The American Spectator : Sing Praises to A Christmas Carol

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Sing Praises to A Christmas Carol

By John Corry on 12.24.02 @ 12:03AM

Alastair Sim in the 1951 adaptation set the standard.

According to the Dickens Society of London, there have been more than 3,000 adaptations of Charles Dickens's works, most of them for the stage, but 156 for the movies and television, not including, however, the bowdlerized, bastardized and otherwise misbegotten adaptations that draw on Dickens but have nothing to do with the spirit in which he wrote. The most misbegotten of all turn up on television during the holidays, and you should avoid them at all costs. I am referring, of course, to the vulgar travesties of A Christmas Carol.

We get, for example, the awful Scrooged, with Bill Murray, or A Diva's Christmas Carol, with Vanessa Williams. These are empty exercises. Dickens's story is about sin, redemption and salvation, and as G. K. Chesterton once wrote, it may be his "greatest work…the perpetuation of the joyful mystery of Christmas."

Nonetheless there are some quite respectable versions of A Christmas Carol, and you should try your best to see them. The gold standard in this is the 1951 movie with Alastair Sim, but we will talk about that later. Meanwhile there is the 1938 Hollywood version, with Reginald Owen as Scrooge, Gene Lockhart as Bob Cratchit, and assorted actors from the old MGM stable. It remains a joy, especially when it depicts the Cratchits.

There is also the 1984, made-for-television Christmas Carol, with George C. Scott as a full-throated, outsized but still wonderfully modulated Scrooge. It was filmed in Shrewsbury, England, and many of the supporting actors come from the Royal Shakespeare Company. It should be revived on television every Christmas, although unfortunately it is not. The 1999 Christmas Carol, though, with Patrick Stewart as Scrooge, is shown now on cable all the time.

There is simply no justice in that. The critics praised Stewart's Scrooge, but Scott's Scrooge is much the superior. Stewart, however, is bald and British, and he enunciates very clearly, and the critics were beguiled. But he declaims his way through the part, and while Scott's Scrooge is genuinely repentant when he meets Dickens's ghosts, Stewart's might just as well be Jean-Luc Picard meeting some Klingons.

There are other Christmas Carols, too. The Brits did a notable one in 1935, although they called it Scrooge. Seymour Hicks was in the title role. There is also the 1970 musical Scrooge, with a singing and dancing Albert Finney as Scrooge, and Alec Guinness as Marley's Ghost. The score, however, is nothing much, although if you insist on a musical Christmas Carol -- and I can't imagine why -- there you have one.

And finally, of course, the gold standard by which all the other versions must be judged: the 1951 movie in which Alastair Sim, as Scrooge, gives the performance of his career. Dickens describes Scrooge as "a squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous old sinner," and that's what Sim's Scrooge is. But Sim also understands the Dickens story is a fantasy, and that whatever its moral lesson it is also meant to amuse.

So even when Sim's Scrooge is at his most squeezing, wrenching and grasping, he is also both comic and pathetic, unlike, say, the upright Patrick Stewart. Dickens wanted us to pity Scrooge and not scorn him, and Sim makes that easy to do. Meanwhile, the production itself is a wonder, faithful to Dickens's London. You must see it, though, in black and white, and not in the computer-colored version. Dickens's London does not do well in color; it is supposed to be all light and dark shadows.

When the Sim movie is shown on television, it is often listed in the TV newspaper guides as A Christmas Carol, although its official name is Scrooge. No matter; it is still the same movie. Meanwhile there is a scene at the end, when Scrooge shows up at his nephew's home, but hesitates to enter the drawing room until the maid smiles and beckons him in. And if that doesn't make you cry, it should.

topics:
Television, Hollywood, Movies

About the Author

John Corry is a former New York Times media critic and reporter.

