• Welcome! The TrekBBS is the number one place to chat about Star Trek with like-minded fans.
    If you are not already a member then please register an account and join in the discussion!

What's The Best Version of Dickens?

What Is The Best Version of a Christmas Carol?


  • Total voters
    22
  • Poll closed .

The Boy Who Cried Worf

Rear Admiral
Rear Admiral
Every year at this time I try and watch as many versions of Charles Dickens A Christmas Carol as I can. This story has been adapted for film and television at least a few dozen times, but I believe there are eight that have generally stayed in the public consciousness. Here are my evaluations.

1935(Seymour Hicks) - Good performance by Hicks. His transformation is perhaps a little to quick although ironically it probably mirrors Dickens most closely. Very truncated version. No Scrooge as a boy and no Fezziwig. Also the ghosts of Christmases Past and Future are not shown as real figures, but as a shining light and a pointing finger only.

1938(Reginald Owen)- The worst of the lot. Typical 30's Hollywood. Much of the story is gutted to focus on hokey scenes of romance and silliness. The music is too light and Owen's performance reminds me of the flying monkey's in Wizard of Oz. Ann Rutherford as the GOCPast is quite the babe though.

1951(Alistair Sim)- Generally considered the best version and I agree. Sim goes through the greatest transformation from beginning to end and takes the right amount of time. He is bitter and spiteful in the beginning. By the end he is grateful for this new world that has opened up to him, but forlorn at the realization of what he missed out on in life. Dark in the right places, amusing and light in the right places.

1962(Mr. Magoo)- Still haven't seen this one.

1970(Albert Finney) - An odd movie. A musical version that I didn't like when I first began watching it, but it kind of grew on me. Finney's Scrooge is a little strange. He almost plays him in an inhuman way. And I didn't quite care for the controversial scene with Marley in hell. But the songs are kind of catchy and Finney's quirkiness grows more amusing and intriguing as the film goes on.

1984(George C. Scott)- My second favorite one although I didn't like it as much this time around. Ironically the reason why I originally liked it did not appeal to me so much this time. Scott plays a very cynical Scrooge. His transformation. He is surely and curmudgeonly almost throughout the film. No one can growl like Scott and he brings a huge gravitas to the rile. But it also felt like the message of the spirits weren't having that much of an impact on him right up to the time of his conversion. A very elaborate piece thought that touches on all the important elements and truly feels like a complete story.

1992(Michael Caine) - Saw this for the first time this year. What can I say, it's the Muppets. Like ACC itself the Muppets have a kind of timeless appeal that can be enjoyed on many levels. The humor and drama are mixed well. It is very difficult to pull off a scene where Scrooge threatens to fire everyone, then we cut to calypso singing rat puppets, but it works. Caine is excellent playing a straight Scrooge. Gonzo the Great and Rizzo the Rat should narrate all films.

1999(Patrick Stewart) - I have not watched this version yet this year. It will be interesting to see again because ironically I did not care for this version as much for precisely the opposite reason as Scott's version. Stewart's Scrooge is too sympathetic too early on. He regrets his life and his actions almost from the get go. Probably visually the best looking of all the films though with striking use of black and white as colors.
 
You missed one. Henry Winkler in an updated Carol set in the Great Depression. A bit odd looking but a good movie and Winkler was pretty convincing as Scrooge.
 
I picked "other," and that's because there's no way I can pick only one. My favorites are the Alistair Sims, Patrick Stewart and Muppets versions, but you really don't have a lemon on that list, as far as I know - I don't think I've ever seen the 1935 version.

I'd forgotten about the Henry Winkler version, Mistral, but you're right, it was really good.
 
There's one with Jack Palance set in the wild west. It's called Ebenezer. I thought it was pretty good. Palance made a great Scrooge, which made his transformation all the more meaningful.
 
I'll always like the George C. Scott version best. I love his performance, and he works with an awesome supporting cast, especially the recently deceased Edward Woodward as the Ghost of Christmas Present.

The Michael Caine version I have a soft spot for, because it's the Muppets, and you can't hate the Muppets.
 
I watched the 38 one that was on TV the other night. Sheesh what crap it was. Most of the "draker" elements are removed and Scrooge's heart seems to chage too early and too easily.
 
The Muppet Christmas Carol trumps everything, ever.

This is my island in the sun!
 
No choice for the 1843 novel?

I'm pretty sure I've seen all the ones you've mentioned, and I just think each falls short in its own way.
 
There is another you missed. I had the misfortune of stumbling across it on TV the other day:

A 2004 TV-movie--"A Christmas Carol: The Musical" starring Kelsey Grammer as Scrooge and Jason Alexander as Marley's Ghost.

Good Lord, that was by far the worst, most LAME production I have ever seen. :rolleyes::rolleyes:
 
No choice for the 1843 novel?

I'm pretty sure I've seen all the ones you've mentioned, and I just think each falls short in its own way.

Oh, I love the novel - I usually reread it every year.

Corp. Clegg, am I remembering correctly that you and I had a very similar exchange one time on a thread about Dracula? Where everyone was talking about the movies, and you brought up the novel? Maybe not. But this does feel very deja vu-ish.
 
Last edited:
What about the latest version with Jim Carrey? Even though it's computer-animated, surely it still counts (I mean, if you're gonna put Mr. Magoo up there...). I haven't seen it though, so I can't say how it is.

In fact, I think the only version I've seen is The Muppets Christmas Carol, but I thought it was pretty good. Come on, it's the Muppets -- what more do you need?
 
There's been several really good adaptations but the Alistair Sim version is the best, hands down. A distant runner-up for me would be the George C. Scott version.
 
There is another you missed. I had the misfortune of stumbling across it on TV the other day:

A 2004 TV-movie--"A Christmas Carol: The Musical" starring Kelsey Grammer as Scrooge and Jason Alexander as Marley's Ghost.

Good Lord, that was by far the worst, most LAME production I have ever seen. :rolleyes::rolleyes:

Oy! I think I remember that one. Not good stuff.

Never been a fan of Scrooged or the Muppets version. I do really like the Disney version with Scrooged McDuck as, well, Scrooge and Jiminy Cricket as The Ghost of Christmas Past (I don't recall who did the other ghosts, except for Goofy who was Marley.)

I did really like the 2009 CGI Animation version.

One of the better adaptions I feel.
 
If you are not already a member then please register an account and join in the discussion!

Sign up / Register


Back
Top