I don’t know, maybe partly due to the oppressive heat we are having now, I was just looking at some old tapes of A Christmas Carol. I think the story has to be one of the most done, and re-done ones of film since movies were invented.
Anyways, everyone has their favorite. Me and my family especially like the one done in 1984 with George C. Scott. I don’t know if I’d agree it was the best though. Although I am amused by the fact for once Scrooge was a big loudmouth, instead of his typical frail old man appearance. I am actually strangely drawn to the 1999 one with Patrick Stewart. And for honorable mention, I have to add the musical Scrooge from 1970 with Albert Finney. The dialogue is incredibly corny. But the musical numbers are very nice (my mother and I esp. liked the one “Thank You Very Much”). There were also some added scenes that were also rather corny (like Marley showing Scrooge his new “room” in hell). But overall, I still think I liked it more than hated it.
Sim is the best because his bad Scrooge was so evil – like a spider contemplating a fly in his web – while his good Scrooge was so filled with delight that you can’t help but smile. His scene from the window when he asks the boy to buy the turkey has never been equaled, even when the same dialog is used.
The 1969 animated version is the first one that I ever saw. It is probably not as good as my childhood memories, but it is still my favorite.
The George C. Scott version was the first live-action version that I saw, and it made an impression. To this day, when I read the book, I visualize David Warner as Cratchitt, and Edward Woodward as the Ghost of Christmas Present. Woodward was near-perfect. He had the look, he had the voice, he had the laugh, he had the attitude. If they had done a better job of framing the shots, so that it was less obvious that he was wearing stilts, his would be the definitive performance.
The Alistair Sim version has its moments. I like the backstory about Scrooge and Marley. Usually, I don’t like it when film-makers feel the urge to scent-mark their territory on an old classic, but in this case, the additions do add to the story. Much better than the Jim Carrey version, where they added a bunch of gratuitous chase sequences, which I found more annoying than exciting.
Scott is the best because he’s not ‘evil’. He’s a lonely, bitter old man. Scott puts mor depth into the character than anyone else. Sim is good, as far as he goes. Sim and the others come across as being mean for the sake of meanness. With Scott, we can see why he does what he does. His delivery of ‘Every idiot who goes about with “Merry Christmas” on his lips should be boiled with his own pudding, and buried with a stake of holly through his heart!’ is the best ever. It not only shows his disdain for Christmas, but also shows that he still has a sense of humour. When Sim says it, he’s just nasty.
Edward Woodward makes a good Ghost f Christmas Past. I like the way he mocks Scrooge with the ‘decrease the surplus population’ line.
We watch the Scott version every year. He really nailed that role, and it’s worth seeing it just for his happy dance on Christmas day. Edward Woodward is superb as one of the ghosts, and Frank Finlay is the best Marley ever.
I like most of them. As previously posted, Mr. Magoo for the songs and for the memories of seeing it each year on TV when I was a kid. Scrooged for the humor, and Alastair Sim for tradition. The 1934 (or thereabouts) because we all marveled that we could see Lassie’s mother as a girl, and Patrick Stewart’s for the voice. I can’t pick!
June Lockhart was in the 1938 version, with Reginald Owen as Scrooge. Her real-life parents, Gene and Kathleen Lockhart, played the Cratchetts (and therefore her parents) in the film.
An easy choice, for me: The one I starred in in seventh grade. Between me and the kid who played Cratchett, I think we had the entire script memorized.
I watch Magoo, Muppets, Sim and Scott almost every year, and they all have their respective charms.
I tend to fast forward through most of Sim’s Christmas Past, though – they added so much that it drags. But his reconciliation with Nephew Fred makes me choke up, every damn time.