Disney’s new Christmas Carol movie has done nothing less than stay true to the reputation Disney has for classic Christmas themed movies/specials. Disney’s The Christmas Carol is a 3D thrill ride through the dark world of Charles Dickens descriptive and haunting ghost story. It does the book much justice but not completely. A fan of the book would say it could’ve been pushed more.
Robert Zemeckis (Gothika, The Polar Express, Beowulf) really unleashed himself with this film. Taking a famous book and turning it into a film is hard enough and he barely pulled it off with Beowulf. However, The Polar Express was a success. There is something about holiday adaptations that he understands. He captured to true spirit of Christmas and relinquished a film strip, successfully, which is quite hard to do nowadays in the film world. Add that with the imaginative power and reputation of Disney and this is what you get.
Jim Carey playing Ebenezer Scrooge was questionable at first due to his delightful acting ability but it is now foolish to question his acting ability in general. Carey is a face of faces and a voice of voices. His likeness is even captured in the characters he played. Every version of Scrooge is played by him along with the Ghosts of Past and Present. And Gary Oldman also throws is voice in for Bob Crachit, Marley, and Tiny Tim. A talented cast for a talentful film. Oh, yes, and the visuals. This movie is an eye opener. 3D is the way to go if you have not seen this movie already. From the characters to the scenery, this movie does not leave out any details. It is so life like for a Disney film.
But enough about how good the film was (because ultimately it was, indeed, a good film). Does the film do the book any justice? It does to an extent. A Christmas Carol is a Christmas ghost story to begin with. Many overlook the ghost part of the story even though it was the ghosts many can recall. The point is it is supposed to be scary. Dickens very descriptive writing style leaves nothing back when he unleashes what would be considered dreadfully frightening back during the time the book was published (1843). But when brought to life it really is dreadfully frightening, especially when Jacob Marley’s ghost appears before Scrooge. He is SCARY. Also when the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come makes his first appearance, he leads Scrooge on a frightening chase. It was scary as it was exciting!
There are some points in the film where the story could’ve been pushed a tad more. It was too short for a story like this to begin with. Scrooge visits his past and there are quick scenes of him as a little boy and then it jumps to him as a teenager in like two minutes and two minutes later he is dancing at Fezziwig’s. His past could’ve been stressed more. That was among many other things. A days reading summarized in an hour and a half. You can see the point being made here.
All in all, it was definitely one of the closest adaptations of the Charles Dickens novel. It is a scary Christmas story full of Christmas magic and appeal. It is definitely a Disney movie, as well. Disney has outdone themselves with this guaranteed Christmas classic. But it has left the fans of the book still craving for more and that is not a compliment.