Letter to the Editor View all comments (65) | Leave a comment

POST American| 12.23.11 @ 7:00AM

--Putting aside the Globalist RED China
world TREASON OP cover up
---the FUKISHIMA depop op kick-off cover up
-----the GMO food cover up
------the weaponized vaccines cover up
--------the FEMA camps being activated cover up
AND -----NDAA's authorization of the 'disappearance' of American citizens for a moment

--HARK!

"---Well, if they're going to die let them
die and decrease the surface population."
-Ebenezer Scrooge

This holiday season, as Spielberg delivers
over-produced, self-sensitive, self-basting
horse worship and Clint Eastwood continues
to pump out demoralizing POST American
fare ----one realizes, 1951's 'Scrooge' is surely
one of the greatest, most timely, and
timeless, pictures EVER made.

AS psychopathic, INTER-national capstone
USURY mans the helm, and as their lavishly
funded priest class, the EUGENISTS, call
the shots (--er, no pun intended) it's important
to STOP and take in deeply, deeply, deeply,
like a snowflake in hell, the truth of 'Christmas Carol'.

---TAKE HEED AMERICA!

---TAKE HEED---

DTOM| 12.23.11 @ 1:00PM

POST!

and decrease the SURPLUS population...

Merry Christmas to you!

Don't Tread On Me....

O Tamandua| 12.24.11 @ 3:36PM

Ya know...

I love how Dickens took an evil man and had him face supernatural confrontation of his own deeds.

Since we began our free fall into President Obama's madness in 2009, I've honestly wondered if our President has had divinely orchestrated confrontations of his own, as the Bible says Israel's king Saul had with Samuel, or king David had with Nathan, or Belshazzar had with Daniel?

I wonder: has there been such a person in Barack Obama's life, who warned him (no matter what the cost) of the consequences to himself if he doesn't turn away from his current, near-lifelong path? (I'm afraid it's near certain said person was not Jeremiah Wright.)

I wonder, if so, what this person has said to Mr. Obama? I wonder what he's predicted? And again, if this happened, I wonder if our president even listened?

I can assure anyone who reads this - never fall for the claptrap phrase that "someone is so evil they don't have a soul". We humans all have souls, even when we think a crippled little English boy, or a God-fearing old lady in Wichita Falls, or a filthy, malnourished woman whose crime was being the fourth cousin of someone who wronged the state at the Yodok penitentiary in North Korea who eventually dies only "rids the world of surplus population". (What was it Scrooge said when asked about making provision for the poor and destitute: "Are there no prisons"?)

Everyone has a soul, just like Jacob Marley did. In fact, we're souls with bodies right now, not the other way around. And some day, based upon Who and what we choose, we will have an eternal reward.

Merry Christmas, everyone, and wishing you all a blessed year 2012.

Kelly Staples| 12.23.11 @ 8:08AM

This is indeed a gem of a film. The music is wonderful as well. First-class all the way.

dennis2j| 12.23.11 @ 8:31AM

Sim's Scrooge has been my favorite for lo, these many years. When I was a boy, the appearance of Marley's ghost--and his wailing screams--scared the daylights out of me. (And look for Patrick Macnee as the young Marley during the trip into Scrooge's past.) That said, I also have a certain fondness for the old animated version of the story starring Mr. Magoo....

Skippy| 12.23.11 @ 2:43PM

Mr. Magoo!
With songs by Jule Steyn!

JimH| 12.23.11 @ 2:56PM

Don't forget the Wasselberry dressing.

Tim F| 12.23.11 @ 7:16PM

The Magoo version was my introduction to this story when I was young. They played it after the NFL games late in the season. It's razzleberry dressing and woffleberry cakes! We've got it on DVD and my son loves it.

jocon307| 12.26.11 @ 9:02AM

YES, Mr. Magoo's Scrooge can stand with the best of them I think. I came on here to the comments to make sure it was not overlooked and I'm happy to see it was mentioned so early. (eh, I didn't read too many of the rest, payroll taxes, etc. MAY be relevant here, but enough already).

