A Christmas Carol

5-star -- My favorite Scrooge. Alistair Sim plays the definitive Ebenezer Scrooge in the British 1951 version of "A Christmas Carol." All other Scrooges are just words on paper paling in comparison when placed next to Sim's portrayal of the villain who becomes reformed, no, transformed after visitation by three Christmas spirits. I last saw the movie in January of this year, but I have watched it just about every Christmas season since 1965. I have seen all the major characterizations including Seymour Hicks (1935), Reginald Owen (1938), George C. Scott (1984), and Patrick Stewart (1999), but none can hold a candle to Alistair Sim's performance. I gave this movie 5-stars because -- (a) it is my favorite version of "A Christmas Carol" since childhood, (b) this version has the most dramatic transformation of Scrooge from mean to joyful that leaves you wondering "I don't deserve to be so happy, but I can't help it!", and (c) the actual scenes in the original black and white version seem to most closely resemble the real London of the times. I believe that the granddaughter of Charles Dickens was actually present during filming and said that her grandfather would have liked Alistair Sim's portrayal, and that the Dickens family heartily approved of the film as most closely representing what Dickens envisioned for his story. After the movie's release, Alistair Sim was forever linked to the role of Scrooge for the rest of his career, and enjoyed when fans approached him calling him Scrooge. I think the reason that George C. Scott and Patrick Stewart don't quite make it as Ebenezer Scrooge, even though they modeled their portrayals after Sim's, is that they appear to be *acting* the role of Scrooge, whereas Alistair Sim actually *becomes* Scrooge. The movie score, consisting of classical and dramatic music interspersed with Christmas carols, has been heard played by philharmonic orchestras on local classical radio stations. One time hearing it on WFLN (Philadelphia), I could actually picture the whole movie scene by scene as the score was played in its entirety. This version was the favorite family holiday movie when I was growing up. This movie was originally filmed in black and white and should be watched as such, not the recent colorized version. In the late 1960's, we had an old hand-me-down black and white television. My father decided to get us a color TV for Christmas. It was delivered to the house in the middle of us watching the subject movie. The delivery man turned off the old set to replace it with the new color one. "What channel do you kids want?" "Channel 11" (to go back to our movie). Delivery man says, "Hmmm, something must be wrong, there's no color." "No, no, the movie is black and white." "Figures, you get a brand new color TV to watch a black and white program. Kids!" There are numerous great quotes throughout the movie. Here is a smattering of some of my favorites -- Scrooge responding after Cratchet wishing him a Merry Christmas: "You, a clerk on five shillings a week with a wife and a family talking about a Merry Christmas... I'll retire to bedlam." Scrooge to solicitors, then later quoted by the Spirit of Christmas Present: "Are there no prisons? Are there no workhouses?" Spirit of Christmas Present: "You've never seen the likes of me before, have you?" Scrooge: "Never, and I wish the pleasure had been indefinitely postponed." Spirit of Christmas Present admonishing Scrooge's indifference to his reclamation: "Mortal! We Spirits of Christmas do not live only one day of our year. We live the whole three-hundred and sixty-five. So is it true of the Child born in Bethlehem. He does not live in men's hearts one day of the year, but in all days of the year. You have chosen not to seek Him in your heart. Therefore, you will come with me and seek Him in the hearts of men of good will." Fred to his guests (during the Spirit of Christmas Present tour with Scrooge): "...I personally haven't very much faith in these newlywed housekeepers. Have you, Tupper?" Mr. Tupper: "Alas, as a bachelor, I'm a wretched outcast, with no right to express an opinion on such a tender and delicate subject. Have I, dear, distant, unmovable, Miss Flora?" Miss Flora: "Oh, you really are quite incorrigible, Mr. Tupper, quite beyond hope." [fanning herself] [But when the music starts, Miss Flora joins Mr. Tupper in a dance.] Scrooge celebrating upon his awakening Christmas morning: "I don't know anything. I never did know anything. But now I know that I didn't know, anything at all." Scrooge to Cratchet after he arrives 15 minutes