Review: A Christmas Carol
November 15, 2009 by Jiordan Castle
Filed under Movie Reviews
I am a romantic when it comes to Christmas. I grew up in a house of videotapes dedicated to the holiday, with dozens of personalized ornaments, and a village of light-up houses that could line a walk-in closet. I’m the girl that still leaves milk and cookies out for Santa – even though my mother is lactose-intolerant – and carrots for the reindeer. So each year, I go into this season with certain expectations. Still, Disney’s revamped version of A Christmas Carol was not what I had anticipated. I imagined it would be cute, maybe even smart, but I didn’t think it would be as winning an experience as it was. It was both parts sinister and charming – everything your parents warned you about in the jump from G to PG. But a leap of faith it was, and just the right note on which to start this holiday season.
For starters, the animation is seamless. The art is key in this version of the classic tale. It manages to look clean through Disney’s black three-dollar 3D glasses, which are always relatively bulky but downright fun by association. You can practically feel the lines in Scrooge’s face; each spirit rings ethereal, and even Bob Cratchit’s tacky muttonchops look good.
Meanwhile, for every actor whose voice translates to the screen, his or her character has some trait in keeping with the actor’s real life look. Colin Firth, who voices Fred (Scrooge’s nephew) in the film, is perhaps the best example: Fred is a dead ringer for Firth, whose angular features are especially recognizable in the first few minutes. Bob Hoskins makes an incredibly jolly Fezziwig, while young Scrooge really does look quite a bit like a young Carrey.
The film comes together like a true fairy tale – tradition included. When the Ghost of Christmas Present pulls back his robe to reveal Ignorance and Want, you really learn their faces. They’re the very embodiment of human tragedy, done in a remarkably palpable fashion. While the artwork may be designed to captivate the younger set, the details brought to life by this adaptation are wonderfully refreshing for an older crowd. If you’re like me, you’ll leave the theater feeling nostalgic. You might even forget to recycle your glasses on the way out… deliberately.
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