I never did know the songs were by Jules Styne, that explains why they are SO GOOD and stick in your head!

All I can say is that the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come in this scared the HECK out of me when I was a child.

All the power and the moral of the story really come through in this version and let us give praise also to the great Jim Backus who played Mr. Magoo, he needs to be remembered as one of the great Scrooges. And of course he played another famous "one percenter" as Thurston Howell III, castaway on Gilligan's Island.

It's been one of my small disappointments that I didn't get to see Mr. Magoo's Christmas Carol this year. I'm making it the first item on my wish list for next yuletide.

Merry Christmas and best wishes for 2012 to all American Spectators!

Purp| 12.23.11 @ 8:50AM

Funny this should be on AS right after the Tea Party scrooges caved on the payroll tax cut extension. Wow - how incompetent can the Republicants be? The 2 month extension is paid for - saying otherwise is a Republicant lie. Fees to Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae housing underwriting pay for the 2 month extension. That's why it is only 2 months - the Republicants would not agree to tax the millionaires and billionaires to pay for it. Social Security Insurance is not short changed - that's a bald faced Rush Loudmouth lie.

Colin| 12.23.11 @ 8:59AM

Give it rest, Dilbert.

Purp| 12.23.11 @ 9:45AM

they caved, they caved, they caved ... gutless wonders of the Tea Party radical right...

Truth to Power| 12.23.11 @ 11:14AM

Keystone. Get over it. We need to start thinking about the next thing we can bend the big O over in 2 months.

Purp| 12.23.11 @ 11:38AM

they got nothing, nothing in return; spineless slime in the House and a Speaker that ate crow for all to see. The Keystone pipeline isn't being built, so what did they get? hmmmm? They didn't get the reduction in unemployment compensation to hurt the middle class, again. What did they get except the supreme opportunity to help re-elect the President.

DTOM| 12.23.11 @ 1:02PM

Purp:

Some day, when you are much older, you might have a little better understanding of how the world actually works...

Here's to you getting older, fast.

Merry Christmas.

Don't Tread On Me.

Purp| 12.23.11 @ 1:47PM

You're funny. you know nothing and YOU preach to me. Tell me, did the House of SlimeBalls win anything for all the bluster they put up?
Answer the question, don't misdirect, that's a stupid ploy. How old are you, 12?

Redstateboy| 12.23.11 @ 2:54PM

Do you have a little Hussein alter in the basement you live in.. lit with little candles and stuff.. creepy.

Truth to Power| 12.23.11 @ 3:08PM

The big O has to cave or kill within 60 days. Not after the election. That is what we conservatives call a win-win proposition. Prepare yourself for some big disappointments in the new year. You play stupid political games with the economy and believe you will be rewarded. You are a very big idiot.

Purp| 12.23.11 @ 3:19PM

Blackmail the American people keeping the government from shutting down for defunding Planned Parenthood in April, then take the country to the brink of default in the summer, then stop passage of cops jobs programs and teacher jobs programs, hold up the payroll tax cut for an ill conceived pipeline the Republicant Governor of Nebraska doesn't want crossing his state - and you say Obama plays political games. The House Republicants can only play games, they have no power and now they've been shown to have no clothes either. The November 2011 elections were just a start on revolting against the GOP's 1% protection racket.

Cabermon| 12.23.11 @ 4:27PM

Purp, by intentionally mispelling the name of a political party you have shown your true blue-state color and your immaturity simultaneously.
Now be a good boy, have some eggnog with a shot a brandy in it, and take a nice Christmas nap......

DTOM| 12.23.11 @ 5:37PM

Purp;

Here's my Xmas present to you.

"The trouble with our liberal friends is not that they are ignorant, but that they know so much that isn't so." Ronald Wilson Reagan

You should be flattered, Purp, he was talking about YOU.

I say we boycott Purp for being so full of bologna and baloney! Anyway I am.

And to all a good night!

Yes, Purp, even to you.