late the day after Christmas: "You're a little behind your time." Tiny Tim: "God bless us, everyone!" --- I love the whole movie, but I have to say that my favorite scene is the day after Christmas after Scrooge raises Bob Cratchet's salary and sends him off to buy another coal scuttle before he dots another "i", Bob Cratchet. Scrooge: [gruffly to himself] "I don't deserve to be so happy." [laughing teary-eyed] "But I can't help it." [throwing his feather pen over his shoulder which you can see dropping behind him] "I can't help it." --- A couple of sidebars. Tiny Tim's medical condition -- A wikipedia article has speculated that Tiny Tim was afflicted with RTA-Type 1 (renal tubular acidosis) or rickets, both of which would have been treatable during his time. However, when I investigate each of these, it turns out that RTA was not medically described until 1935 and its treatment would not have been known in the mid-1800's, whereas symptoms of rickets had been reported during ancient Greek times and defined as a specific medical condition in the mid-1600's. Although its specific treatment was probably not known, it probably fell into the same category as scurvy, experience showing that eating certain foods (coicidently containing vitamin C for scurvy or vitamin D for rickets) reduced or treated the condition. So in my humble opinion, I think Tiny Tim had rickets, not RTA. Ever-optimistic Fred (Scrooge's nephew) -- At the beginning of the movie (Stave 1), Fred goes to Scrooge's office to invite him to Christmas dinner. Scrooge declines and persists in arguing with Fred. Finally, Fred says that he's never had any quarrel that he's been party to, that he came there in the spirit of bright good will and won't let Scrooge dampen it, so a Merry Christmas to him anyway. On his way out, Fred asks Bob Crachit about his family with the small talk focusing on Crachit's family chomping at the bit for the holiday and Tiny Tim's health. As Fred departs, Crachit eyes follow Fred's exit as he looks wistfully probably thinking about the cheer that Fred just conveyed compared to Scrooge's negativism (accentuated by the orchestral bassoon in the background). Patrick Macnee as the young Jacob Marley -- For most of my life, I thought that Patrick Macnee played Fred (the cheerful nephew), but Macnee actually plays the young Jacob Marley who Scrooge meets when he enters the employ of the Amalgamated Mercantile Society (owned by Mr. Jorkin played by Jack Warner) after quitting Fezziwig's. For the Special Edition DVD, which contains both the black and white and colorized versions, Patrick Macnee gives a nice introduction and closing comment for the movie. I rather think of Macnee as Jonathan Steed in the original Avengers. Mr. Jorkin, president of the Amalgamated Mercantile Society -- Jack Warner plays his character role to perfection. Mr. Jorkin is the jaded and sarcastic officer of the Amalgamated Mercantile Society who woo's Scrooge away from Fezziwig's and eventually buys out Fezziwig's company. At the board meeting, it is revealed that Mr. Jorkin embezzled from the company leaving its book value insolvent. Mr. Jorkin's remarks in downplaying his misdemeanors, in pointing out the imprudence to go public with the information, and his comments about Scrooge and Marley as the two make their proposition to the company are priceless. Mrs. Dilber, Scrooge's housekeeper -- Kathleen Harrison plays the downtrodden housekeeper of Scrooge's, Mrs. Dilber. The scene in which Mrs. Dilber is startled by Scrooge's transformation and rushes down the stairs to leave the house has perfect comedic timing. --Come back, Mrs. Dilber! Scrooge intercepts her at the steps. Mrs. Dilber is screaming not knowing what's going on. --Shhhh, please, please Mrs. Dilber. I'm not mad, even if I look it. As Scrooge puffs his hair like a monster. --Don't be violent, Mr. Scrooge. You'll force me to scream for the beadle! --The beadle, madam, ha! A fig for the beadle. Scrooge places a coin in Mrs. Dilber's hand. --A guinea? What for? --I'll give you one guess. --To keep me mount shut? --To keep your mouth shut? Oh no. No, no, no, Mrs. Dilber. It's for a Christmas present. --A Christmas present? For me? --Of course, for you! A Merry Merry Christmas. Scrooge kisses her on the forehead. At the end of our story, Scrooge "...became as good a friend, as good a master, and as good a man as the good old city ever knew, or any other good old city, town, or borough in the good old world. And it was always said that he knew how to keep Christmas well, if any man alive possessed the knowledge."

