Wednesday, December 4, 2019

A Christmas Carol (1984)

Christmas a humbug indeed.


As far as my opinions go, this and the Alastair Sim Chriatmas Carol are the only one worthy of watching, that and Scrooged too. I originally thought that this was a theatrically released film but it was shown as a TV movie here in the States, and it was only in theaters in the U.K. so I was half correct. And I can safely say that George C. Scott's performance alone is worth seeing this tale again. He's an actor I have great respect and admiration for, and his take on Ebenezer Scrooge is so different yet so welcome. Essentially dropping the curmudgeon miser, and instead potraying him as a tired man with a dark sense of humor and a great intelligence about him, that clashes very well with the spirits. Christmas Past is very kind and wise, starting to break down the barriers of Scrooge's emotions and this leads to Scott's incredible acting all through facial expressions, you can just see him hold this contempt for his father and his wistful nostalgia for his childhood years. It's a really wonderful sequence. Christmas Present surprised me, he's still very jolly and truthful but there is this undercurrent of anger and a strong dislike of Scrooge, it's just something you never see in the adaptations. Christmas Future is genuinely terrifying, again going for a more shroud like appearance with a gangly decrepit hand, but the sounds it manifests are what really made my skin crawl with fear. It really did unnerve me and made my eyes grow in grim anticipation. The film has a great atmosphere like last time, the lighting is amazing, the sets are well made, and it does have that unearthly disquieting mood when it needs to. The 1951 version might objectively be the best, but the 1984 version is my favorite if all down to George C. Scott's unbelievably good performance. He was such a commited and talented actor that brought so much to each part and I just love this Scrooge. 4 stars, check it out! Next time, the Christmas Carol story done right with humor abound.

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