A CHRISTMAS CAROL

By: Frederick C. Szebin
Date: Saturday, December 04, 1999

Since 1911 there have been around two dozen versions of Charles Dickens' venerable tale of a bitter man rediscovering his humanity at Christmas time. Many Feel Alistair Sim was the best cinematic Scrooge, although one wonders if these pundits ever saw Albert Finney's remarkable portrayal in SCROOGE, the wonderful musical based on the novel. Such notables as Reginald Owen, Sterling Hayden, Tim Curry, Michael Caine, Bill Murray, Rowan Atkinson, Henry Winkler, Jack Palance (in a western version!), Mr. Magoo, Fred Flintstone and Yosemite Sam have taken on the role of Ebenezer Scrooge in one form or another. You might think that George C. Scott's performance would have been the last word, but that is apparently not the case. Now Patrick Stewart, who has performed the role on stage, joins Robert Halmi, Sr. (GULLIVER'S TRAVELS, THE ODYSSEY, ANIMAL FARM) to offer yet another filming of the holiday tale that adds contemporary CGI to Dickens' 19th Century novel.

You know the drill: nasty Ebenezer Scrooge is warned by the spirit of his partner, Jacob Marley, to expect three ghostly visitors to take him on a whirlwind tour of his past, present and future, to show him not only his life-affecting mistakes, but also how the small circle of people around him view him. Through these visions, Scrooge finds Christmas in his heart and becomes the finest man in town, beloved by those very people he had kept away.

Why Stewart saw the need to offer this umpteenth interpretation is his own business. Certainly Scrooge is quite a wonderful character for an actor to take on, but so many have done well with it over the years, and more versions of A CHRISTMAS CAROL become available every year, that the material becomes dulled by sheer repetition and familiarity. Stewart is, of course, wonderful in the role, offering his own nuances to the meanest man in town, making him a rather sad character right off rather than the ball of pure hate we expect. This is a man who has shut himself off from life, and Stewart obviously relishes the opportunity to put his stamp on this well-known character. Knowing various other performances, such as Sims, Finney and Scott, it is interesting to see how each actor plays the role. Stewart brings a style none of those other excellent actors had, but they each made him his own in one form or another.


The supporting cast is also quite good, except for the children, who are rather poor actors, except for little Ben Tibber as Tiny Tim. He handles himself nicely, but the others don't have the control of their craft that it takes to utilize Dickens' Victorian speech. Richard E. Grant as Bob Cratchet, Joel Grey as the Ghost of Christmas Future, and Saskia Reeves as Bob's long-suffering wife, are fine, as are the rest of the who's who of British thespians. The production design, costumes, cinematography are all excellent, and Barnes' teleplay is tight and mostly quite good, although it does peter out at the end. Just when are hearts are set to swell from Scrooge's rediscovery of his humanity, the production lays flat and only the soundtrack suggests what emotion there should have been.

What is interesting about this particular production is that it serves as a study of 19th Century manners, quite entertaining in that respect in this most mannerless age. The film is off to a good start with some fine CGI, particularly when dealing with the spirit of Jacob Marley, excellently played by Bernard Lloyd in a genuinely creepy ghost make up, but the effects get less and less special as the film goes on. They begin to feel almost shoe-horned into a story that needed them very little. Director David Jones has some nice flourishes, but this is far from the best adaptation of Dickens' work. The question still must be begged as to why we would need another one.

Two other excellent holiday films, IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE and CHRISTMAS STORY, serve well all these years later and don't need remakes every few years to keep audiences interested. That would be simply boring, and that's what the 1999 version of this oft-told tale has to overcome. You know what's coming. Even the dialogue is rooted in our consciousness, and the only reason to hear another actor speak it is to see what they do with it that the dozens before them didn't do. As marvelous as Stewart is--and this is his vehicle, make no mistake about that--it is a miss-chosen format to show his quite extensive acting abilities. Should A CHRISTMAS CAROL be part of your holiday viewing fareas it should be!pick one, whether it be Sim, Scott, or any of the myriad thespians who have taken it on, and stick with it. Make any particular version your annual tradition. This new version, despite the very good things in it, suffers from those poor child performers, some lackluster effects, and the better productions that made Scrooge's world real for us. This one is just going over the same material, with less of the finesse than previous Dickens adaptations.

TNT, Sunday, December 5, 8 p.m. (ET/PT). A TNT/Hallmark Entertainment production. Executive producers, Robert Halmi, Sr., and Patrick Stewart. Teleplay by Peter Barnes, based on the novel by Charles Dickens. Directed by David Jones. Starring Patrick Stewart, Richard E. Grant, Joel Grey, Ian McNeice, Saskia Reeves, Desmond Barrit, Bernard Lloyd, Dominic West, Ben Tibber and Tim Potter.

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