The whole cast is just the Best, Lister Sim really nailed the character.

Do you know of any novel that has so many film adaptations? Not even “Little Women” can compete. There are a number of very good ones of Charles Dickens’ classic tale “A Christmas Carol,” some w/varying titles (e.g., “Scrooge”), but this one from 1951 is difficult to beat. I’ve seen them all, multiple times, even the animated version and the modern-day (during the 1980s) comedy “Scrooged.” The exception is the movie with Guy Pierce as Scrooge that wanders excessively from the novel, is very dark, and whose wrongs include successfully demanding sex with Cratchit’s wife to keep her husband employed, and nothing to feel good about at the end (except that it does end). Once was enough. The difference in this film? Backstories in Dicken’s novel that Director and Producer Brian Desmond Hurst chose to include, which are either not included or glossed over in other films, that enrich the characters and the story. These story lines and his decisions on casting and careful direction results in a more engaging, emotional, and meaningful experience for viewers, making this the definitive adaptation against those that came before and after. Hurst obviously saw something in Alistair Sims—known more for his comedic talent up to then—to cast him as Scrooge, who excels in showcasing his acting range (similar to Tom Hanks, who began as a comedian now with 2 Oscars, as did Robin Williams) critical for the Scrooge role as a dour character who cares nothing of humanity then experiences a roller-coaster of emotions inc. fears, elation, pain, regret, devastation, and others as the 4 ghosts (including that of Marley) force him to face his past, present, and future, and then—ultimately his transformation to one who finds his heart, one full of empathy, sympathy, joy, and love. Combined with Hurst’s direction, Sims out-does Big Name actors George C. Scott, Albert Finney, and Patrick Stewart as Scrooge in other films. The British actor playing Bob Cratchit provides another stand-out performance. All characters are provided more depth under Hurst’s direction and his decision to dig deeper into Dickens' novel for backstories critical to character development and the story itself. They better explain (but don’t justify) Scrooge’s extreme condition and the indignities, suffering, and tragedies he inflicts on others, and himself. The pain and anguish is palpable across the board for his sister, wife, nephew, Bob Cratchit and family, employer Fezziwig, partner and friend Marley, and even his housekeeper, as well as those affected by his loan shark-like business practices: Until I saw this film, I wasn’t aware how badly Scrooge (and Marley) treated generous employer Fezziwig when he needed their support to keep his small business out of the hands of a powerful group or investors who target his business. Other movies simply show Scrooge as happy during his days working for Fezziwig and little else. In this film, faced with an opportunity to enrich themselves, they quickly forget Fezziwig and his life lessons and abandon him. Also a key scene just in this movie, Scrooge’s sister on her deathbed with her last words, a muffled plea for him to help her newborn son succeed in life—but gone unheard as Scrooge demonstrates his ire for her husband and just-born nephew as the cause of her childbirth complications and storms out of the room. And a more detailed look at Scrooge and his wife’s relationship that makes their end that more heart-breaking, followed by Scrooge forced to see her in the present day on Christmas Eve, in cold, dreary surroundings choosing to tend, with little more than herself to offer, to the suffering sick and poor while exposing herself to their diseases. He tries in almost desperation to reach out to her, but she cannot hear or see him. (It would have been nice to see Scrooge look her up to apologize, and to donate to her cause, apparently and unfortunately Dickens chose not to include in his novel.) And one more backstory virtually ignored in other versions—Scrooge’s treatment of longtime partner and only friend Marley as he lies on his deathbed. And there are other examples. Ultimately, this version effectively solicits more emotions from viewers over other film adaptations, relying less on star power, set design, music, and effects to wow the audience if that is your cup of tea. (George C. Scott is a favorite of mine, but even he cannot overcome his film’s stilted directing, diluted story lines, and limits to his own acting abilities.) The combined result of Hurst’s efforts is a movie more engaging, powerful, and meaningful. If this film doesn’t draw at least some excess moisture to your eyes, perhaps you also need a visit by the ghosts. Dickens’ message of the sufferings of the sick, old, destitute, and working class—taken advantage of by thieves to include the wealthy, and overlooked by the elites who run the nation—is central to his various novels. He drew upon his own experiences and issues and events he witnessed in London during the 1800s. And his stories continue to resonate, no doubt partly due to similarities that still exist today, his rich characters (whether lovable or despicable—or both in Scrooge’s case), and a feel-good ending (that may also await those with similar Scrooge qualities and tendencies). In Scrooge, Dickens uses ghosts as a vehicle to guide Scrooge through his past, present, and future life, and intends that his readers look in the mirror and assess their own life and decisions, and their effects on the unfortunate as well as family, friends, and others (I would add animals), as well as self and how you want to be remembered. I will say the accompanied music and some of the sound and visual effects are forgettable, but the expanded storylines, depth of characters, and performances are too good to overlook and easily overcome them. If I had to recommend a 2nd film, it would be the 1971 version with Albert Finney as Scrooge—although a more artsy and expensive production qualifying as a musical (even though I typically don’t care much for musicals myself). But it was done here tastefully and works surprisingly well, while still providing an emotional punch. Finally, if looking to buy this film on AMZ—perform a general search on AMZ for this 1951 version of “A Christmas Carol,” as it is listed on multiple product pages with wildly different prices, which as the time of this review can be had for $12 or so. I apologize for the length of this review, and hope it helps.

