A Christmas Carol/Scrooge

Muppets !!

 

Has anyone mentioned the Flintstone's Christmas Carol? It sure isn't my favorite, but it is actually quite good.
In typical Flintstone fashion, Scrooge's name is E-Bone-eezer (focus on the bone)
Bob Crachit's name is Crag-itt (for the rock crag)
And there are a few other characters that get renamed accordingly too.

 

George C. Scott for me. Great performance. A close second is the Patrick Stewart version.

Which version shows Scrooge's chain being constructed in hell? I have only seen that in one version and liked it.

 

Catherine Tate

 

my wife loves the George C. Scott version...I love them all and so does she. Christmas night we watch a marathon of our DVDs...

 

Indeed...it's fabulous! ..they believe ppl want that version, and they can make more money in the commercials...IMO of course.

 

We've done our traditional viewings of the three main CHRISTMAS CAROL movies (Reginald Owen early, George C. Scott a week or so ago, and Alastair Sim on Christmas Eve). We also worked in MICKEY'S CHRISTMAS CAROL last week while we were over at Disney, and we'll probably get MR. MAGOO on sometime today.

Harry

 

The MGM version with Reginald Owen is my favorite.

 

IMO, the best version.

 

Possibly the Albert Finney musical version?

Saw that a couple of times but it did nothing for me, though there were a few good scenes here and there (none of the musical ones).

 

This is the only one I have seen this year (I look for them on TV but do not have any DVDs). I prefer versions that don't go off story with Scrooge going to Cratchit's home at the end. Patrick Stewart is good but the last scene is a little weak.

 

Best line in the Flintstone version (and must be from just the Flintstone version, because no other version has this)
The two gentlemen come into Scrooge's shop to solicit contributions for the poor. Barney (Cragit) meets them and they ask him if they have the pleasure of addressing Mr. Marley or Mr. Scrooge. Barney replies something along the lines of: Mr. Marley has been dead these seven years, and believe me, addressing Mr. scrooge is NO pleasure!
That line always cracks me up

 

we watched them all! it was still enjoyable after all these years of doing this every season...

 

I'm not sure whether my kids have ever seen "A Christmas Carol" in it's entirety . Which version would you recommend? I want one that is faithful to Dicken's story line, yet would be interesting visually to teens. Thanks! Michael, I believe you're an expert on holiday movies!

 

I have four versions of A Christmas Carol and they all have good points:

1. 1938 version with Reginald Owen: Probably the least of these, but it has some unique interpolations in the first scene which set up the story very well. I haven't seen it this year so I can't give details but I remember thinking that it was a very pleasant and entertaining version the last time I saw it.

2. 1951 version with Alastair Sim: This is of course the gold standard of ACC films, starring the electric Alastair Sim. He indeed rules this movie, but his performance is very old-fashioned theatrical and may not translate well to teenagers. However, if they want it, let 'em have it!

3. 1984 version with George C. Scott: George C. Scott really owns this performance and it's a delight to watch. He breaks the mold of Scrooge by delivering some of the most caustic lines with joyless laughter. Highly recommended.

4. 1999 version with Patrick Stewart: Stewart reverts to type and his Scrooge is the most terrifying next to Sim. There are some cheeseball moments, such as Stewart pantomining laughter at the end (Scrooge hasn't laughed in so long that he coughs it up like a hairball). However, he plays the tender moments of Scrooge very well and ably portrays the misery of a life lost to bitterness.

The 1999 version is, or course, the most modern looking one of these four but it is a Hallmark TV movie, so it ain't exactly startling in the special effects department, but I don't know of any version that is. I haven't seen the Jim Carrey animated version.

 

Either the Alastair Sim version (1951) or the Albert Finney musical (1970) featuring great songs by Leslie Bricusse

 

The Muppet version. Their finest work, I believe...

 

I forgot about that one, another great version

 

As Scrooge himself would say, "thank you very much"!

 

The George C Scott version followed by Patrick Stewart's.

 

I can recommend 2 versions:

The 1938 version is my favorite, but I also like the Mr Magoo version. My wife and I watch both every x-mass season.