Movie Review: A Christmas Carol (1984)

The movie stars George C. Scott, Frank Finlay, Angela Pleasence, David Warner and Edward Woodward.

We received more than 9 inches of snow in a 24-hour period this weekend and, since the roads weren't overly great for driving, we pretty much spent yesterday at home. As part of that, we ended up watching some Christmas movies yesterday afternoon. This included the 1984 version of A Christmas Carol.

I've seen quite a few versions of this film but this one is definitely one of my favorites. I think part of the reason for this is Scott (despite not having a strong British accent) was very convincing as Ebenezer Scrooge. He had a strong presence in the film that was both believable and somewhat intimidating, even when he goes through the final transformation at the end.

I also like this movie's versions of the Christmas spirits. The Ghost of Christmas Present (Woodward) is easily one of my favorites, partly because of his towering form, while the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come (Michael Carter) is just scary enough to get the point across without being too scary for the kids.

The actor who really impresses me in this movie, however, is Anthony Walters as the famous Tiny Tim. I've seen plenty of portrayals of that character, some good, some not so good. But, this is one of the few that is very convincing as far as Tiny Tim's health is concerned.

Walters' version of Tim looked as sick as everyone was describing, with the pale skin and bags under his eyes, making it much easier to believe he was facing certain death. It's much more moving than some of the other versions that only show a crutch and goes a long way in convincing us Scrooge would be willing to change, in no small part, to help save his life.

There are quite a few versions of this movie and they are only as good as the actors who play the most important characters. This movie is definitely one of the better ones as a result of that and one of the versions I would recommend as a result.

My Grade: A