Great old movie

This is the definitive movie of A Christmas Carol! There a lots of movie versions of the story and we've seen most of them. But this is THE movie to see. Alastair Sim is a great actor and is superb as Scrooge. Don't miss the chance to get this movie.

This 1951 version is perhaps the finest version of the classic Charles Dickens' story of Christmas hope and redemption, "A Christmas Carol". It is far superior to the 1935 and 1935 versions, and even holds its own against more modern tellings of this tale. It has a very dark beginning, almost a horror film, with some wonderful special effects and scary surprises. Scrooge is wonderfully played by the great Alistair Sim, who plays the money-grasping Scrooge as if it was written for him. Plus, a wonderful supporting cast including Michael Hordern as Marley, Patrick MacNee ('The Avengers') as the youthful Marley and a wonderful performance by by Jack Warner as the cunning and deviously carefree Mr. Jorkin who first steals Scrooge and Marley from Mr. Fezziwig (Roddy Hughes) and then embezzles the company's funds until Scrooge and Marley acquire controlling interest and take over the counting house. In well played flashbacks, young Scrooge (played by Alastair Sim's good friend and protege George Cole) is shown his past, present and future in some touching scenes, such as his sister Fan's (Carol Marsh) tragic death in childbirth of Scrooges nephew Fred (Brian Worth), who Scrooge blames for Fan's death. Scrooge is also seen losing the love of his life Miss Flora (Elenor Summerfield) to his greed for money. Rounding out the cast is Kathleen Harrison as Mrs. Dilber, Scrooge's housekeeper and Mervyn Johns and Hermoine Baddely as Scrooge's clerk Bob Cratchit and his wife, and a sly performance by Miles Malleson as Old Joe, the rag and bone man that dickers for Scrooge's possesions after he's dead, and Ernest Thesiger as the creepy Undertaker. I had an earlier version of this DVD that was introduced by Pactrick MacNee, and it was my understanding that Charles Dickens' great granddaughter viewed the film and said she though it was the best version and closest to Dickens' tale as she had ever seen. Highly Recommended ***** stars!

Many people believe this Alastair Sim version of A Christmas Carol is the best film adaptation of Dickens's story. "Too good to be shown only at Christmas" is film critic Leonard Maltin's much-quoted judgment. Released in Britain in 1951 under the title "Scrooge," the film offers fine performances by Sim and a number of other first-rate British actors of the time. The most recognizable of these other actors to modern American audiences is probably Peter Bull, who went to play many film roles, including that of the Russian ambassador in Dr. Strangelove. Bull narrates the film and has a small role as a business colleague of Scrooge's. The production values -- including the special effects involving Jacob Marley's ghost and the spirits -- are fine, especially for a 1951 film. Overall, though, I still think the television version starring George C. Scott is the definitive filming of this story. That version benefits from being in color, with better effects, and a terrific performance by Scott. Interestingly, Clive Donner, who was the editor on this film, directed the Scott version. This Blu-ray edition is an improvement on the versions previously available and is certainly much better than the prints typically shown on television. I found it crisp and clean, although a few times some of the faces were a bit washed out -- a fairly common occurrence, I think, in Blu-ray versions of older black and white films. In addition, there were several times where there was bit of blurring when one of the actors moved rapidly. I don't know whether this was a fault of the transfer or of my Blu-ray player, although I can't recall experiencing it with other films I've viewed on this player. Leonard Maltin provides an interesting introduction, which puts the film in historical context and offers brief comparisons to other versions. A British cultural historian offers commentary on various aspects of the film, and an American film distributor discusses attempts to distribute the film in the United States. Apparently, the film was considered too dark to be promoted as a family film and ended up receiving only a limited release in the United States. If you haven't seen this film, you definitely should. If you are familiar with it, but don't own a copy, this is the version to buy.