DaveS| 12.23.11 @ 8:55AM

I left my copy of 'Scrooge' at my brother's house last Christmas, I found out after a frantic house-wide search. I thank Amazon for sending yesterday a new copy of the 1951 classic in just a couple of days. My wife and I watched it last night. Heck, I used to watch it every day from the day after Thanksgiving. One never gets tired of Sim. What a pleasant surprise to see this article today!

Sim is incomparable, from beginning to end. His scene with Marley's ghost cannot be matched. The switch to the look on Cratchit's face when told he was getting a salary raise is so good it doesn't look like acting. I must believe Sim ad-libbed a few lines when Mrs Dilber awakened him - because they were so odd! Ditto to the commenter who thought the scene at the nephew's house was truly humbling and liberating.

If you do not own this two-disk set (I think the colorized is nice, but not better in spirit than the B&W version), get it. [I do not represent the sellers.]

POST American| 12.23.11 @ 9:10AM

"ARE there NO 'Planned Parenthood' centers?
--------------IS there NO euthanasia?"
-Scrooge 2011

Just a little REALITY CHECK for the holidays.

----------------HUAC/ Nuremberg 2012---------------

DTOM| 12.23.11 @ 1:03PM

I like it - I like it.

Don't Tread On Me

Edward Cropper| 12.23.11 @ 9:12AM

The very best, no comparison. I have watched this film numerous times over the years and it never, never seems old.
All others I have seen can't even come close to it holding power. They are amateurs and that is being kind.

DaveS| 12.23.11 @ 9:24AM

The 'actors' of today merely play themselves. The actors of yesteryear had such a strong theater background that they could become their characters. Sim was but 50 years old - at most - when he did this role.

Matthew Quigley| 12.23.11 @ 9:38AM

The Scott version of "A Christmas Carol" has been shown numerous times on AMC, especially this season. I've seen the Sim version, and unfortunately, it's as caricatured as the previous versions. Sim was a fine actor, but his Scrooge was just a nasty old man, and his repentence is nowhere near as sincere as that of Scott's Scrooge. Scott's Scrooge...as are the other characters in that version...are human enough to break your heart. The supporting characters in the other versions are as broadly drawn as Scrooge is, and just fail to appeal to me. The subtlety of much of the 1984 version (yes, Edward Woodward's Ghost of Christmas Present is a very outgoing character...as was the character in the book) is what makes it work for me.

Victorian era literature tended to be more broadly written than is modern literature, and Dickens was no exception to that element of his times. This is why so many versions of "A Christmas Carol" tend to be almost caricatures of the characters. By depicting Scrooge as a hard-nosed businessman AS WELL AS a hard-hearted miser, Scott humanized Scrooge in a way Sim was unable to. David Warner's Bob Cratchit was not the loser that so many other Cratchits were...he was a hard-working father who loved his family and maintained his family's dignity. Roger Rees' portrayal of Fred wasn't that of a scatterbrained lightweight, but that of a man who sincerely loves his uncle--as well as his own not-so-wealthy wife--and wants him to be a part of his family again. Again, all characters portrayed with subtelty and as if they were real people instead of symbolic characters.

The Sim version may be the critics' favorite, but the Scott version is the version which brings the novella best to life. I just wish Scott's English accent had been better.

DaveS| 12.23.11 @ 12:02PM

Scott's version is better than most, but does not rise quite to that of Sim. Sim's handling of the charity solicitation in his office is first-rate. So is the completely unspoken scene just before Marley's ghost arrives - the anticipation, facial expressions and fear grow until it compels him to rise out of his chair violently and gasp a big fearful shout when the locked door flies open. Now, if you want to talk about Cratchit, the Scott's Cratchit is almost UNMOVED by Scrooge's salary doubling while Sim's Cratchit is so stunned (while Sim chuckles in the background) that it takes many seconds before he very slowly sees it's all true and breaks into a growing smile.

