A review of Disney's A Christmas Carol requires something Christmas-y. Since I pretty much used up every Chirstmas-themed fractal I created in older posts I decided to make a new image: therefor I give you Christmas Wreath '09 (since there was already another image with that title). Enjoy it as you read the review.-
A Christmas Carol was written by Charles Dickens way back in 1841 but it has stood the test of time and been re-made time and time again since the author first did readings in Victorian England and America. It has been remade for the big and small screen at least a dozen times (and that doesn't count movies "based" on the story like Scrooged). As a matter of fact Disney has gone to this particular well at least once previously (with Mickey's Christmas Carol in 1983). That version was "hand drawn" animation but their latest entry has gone The Polar Express route with computer animation.
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The good news is that this Christmas Carol looks MUCH BETTER than The Polar Express: the bad news--the process still isn't perfect (especially with secondary characters). Still, the film has a look that is nothing short of fantastic that should be seen on the big screen (the bigger the better in fact!) A lot of the shots are literally breathtaking (and could never be done live). When the animators take time, the Characters don't look like animated wax dolls, Sadly, only the leads get this treatment--secondary characters still look like video-game avatars (albeit good ones).
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I won't bother to review the plot for you here: unless you've been living under a rock you know the story... This Christmas Carol has all the scene (including a bit that has never made it into any other filmed or televised version of the story) and much of the dialog is transferred word-for-word from the original. (In my book that's definitely a good thing--and speaks well to the power and relevance of the original work>)
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Frankly I was less than impressed when I heard that Jim Carry would be providing several voices for the film (Scrooge at all ages and all three Ghosts) because he is notorious for taking things way, Way, WAY over the top. Here he keeps his performance low-key (for the most part) delivering Scrooge's lines completely straight and without a hint of smirk. OF course there is some physical comedy: it wouldn't be a Jim Carry movie without that (and it works in the context of the story and medium). Gary Oldman (Bob Cratchitt), Bob Hoskins (Fezzywig), Colin Firth (Fred) and Robin Wright-Penn (Fran) also lend their voices in small roles as does Cary Elwes.
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If I had any complaint regarding this Christmas Carol it would be the needless insertion of "action" sequences (no doubt stuck in the "pump up the volume" even as it dumbs down the story). Yes, it was cute to see the flyovers of London (at least the first time) but by the third it got a bit "ho-hum". Yet their was an extended sequence where a shrunken Scrooge flees (what I called) the Coach Devour that so completely DID NOT belong in the story that it completely pulled my head out of the movie. (Robyn liked that part better than me.)
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So in conclusion: is this a worth effort? Yes! Is it a Christmas Carol for the ages? No. This is hardly a perfect effort but the movie has a lot going for it--and it could well become part of family Christmas traditions for years to come. Everyone, but the smallest children (at least those who are easily frightened) would enjoy seeing it.
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FINAL GRADE: B+
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