I did some research to find this cartoon and luckily I found it here on Amazon. I used to watch this all the time when I was a child, no matter what time of the year it was. My dad had recorded it off of TV or made a copy from the video store in the early 80's and that's the tape we had for 10 years. Somewhere in my later childhood that tape went missing, so it's been a little over 20 years since I've seen it. Much to my surprise it's exactly as I remembered it. The only problem I have with it is the technical aspects (now that I'm older and aware of quality control for films and cartoons). The print has not been cleaned up at all. There is lines and dust and dirt on the film print and you can clearly see this when watching the film. Actually, at the 27 second mark, there is specs of dirt just sitting in the print. Even as the picture pans, the dirt stays right where it is. For those of you who might know a thing or two about photography - think of a dirty DSLR sensor and taking a picture of a blue sky on a high F number - you know what this looks like and you can see it here in this film print. The vocal quality can be very "tinny" sounding, kinda harsh in the mid-range frequencies, especially Scrooge's voice. When Jacob Marley came to visit Scrooge, I had a very hard time understanding what the heck he was saying - not that his voice has a grinding sound to it, but it just sounds like he's mumbling and out of breath. Subtitles would be helpful but they're not here. The sound is inconsistent going from a clean voice track, to suddenly sounding like they're talking through a thick blanket. And don't be fooled by this 5.1 sound that it says is presented on the case and in the menus. 99% of the sound still comes from the center channel, with a few new sound effects added in stereo sound (ex: fire, wand-waving and wind, weather). Sometimes you can still hear the sound track "warping" or "wobbling". For instance, at the very beginning of the film, the first 3 seconds, you can hear the musical score change pitch - and not in a good way - think of what a warped cassette tape might sound like. As for the picture, which I've already stated, nothing has been cleaned up. The DVD cover artwork looks much cleaner and modern, but does not represent what the quality of the cartoon looks like. The colors, brightness, contrast, and overall picture quality is inconsistent from scene to scene. I wish they'd re-release it someday with a new musical soundtrack and a cleaned up film print. There's no reason to redo the voices - if you change that, then it's simply not going to be the same. I doubt that a studio out there has the master tracks to this film to clean up the sound, or even the money to want to do that, but I'll stay hopeful and dream that someday that will come true. I know I've done nothing but a bunch of complaining on the technical aspects of this cartoon, but I still enjoy this cartoon very much. It's better than nothing and it is still very much watchable. As I got into the story, I forgot about its flaws on quality. The great thing is that I can now watch it whenever I want, just like when I was a kid, and pushing it's production flaws and lack of remastering to the DVD to the side, it's still one of my favorites to this day. I really enjoyed re-watching this film for the first time after nearly 20 years of wondering where it went. The next cartoon I have to look for is called Lucky Luke.

Film che cercavo da un sacco di tempo, consegna nei tempi prevvisti(contando che è partito dalla Germania), arrivato senza graffi, in lingua originale(inglese), peccato non sia stato a colore ma vista l'edizione di diamante va bene sia così in bianco e nero

Enjoyed watching it

si, ha cumplido mis espectativas, una gran pelicula

I`ve just bought the Eine Weihnachtsgeschichte German version of Scrooge A Christmas Carol. I bought it as it is on Bluray to replace the DVD version I`ve had for years, and managed to break it. I was dubious at first, but I have to say, It`s marvellous. The menu is in German, but if you scroll down there is the English soundtrack, with a marked improvement in picture quality, compared to the DVD. Further down the menu you find the colourised version, which is in German. If you go into the sound settings on your Bluray player, you get the English sound track. As I say, don`t be put off buying this. I paid £11.50 for the Bluray, where the DVD is around £16. My all time favourite Christmas movie, I`ll be watching a few times before the big man comes.

Filme sind Geschmackssache. Ich mag diese Version. Aber nur die in Schwarz-Weiß