You are a good critic, and probably versed in the literature of the times. I saw portions of Scott's the day before yesterday (on AMC as you say) and Sim's last night. Everyone has a favorite, and these two stand out above the rest.

Old Blevins| 12.23.11 @ 6:53PM

Fully agree. George C. Scott was the best Scrooge. (Typing the words "best Scrooge" is a little weird. On a side note, I disagree with Mr. Correy that the musical score in Albert Finney's "Scrooge" is subpar. I can't count the number of time's I've sung, "Thank you very much, Thank you very much, That's the nicest thing anyone has every done for me" when someone has done a favor for me. Catchy tune.

Jones in CO| 12.23.11 @ 9:45AM

I'm a great fan of the George C Scott version. I don't think I've seen the Sim version in decades.

Andrew B| 12.23.11 @ 10:04AM

Each of the versions mentioned has some particular merits--Sim's performance (ditto George C. Scott), the sets and general look of the 1938 version, etc. What all of them lack, and almost every other version ever filmed (the exception, ironically, is The Muppets), is the second most important character in the book--The Narrator. He has more lines than all the other characters combined (and many of the best ones), and is constantly moving through the action with wit and charm.

Why nobody except The Great Gonzo has ever portrayed this vital figure is a source of bewilderment to me.

Tom| 12.23.11 @ 11:37AM

I so agree! Michael Caine is brilliant - but so are Scott and Sim.

BTW: each Christmas I must see two Christmas scenes: 1) Ralphie having Santa tell him he'll shoot his eye out and pushing him down the slide with a boot to the face and 2) Caine throwing the wreath at the singing bunny in the Muppet version!

Skippy| 12.23.11 @ 2:54PM

Call me one sick puppy, but Christmas is not complete until I hear Alan Rickman read the line, "Now I have a machine gun. Ho, ho ho."

Merry Christmas and yippee-ki-yay.

Evelyn| 12.23.11 @ 10:05AM

Hmm. I'll have to give the George C. Scott version another look. Just yesterday I caught a few minutes of the beginning and was surprised to see (or, rather, hear) David Warner as Bob Cratchit. That bit of casting makes no sense to me--Warner would probably have made a good Scrooge.

It is so difficult to find broadcasts of the Alistair Sim version. (I'm not into buying recordings on soon-to-be-obsolete media--like DVDs.) Hallelujah, I managed to find one several days ago and it's on our Tivo ready for viewing tonight!

Gene| 12.23.11 @ 10:28AM

There is Alister Sim, and then everyone else fighting for second place. FYI The George C. Scott version has been playing in the AMC Channel all week. It should be mentioned that not only Scott gives a good performance (Sill behind A. Sim) but also David Warner should be mentioned for giving an incredibly authentic but controlled performance as Bob Crachit.

Gene| 12.23.11 @ 10:35AM

BTW
I STRONGLY agree that David Warner should be given the opportunity to play the immortal Scrooge. Lionell Barrymore played Scrooge every year on the radio version of "A Christmas Carol" and probably would have been memorable in a film version. Illness and injury stopped him and that is why Reginald Owens got the part. Mr. Barrymore did give us a taste of how great he would have been in the role by playing Mr. Potter in "It's a Wonderful Life".

ScottM| 12.24.11 @ 1:47AM

Mr. Potter is one of the nastiest screen characters ever. He outdid Scrooge as a completely contemptible person by a mile. In the early part of A Christmas Carol, Scrooge portrayed a man that, all in all, would have been quite content to be left alone. Don't bother him with requests for charity and shouts of "Merry Christmas." Just stay away. Potter went out of his way to make other people miserable. On top of it, he showed himself to be a common thief when he didn't return the money folded up in the newspaper handed to him by Uncle Billy. Not even Scrooge could lay claim to such an act of villainy.

astorian| 12.23.11 @ 10:42AM

I give the George C. Scott version extra points for this: by the time I’d seen it, I’d already seen hundreds of versions of “A Christmas Carol,” with everyone from Reginald Owen to Mr. Magoo. Every sitcom has done an episode based on “A Christmas Carol.” Hence, I was sort of tired of the story, and inclined to think there was nothing new or interesting anyone could do with it.

