I cannot stand A Christmas Story, Elf or It’s a Wonderful Life.
OTOH, I would watch Bell Book and Candle 3 X a week. My favorite Xmas movie. Oh, and Auntie Mame.
The Santa Clause, a 1994 Christmas film starring Tim Allen, was OK, but it spawned two sequels. I’ve seen the first sequel and it’s pretty bad, but I don’t think I ever saw the second one, and it’s got 17% on Rotten Tomatoes.
Has there ever been a Tiny Tim who wasn’t cringeworthy? I can’t recall one.
You are correct and I’m sorry. I should have been more clear that I just made a list of all the other films. I have watched several of them. But not all of them. Several people have told me I was mistaken about the Patrick Stewart version.
And the 1999 one with Sir Patrick Stewart is quite excellent as well, if not quite up to George C. Scott’s.* He plays Scrooge as a clear-eyed rationalist, who, upon his meeting with Jacob Marley’s ghost, actually seems a little bit glad to see his old friend. And there are lots of small, nice touches I like–Scrooge tapping his foot to the music at Fezziwig’s party and reaching out for a glass of punch at Fred’s, being prompted to remove his hat during his first visit to a Christmas church service in years, playing his plea to the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come almost as a debate: “Why show me this if I am past all hope?” and pointing at him as if he’s scored a point.
Sir Patrick is resurrecting his celebrated one-man show of ACC this year for one weekend only, for charity. Given that tickets are $500 a pop, I really hope he records it this time to stream.
*George C’s kid Campbell Scott is even now starring in a stage version on Broadway.
Two more examples of horrible versions of A Christmas Carol:
*
An American Christmas Carol*—a 1979 TV movie with Henry Winkler in the Scrooge role
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/An_American_Christmas_Carol
Rich Little’s Christmas Carol–a 1979 Tv special that aired on HBO with Rich Little playing all the roles.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rich_Little%27s_Christmas_Carol
Aw. I liked them both. The Rich Little one was rather funny in that 1970s-comedy way, and An American Christmas Carol had some really great dialogue and a good performance from Henry Winkler.
My favorite lines from that one:
Jack Latham (the Marley-analogue): Hell isn’t what you think it is. It’s not fire or brimstone or pitchforks…it’s worse. It’s living in all of your past, all of the time, forever. There’s a politician sitting in a room with all of his speeches blaring at the same time…no earplugs, either. And a king who has to keep staring at the faces of the men he sent to war.
Benedict Slade (the Scrooge-analogue): But you were a businessman…a very good one! You drive a hard bargain, but you never did anything EVIL.
Jack: Evil isn’t just what you do. It’s what you DON’T do. Each day each man has a thousand chances…but they’re missed forever once they put you underground.
(Later on, when Benedict sees his ex-fiancee and her husband and children…)
Benedict: I could have had a child like that…if only things had been different.
Ghost of Christmas Present: “If”…that word can be found on dry riverbeds and trails overgrown with weeds. What’s more important are the paths we follow now.
I have never seen it. I feel like I should to get it off a bucket list, but I really don’t want to.
Well, to be honest, the part is pretty cringeworthy. Indeed, the character is pretty cringeworthy in the story as well.
There is a new horrible Christmas Carol on FX. I watched it on Hulu. It added what might have been some interesting twists but it all falls flat. However, Tiny Tim was OK. But in this Christmas Carol there can be no future friendship between Tim and Scrooge.