his performance. Although, I did see Robin Hood: Men in Tights first, the hairdue is a bit much, lol.

Anthony Walters is the final performance I will go in depth with, he plays Tiny Tim, with all the previous versions made, especially the 38 and 51 versions, this may be my favorite Tiny Tim, the make up effects and size of the child are a perfect fit for the way the character was written. Don;'t get me wrong, the other versions were good, but this is the closest to a perfect adaptation that has been performed.

The film is great, the sets and atmosphere is amazing, the film was shot on location and it shows. The music is great, chilling at times, although at times there is some music cues that are a bit out of place.

The acting never feels overdone or out of place. This is one of 3 versions that I watch each year. I will definitely recommend seeing this film as much as possible.

4 out of 5 stars.

TRIVIA:

Several members of the cast have been in comic book adaptations.

They are:

Michael Gough, plays a merchant trying to raise money for the poor, he played Alfred Pennyworth in the 4 Batman films from 1989-1997.

David Warner played the voice of Ra's Al Ghul in the Batman: The Animated Series and Superman: The Animated Series in the DCAU series. He's also played Dr. Perry in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: Secret of the Ooze.

Susannah York plays Lara, mother of Kal-El/Clark Kent/Superman in Superman: The Movie and Superman II:Richard Lester Cut.