George C. Scott proved me wrong. And what made his performance interesting and compelling is that, unlike most Scrooges, Scott is NOT too quick to accept the suggestion that he’s wasted his life. Scott’s Scrooge is PROUD of himself and all he’s accomplished, and he’s actually HAPPY with his life. He loves being a shrewd negotiator and he gets an unmistakable kick from getting the better of business rivals.

Most Scrooges are clearly bitter and miserable. Scott’s Scrooge isn’t. When Scott says that every Christmas loving fool should be boiled in his pudding and buried with holly through his heart, why,, he’s PLEASED with himself! He thinks he’s made a rather clever remark. And while he’s not a doting uncle, he seems to ENJOY trading quips with his Fred, and seems to relish give-and-take with his nephew. Scott’s Scrooge is a funny guy, which may explain how he was once able to charm Miss Belle.

Similarly, Scott’s Scrooge engages in give-and-take with the spirits. Yes, he’s a man with some major regrets over what he’s done with his life, but he’s NOT about to dismiss his entire life and career. He SPARS with the spirits. Scott’s Scrooge is sad about the end of his engagement to Belle, but it’s a qualified sadness. HE doesn’t go to pieces, as too many other Scrooges do.

In short, Scott’s Scrooge feels like a REAL person, with virtues AND flaws. He’s not a cartoon, nor is he a paper-thin symbol of evil.

Andrew B| 12.23.11 @ 11:05AM

I agree that Scott is masterful in his performance. His pride in his life--misplaced as it is--sets him apart from other portrayals.

Another performance worth noting is Frank Finlay as Marley. He has just the right tinge of horror and madness. Marley has, after all, spent the last 7 years in Hell, so madness and horror are his meat and drink. Too many others play Marley as a stuffy businessman, not a damned soul.

RJ| 12.23.11 @ 12:17PM

I agree. George C. Scott's Scrooge is my favorite too. He presents a more believable character. Of course, the Sim and Owen versions are also classic. Something to be watched each year.

Redstateboy| 12.23.11 @ 11:29AM

My two high points of the film are: Marley.. the acting is fantastic! In, most likely, the best tradition of the English Shakesphearean theater. In other versions I've seen, Marley barely intimidates Scrooge but in this one; Marley scares the Hell out him and makes him believe this is for real.
The other scene is when Scrooge/Sims realizes he didn't miss Christmas.. the acting is outstanding and if you don't mist up a bit at the joy.. there might be something wrong with you.

KyMouse| 12.23.11 @ 11:35AM

I'm partial to the George C. Scott version as well as the Alistair Sims one. However, it's the Mister Magoo version that gave my family songs we sing every Christmas -- songs about "the Lord's bright blessing" and "razzleberry dressing."

If you're ever in southeast England, take a trip to Rochester, which has the Charles Dickens Centre and related sites. It also has a really cool castle.

ConantheContrarian| 12.23.11 @ 12:02PM

The music in the Sim's version is very good too. It underscores the action quite well. Michael Hordern play Marley to a T.

Jim| 12.23.11 @ 1:05PM

I think that the 1970 Scrooge is the most enjoyable. You really feel the "lost love" when he's with the first ghost, though it does have a bit of the "anti-capatilist" in the scene. I think that Scrooge wanting to make a lot of money is a virtue.

Ron| 12.23.11 @ 1:27PM

I love the 1951 version as well!!!! I bring it out all of the time, not just at Christmas, but whenever I need a reaffirmation...But, one needs to read the original Dicken's to truly appreciate the ending: "He had no further intercourse with the Spirits, but lived upon the Total Abstinence principle, ever afterwards; and it was always said of him, that he knew how to keep Christmas well, if any man alive possessed the knowledge. may that be truly said of us, and all of us! And so, as Tiny Tim observed, God Bless Us, Every One!"

