Christmas Carol Comparison, Pt. 10

<< MISC

OVERALL RATING

 10. A Christmas Carol (2009)

Jim Carrey

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Hit or miss. There’s a lot to like, but the stupid moments bring it down.  Not having the peevish "men of the cloth" line could have saved it from the bottom spot.  In fact it's even worse because it was shoehorned out of nowhere in an otherwise faithful narrative.  It's even more blatantly unearned than the "heroes on both sides" line from Episode III.  If they gave the story a a completely secularized Utilitarian/Malthusian overhaul, it wouldn't have been good but it would have been more aesthetically valid.

9. Bah, Humduck! A Looney Tunes Christmas Carol.  

Daffy Duck

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Mostly coasts on the popularity of the characters without living up to the franchise’s expectation. Looney Tunes focuses more on humor than Disney did, which is why it probably doesn’t do justice.  Then again, the movie is a very watered-down story that doesn’t make up for that in the humor department.

8. A Christmas Carol: The Musical (2004)

Kelsey Grammer

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Decent and faithful, but its artistic license yields mixed results.  It shares a major problem with the next entry…

7. A Christmas Carol (1999)

Patrick Stewart

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A well-executed and faithful straight adaptation.  But what’s the point of that if you’re not going to outdo the 1984 movie?  Out of principle I’m downranking this even though it’s technical better than some of the following.

6. Mickey’s Christmas Carol  

Scrooge McDuck 

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It’s a watered-down children’s cartoon version, but it’s well-executed for what it is and quite earnest. Well-animated as well.  Best unfaithful version.

5. The Muppet Christmas Carol

Michael Caine

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It remains faithful to the book while adding its own fun in creative ways.

4. Scrooged

Bill Murray

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An original, modern retelling, it does justice enough as an homage while being counted among the great comedies of the 80’s.

3. Scrooge (1951) 

Alastair Sim

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This classic and faithful black-and-white movie has aged quite well.  It’s regarded as the definite version before 1984.  Definitely worth checking out.

2. A Christmas Carol (1971)

D: Richard Williams

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Like a weekday morning short Mass, this version impressively condenses the meat of the source material into 25 minutes without losing much substance.  Heck, even most of the good lines are maintained.  The animation is excellent, but its dark, haunting visuals might be too much for some kids.  Overcame the visual limitations of its time.

1. A Christmas Carol (1984)

George C. Scott

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This is the best, bar none.  It’s aged perfectly, and it’s faithful.  The casting is great and the visuals are gritty.  If you can only see one version of this classic tale, make sure it’s this one.