Petronius| 12.23.11 @ 1:49PM

We've all seen more than one Christmas Carol and put together pecking orders of favourite casts. Kept in its idiom as an English work, Scott's portrayal must be set aside. Also of a type was Jim Backus in the animated version. But the penultimate performance is yet to be seen. If I could cast it, I'd wait a few years and see if Daniel Radcliffe playing Cratchit can stay in the frame with Simon Callow as Scrooge. Game on?

Skippy| 12.23.11 @ 2:56PM

Yes.
The entire cast of the 1984 version was fabulously human.
Warner in particular is both heartening and heartbreaking.

Andrew B| 12.23.11 @ 3:51PM

And let us not forget that it boasted the most fetching Mrs. Cratchit yet on film.

Fred C. Dobbs| 12.23.11 @ 5:35PM

The Sims version is light years ahead of ever other attempt. I saw it in a movie house as a lad of 10 before there was TV (at least in our neighborhood) and have seen it many times since. (I have the TCM version recorded for viewing tomorrow nite just before bedtime. The ONLY quibble I have with it is Tiny Tim was not very tiny and seemed pretty healthy.
All the rest of the versions (including Mr. Magoo) you can keep, EXCEPT "Scrooged" which is just marvelous and Bill Murray SHOULD have gotten an Oscar for his excellent up-date of the heartless soul-less Frank "Lumpy" Cross. A homerun all the way!

Fred C. Dobbs| 12.23.11 @ 5:39PM

P.S. Carol Kane should have been Oscared for her unbelievably perfect "Ghost of Christmas Present". I could hear her say, "Oh, YOU like the wuff stuff, eh?" 10 times a day. F.C.D.

POST American| 12.23.11 @ 10:15PM

--------------------FINAL WORD------------------------

'Scrooge' for tonight ----and, in this the year
of shameless, criminal world USURY/EUGENICS
making their FINAL power grabs worldwide
--while FUKISHIMA fallout, and FUKISHIMA
perp, GE's Jeff I-Melt-down , float free

------------------------'IKIRU'----------------------------
-----------(1952 film by Akiru Kurosawa)-------------

1951 saw Scrooge. 1952 saw 'IKIRU'.

During BOTH years we ourselves were
fighting the machinations of Globalist
installed MAO TSE TUNG.

Seems we, ever and always, get the
movies we deserve.

BTW--------------------'IKIRU' means 'to live'...

Bookdoc| 12.23.11 @ 11:07PM

My family gets together on Christmas Eve and eats homemade chicken fingers and watches Scrooged. The casting is great-right down to Mary Lou Retton as Tiny Tim! I laugh again each time I see it and have misty vision at the end. I think it truly captures the sin/redemption theme of the original.

Walter| 12.23.11 @ 11:53PM

Dennis, polka.

Barbara| 12.24.11 @ 10:31AM

Alistair Sim's Scrooge is my all time favorite, in face, I like him in this role so much, I do not watch other versions.

I do have a colorized version on VHS, though...it is not played on TV as much as the others, and that is a shame!

Sim was a wonderful actor, if anyone wants to see a great film with a great Scrooge....they should watch this one!

Barbara| 12.24.11 @ 10:35AM

If you do find Sim's version....pay extra attention to him, when on Christmas morning he confronts his maid.....excellent acting!

Makes me smile each time I see it.

rhoetus| 12.24.11 @ 12:55PM

Does Netflix or Blockbuster have the Sim movie?

Vasu Murti| 12.24.11 @ 3:24PM

(The folk song below receives airplay on KFOG 104.5 here in the SF Bay Area during the holiday season.)

"Well, Jesus was a homeless lad
"With an unwed mother and an absent dad
"And I really don't think he would have gotten that far
"If Newt, Pat and Jesse had followed that star